Aero Road Vs TT Bike | Which Bike For Triathlon?

Choosing a bike for racing triathlon is tricky, especially if you're looking to go fast but you don't have the budget for multiple bikes. So, is investing in a TT or triathlon going to gain you significant speed over the bike leg over and aero road bike? Or is the versatility a dropped bar machine offers a better choice? Mark has decided to investigate.

Aero road bikes and triathlon bikes are both speed orientated machines, but how much faster is a tt bike, and is it worth trading off the handling and comfort of a road bike for? Join Mark as he investigates this very question.

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[troyasee]

Aero Road bike with aero bars is the real life contender!!!

[charlesainsworth]

I'm a middle-of-the pack, fairly new, triathlete and my experience agrees with your conclusions in this video. I use a Trek 3.0 Madone road bike with clip-on aero bars and a noseless saddle and I find I do much better, placement-wise, in races with a lot more hills and turns. In races that are mainly flat and straight, the TT bike riders are much faster. One reason I can tell is that I encounter a lot of the same competitors in the local triathlons around here, which makes it easier to compare times on different types of courses.

[shuonanzhao]

What an excellent video! What I would like to add though, is that TT bike’s geometry makes it significantly easier to get into the aero position; while you need to be pretty damn flexible to get the same position on a road bike. So not everyone could be as aero on a road bike+tt bar as Mark could

[laurentswimmer]

I would love to see entry triathlon bike vs high end triathlon bike

[ngdawgs]

LMAO 😂😂… love the beeping sound effects 🤣😂. Thanks for another great vid. I’m sticking to my road bike.

[PitPStar]

Great comparison. was waiting for years for it.

[jbspillman]

Plus the TT bike saves your legs for the run after that bike segment!

[MrMeowNow]

Awesome content, thank you! I actually ride my triathlon bike everywhere... no issue...

[SBoots]

I started with a steel frame mountain bike, Knobby tires and clip on bars. Fell in love with the sport and purchased a carbon fibre road bike with clip ons. Bought this in January here in the cold prairie of Canada. Now you show me this video and I'm still 4 months away from riding out side. The agony. Lets see how the comparison is with this bike. It better be at least 10% better. Cheers and thanks

[b_xee]

Basic road bike with a tt extension is all you need as amateur

[metamurph]

this could have been the GTN/GCN shootout -- Si the "gcn tt champ" vs. Mark. Great topic. For me that argument of which to buy and because a LOT of my riding is just me and my climbs in AZ are little :-(

[joyridaz]

Would love to see this same comparison with some running tagged on the end to see if the legs are fresher after the Tri bike

[lindelystables]

HAHAHAH "Sam, The Machine, Pictor" - 4:00 - Too funny 😝

[nickvandam]

I've been riding with clip-ons for years, finally getting an old entry level tt bike, looking forward to seeing what difference it makes.

[NihilimZA]

My budget only allows one bike and I have a TT bike. I mostly only race Ironman but I don't have the choice of doing normal road races anymore because they don't allow TT bikes. That is a bit consideration most people don't immediately think of.

[eoinogorman]

I have both a Felt IA1 and a Felt AR1. The IA1 is substantially faster over the shorter / medium routes that I do. It makes the most of my decidedly amateur ability.

[mathewkirk]

For me it’s not just about speed. It is about how fresh I feel getting off the bike and into the run. The TT saves time on the bike and again on the run leg.

[MrParacristo]

I have wondered this question since I started cycling. When I first started all that I wanted was a TT bike. I ride in groups and commute and now I do a lot of touring. I am not fast (by comparison) and I love to just be on the bike for extended periods of time. When I first got into cycling all of my buddies POO-POOED the idea of me purchasing and using a TT bike as my main bike. I loved the look, the aerodynamics, the sleekness, everything about them. My dream bike was a Cervelo or a Shiv… I never got one as we all know that conformity in cycling is pounded into us from day one!!! This video delights my heart knowing that in essence “I WAS RIGHT”. I know that this request is going to be met with much disdain… could you do a video on how well a TT bike would do as a commuter?

[franklinzhang]

what an amazing video! This helps me a lot in considering whether to buy TT or aero road bike.

[mgn_tr.i]

Follow-on video idea: Which bike is faster in T2/the run? (Which leaves your legs fresher for the run)