Ready for the big Hula dance

From Italy to Hawaii: after the last endurance test Cameron Wurf is well prepared for the Ironman World Championship.

Cameron Wurfs Road to Kona

Now it’s getting serious: the big day is just around the corner. At the weekend the Ironman World Championship will take place on Hawaii. And anyone who followed Cameron Wurf’s road to Kona will have noticed that the Australian has a different way of doing things. But in the final phase before the ultimate highlight of the season there is no more playing around. At least we thought so. But then Cameron decided to start at Ironman Italy. A long-distance race. Three weeks before Kona. “You told me to test the final setup again in competition”, he explained with his typical rascal grin after winning the race confidently.

A setup that obviously worked quite well for him. After a strong performance in the water, Cameron completed the 180.2 km in the saddle in supersonic mode and then ran the marathon in 2:45 hours. “I took it a little easier in the race,” he told us after he’d crossed the finish line after 7:46:54 hours. So much for “no more playing around”.

„It was great, super comfortable and zero lower back pain.“

Cameron Wurf on his Bikesplit at Ironman Italy

More comfortable ride = faster run

He considers his position on the bike key to this sensational time: “It was great, super comfortable and zero lower back pain”, he enthuses.

With this statement Cameron also explains to a certain extent why the correct adjustment of the bike is so important for the subsequent run. If you can concentrate fully on the sport without having to worry about physical problems, you will of course jump into your running shoes with completely different prerequisites.

That’s why we want to briefly explain what exactly we have changed during our collaboration with Cameron:

  • optimized Aero-position

    In the aero session at the gebioMized concept-lab in Cologne we “defused” the position of the cockpit and thus optimized the weight distribution on the bike together with our partners from Staps. In spite of the resulting less aggressive position, this measure led to clear aerodynamic advantages, which should be worth three minutes in time savings. Read Road2Kona #2 for more on the topic of weight distribution

  • more Power on the Pedal

    Especially when fatigue slowly sets in on the bike, new custom-made insoles for Cameron’s cycling shoes help him to bring power to the pedals more efficiently.

  • less fatigue

    By using a shorter crank and fine-tuning the saddle position, we were able to reduce muscular fatigue, especially in the pulling phase with every pedaling movement. This effect adds up massively during a ride of 180.2 kilometers – and has a corresponding effect on the performance in the final marathon.

Facts & Figures

Before (left picture) vs after:

  • Saddle position adjustment leads to 7°ankling change which leads to a prolongation of the pushing phase
  • more stability in the shoes
  • less stress on the hamstrings, especially at the end of the pushing phase

Cockpit-Talks

But back to the beginning and the question why someone would do a long-distance race three weeks before Kona: One reason was to test the new cockpit, which was made especially for Cameron’s Pinarello Bolide TR+. A measure that we discussed controversially, because we have to admit that we weren’t exactly enthusiastic about the idea at the beginning. Of course, a fully personalized 3D printed handlebar can give you an aerodynamic advantage. But we have often enough seen that it increases or even causes biomechanical problems. If hands and forearms are fixed at the front almost like in a vice, this can lead to shear stress in the area of the pelvis and lower back. A nightmare for every bike fitter. Especially when you consider how super stable Cameron used to be on the saddle.
The solution consisted of two important points:

  1. The handlebar was designed to allow Cameron to adopt multiple hand positions.
  2. The entire race setup was tested under race conditions before Kona.

Which brings us back to Italy. The result is known. And now Kona. We are very excited about the race this weekend. But we’re pretty sure that Cameron is well prepared. We wouldn’t be surprised if he got off the bike three minutes ahead of his competitors. And if he then runs a 2:45 marathon again …