Measurement of the air velocity and turbulence in a simulated track cycling team pursuit race

Abstract

There are many cycling events undertaken in a velodrome which involve close interactions between cyclists. During a single race, particularly the team pursuit, a cyclist can alternately be ahead of or behind another rider; two positions which have very different flow fields. Additionally, as a cyclist travels around a level corner, the relative flow experienced by the cyclist becomes curved. Due to the lean angle of the cyclist, this resolves into a change in both the yaw and pitch angle as well as the flow speed relative to the cyclist. An experimental investigation was conducted with a bicycle fitted with a three-component velocity probe placed anterior to the rider in a simulated team pursuit race. The results demonstrate a reduction in the airspeed-to-wheel speed ratio for each drafting cyclist, down to 46% for the 4th rider. The turbulence intensity increased for each drafting position, from 1.5% to 18.5%. A yaw angle of up to 7° and pitch angle of −3° were observed on the velodrome bends. In addition, a fluctuation in the yaw angle due to the cadence cycle was observed. The results demonstrate the aerodynamic conditions experienced in track cycling and can be used to inform further investigations.