Were Drop Bars Faster at the Leadville Trail 100 MTB Race? Race Tactic and Power Analysis

The Leadville Trail 100 is a mountain bike race... or is it? I decided to ride with drop bars on my hardtrail mountain bike this year to give me an aero advantage. Did it work out? Here is the full race analysis with power numbers.
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[@jakegleeson1554]

Love the diss at gcn😂

[@randyhale4181]

It will be amazing to see how many drop bars are at the Leadville race next year

[@veganpotterthevegan]

5:30 for Keegan and his drop bars next year

[@ezramullen4551]

Said he tried drops and couldn't get the fit right? Flat bars are better off road anyway clearly

[@veganpotterthevegan]

@ezramullen4551 if they're better off road, everyone would be riding flat bars on their gravel bikes if they don't ride much pavement.

[@pgn666]

@@veganpotterthevegan off road =/= off pavement :) gravel road is a road :) single track is off road.

[@veganpotterthevegan]

@@pgn666 semantics. That's not what this conversation is about.

[@grantrutenberg2847]

Dylan, huge thanks and respect for your cutting edge application of the data and the kind education you give to all around you!

[@mtbrichard]

A few miles southwest of Leadville, Tomac is sitting in his KZbin chair marveling at this new drop-bar mountain bike idea.

[@kr7epj4x]

Running it so close with Logan is great! He is a former US cross champ and spent like 3 years in the world tour!

[@FrankAllen-fx2hw]

hey!!! where the love? GCN training videos changed my world

[@mattkretchmar6374]

Thanks Dylan. You continue to put out the best performance oriented bike content on the tube.

[@gregtitus2467]

Outstanding race...not only for your performance, but for 1. having the courage to take a risk w/the dropbars & 2. nailing the balance between your self−perceived prerace form and the wattage goal you set for pacing. That seems to be an especially delicate decision, which you nailed, but I can see how easy it would be to miss-calculate. Well done! I enjoy your humility and objective evaluation of your performance. I never feel, when watching your videos, that you're arrogant or ego-driven. Backwards Hat is a very good feature of your videos...keep 'em coming! I enjoy the chuckles. :)

[@Andy-qp7eq]

Love the monstercross look regardless of if it’s faster

[@georgehugh3455]

*_Big Time Congrats, Dylan!!_** You beat Lance's '09 Course Record ride (and his **_"Patented Winning Formula"_** 😂) by over 2 mins!!*

[@Utaheyelid]

Spotted you instantly on Columbine as you passed me with those drop bars. Gave you a shout out coming out of Golden Burro with your takeout. Thanks for the great videos. Your pacing advice worked great for me as well. Kept to my lower power at the start and did a negative split. Such a cool race.

[@maritimezombie7684]

Now Leadville is a Monster Gravel race! Love these Drop bar MTB updates!

[@whip113]

Dylan, your Leadville setup finally convinced me to try out a drop bar mountain bike. I'm really liking it for my z2 endurance rides as I can mix in single track and gravel to keep it interesting.

[@djiembefolaDan]

Awesome content and forward thinking. Congrats for crushing it with dropbars!

[@RoadHardened]

Best cycling content on youtube!! Absolutely love it! Keep it up!

[@michaelhotten752]

Another amazing job Dylan. You are quickly becoming a pacing guru. I know many Leadville citizen racers are wowed by what Keegan did but for real advice they should be looking at you and your strategy. It's way more applicable to the folks behind the Gold corral. Congrats and looking forward to that Leadville bike video.

[@USMC7178]

Very entertaining Dylan!

[@ChrisWagner-bh3vn]

I predict that at Sea Otter next year, Canyon,Specialized,Factor, etc..will all release a new "hybrid"MT/Gravel Bike with drop bars and Gravel tires. Or not.

[@lechprotean]

the correct and catchy name IMO is monster-gravel and I'm drifting towards such setup for my bike adventures where I don't know if I end up on fine fine gravel or a rough patch of desert or a gnarly singletrack. Which is almost never, but still.

[@Emolokz]

@@lechprotean isn't it monstercross?

[@richeeg3271]

Something like that kinda already exist. Look up Salsa Cutthroat, it's a drop bar bike that can fit 2,25" tyres. It's been specifically designed for the tour devide bikepacking event

[@Emolokz]

@@richeeg3271 insanely overpriced, honestly. We just need more 12x148 rear dropout frames rather than 12x142 frames for gravel imho. That makes them much better for being the best of both worlds.

[@kokonanana1]

750B tires? See: The Ride with Ben Delaney

[@jrbowens]

You made us wait a WHOLE WEEK for this recap...worth it. ;-)

[@becausewin]

dude i love your race analysis

[@adamgurule1458]

Super cool Dylan! Thanks for sharing!

[@JayRappa]

Great job pacing again. I wish I had the same discipline on race day….

[@DonnyDonnMendoza]

Love the video & the (not so) random pot shots taken at the big guns

[@anthonyharris483]

I converted three of my mountain bikes to drop bar and love it.

[@anthonyharris483]

​@user-ve8oh7jd2fWhatever smart ass

[@fgiraffe8751]

Awesome video, congrats on the fantastic ride. Of course "everyone" will probably focus on your use of drop bars which is somewhat unique for your skill set. But your discipline to stick to your pacing strategy is something any old fool could implement and have a huge positive impact on their day. Love your videos keep it up and good luck with the rest of your season.

[@AM-bl2cs]

Gravel bike with front suspension fork like the Revolt X or Canyon Grizl, or something racier like the endurace but again with a front sus 40mm fork, with a chunk gravel tyre on front and a fast roller on the rear would be ideal. Just run tubes with stans and high PSI and flats wont be an issue.

[@martinnavarre745]

Thank you Dylan for thinking outside the box ... one of your best videos. My only criticism is not using the word monstercross, but perhaps you are just too young - not your fault. Congrats on the excellent result!

[@ekimviewmaster5010]

ALWAYS a good day, when a new DJ race video breakdown comes out ❤

[@matismud]

Dylan, you are my hero🥇

[@justinofboulder]

Not a bike racer but I always enjoy your content, especially the data and interest in optimization (athletically and equipment). Having run the LT100 several times, and ridden the LT100 MTB (Leadman in 2009) I would agree that pacing is so much more important at that altitude than at sea level. Congratulations on improving your time by so much this year!

[@akersj1973]

Dylan, I wanted to let you know that I totally agree with your drop bar MTB setup. As a mid-pack age grouper I found myself at Big Sugar last year (2022) deciding between my Canyon hardtail with 2.2 RaceKings and a Cannondale CAADx with 40mm tires. Due to your recommendations on tires I went with the hardtail and could not have been happier. The suspension fork, larger tires, more relaxed geo all led to an awesome day on the bike. Only drawback was the flat bars for riding position and aero. Since then I have built up a steel hardtail with suspension fork and drop bars. I love this setup. At age 50 and not expecting to ever be in the "winning" group at most gravel events I cannot see any reason to race a different setup. I have the comfort, extra control on descents, traction in chunky or sandy stuff, and the list goes on. I can see the guys at the pro level wanting the lightest and fastest setup but for the majority of riders out there the drop bar MTB is the way to go!! Keep fighting the good fight sir!! 😁

[@michaelstoecker4178]

Love your race reports!

[@GerritD]

Watch Specialized come out with a dropbar 100mm travel mountain bike within a year. They'll call it the Leadville and it will MSRP for $6,500

[@Mas421]

Yes, and all the gravelbike-enthusiast will sell their bikes to follow the new hype

[@davidfidler6449]

The lower temperature this year played a big role in the faster times. Great effort!

[@MarlowWhere]

​@@BGRANT777Xit was in 40s in Leadville that morning.

[@davidspagnolo4870]

​@@BGRANT777Xare you in Leadville? Is it still August 12? Because if either of those things aren't the case it doesn't really matter what the temperature is where you are, because we're talking about the temperature in Leadville on August 12th, not "the general climate conditions at whatever random place BGRANT777X is"

[@OGillo2001]

Sterling work and great breakdown. Hoping you can gain a few notches in the last few for the LGP. Cheers, Rory

[@TheEquineImage]

Great content as always on my favorite cycling YT channel.

[@ticklefritz5406]

Nice work Dylan!

[@Ghostina1]

Love that GCN bit!!!

[@mikeherring6960]

Great race recap. I love the channel and your content. Keep up the good work.

[@peterknight7880]

Another very well executed race. Kudos dude. 👍

[@alainpfammatter8224]

Congrats for this excellent result👏

[@robbchastain3036]

Congrats on running in the Top-20 in the series and thanks for giving us the play-by-play on your success at Leadville. And not to fuss or anything, but aren't there ten climbs on the course, five out and five back? And I really like your bike set-up, particularly getting low and fast with drop bars and a dropper post. And it was a bit cheesy of your competitor to snatch the place ahead of you after not helping, It would seem to be more in the spirit of gravel for a rider in that situation to get to the line like a low rider on Main Street on a Saturday night.

[@marcfarrelly5944]

I am pro drop bar all the time, plenty of MTB courses I have done well on a CX bike

[@robertcatuara5118]

Shots fired!! GCN look out. I like GCN for what they are. Just as I watch you. Completely different content but enjoyed just the same.

[@lexington476]

Same.

[@richardvaughn168]

Congratulations on a great race. Outstanding discipline in following your race plan.

[@jeffreykluge401]

Nice ride, Dylan! I really appreciate your videos. So many good digs. :)

[@tomhenry3062]

Absolutely love your content, lad and these race breakdowns are awesome 👍

[@jwfriar]

Great video as always - enjoyed going in the journey with you. Great finish as well

[@1cb2bc]

unusually good race recap / analysis. great videos - thanks dj

[@PlumpyDelicioso]

Great info and content. Love watching this stuff. Congrats of the smart pacing and riding! You killed it

[@markokitzing4291]

Awesome review! And congrats for this great result!

[@OUTDOORS55]

Im beginning to think backwards hat Dylan, and Dylan are the same person..🤔

[@MaxwellPowers666]

Fun to watch you progress

[@hugobci]

More than bike setup, pacing strategy is the clever move for everything in the biking, including optimizing fun, wich is commonly understimated even by leisure bikers

[@rizzlerforthergyatt]

no

[@jamest2660]

Great video! I am always so amazed with how in depth your data analysis is and how you use that data to continue to prepare for future races. Good luck in final series races!

[@mickelkobeck7376]

OKAY, enough....I DEMAND BHD get his own channel. LOL

[@christoflorenz9059]

brutal. much respect!

[@mo-215]

6 to 7 hours??? I'd be lucky to finish the thing. Total machine, Dylan

[@kazzz6666]

What an amazing job on the bike and a perfect one on the video as well. Must take some time to build such videos but they're getting better and better like your power :-D Best recap's out there!

[@LexD-89]

BHD is and will always be my spirit animal 🤣😆

[@kellyperkins4139]

Grats! Nice result and analysis, so hard to be disciplined enough to pace as you did.

[@Emolokz]

Monstercross bikes freaking rock, honestly. Drop bar mtb's have always seemed pretty radical to me. If only there was some way to revolutionize the drop bar cockpit to be "almost" as controllable as the flat bar cockpit.

[@bobfoster687]

Can you say John Tomac?

[@Shawn-in-da-Canyon]

Thank you! They need to make the frames more like trail bike MTB frames, stems shorter, head tubes slacker and seat tube steeper, and adjust the frame length for drop bars.

[@robrigg8045]

Thanks for the altitude power adjustment recommendations in the past couple vids. Going to implement a ceiling for BWR Utah this weekend since I'm arriving from sea level, along with Pathfinder Pro 47s since it's 92% Unroad. Really appreciate all the marginal and significant gains info!

[@jimvanbeek589]

Wow. Impressive. You beat me by 5 hours.

[@georgehugh3455]

It was _nip 'n tuck...._

[@ijs14]

Hilarious shade thrown at gcn. Should have been backwards hat Dylan I think lol

[@unbridlededification]

Solid gcn burn

[@leonschumann2361]

love the GCN dig

[@Jinedan]

Awesome job and way to innovate! Love your channel.

[@bikeski970]

he didn't innovate it. he copied it from tour divide riders.

[@petenovak131]

Good content my man. appreciate the work you put in.

[@alolympic]

Another great video by providing in depth insights. But more importantly, great performance. Great experiment. Your results are great. And damn, the competition has got insane. I’d love you to do a deep dive into how and why the off road US racing scene has come to dominate and brought in so much pro talent. Is road racing dead forever?

[@kivriel2660]

Great video, great content!

[@iancoleman4535]

Holy sh*t: 6:26:45! Nice ride

[@georgehugh3455]

*Shout out to Kerry Werner!* (local rider some time ago...)

[@danreynolds1142]

Badass, great video too!

[@solidstream13]

Awesome job. Amazing time. I’d love to see your power in Watts per kilo to be more relatable.

[@jammankutch9385]

It’s all about being comfortable, that’s the most important “time factor” here.

[@stevenagy7152]

BHD, “You should use the word pacing more frequently.”, seriously really good video and love the forward hat thinking in set up.

[@tychowagner612]

Ran full speed to watch this

[@qzrnuiqntp]

Congrats! Great race, big achievement! You are a pretty good athlete and a clever man.

[@mo-215]

BHD cameo always good. And great videos.

[@folkabuss]

Would be great to see how your training for this season looked like. Thanks for the awesome vids.

[@ukestjohn]

John Tomac lives!!

[@PuffinPass]

I do dropbarmtb and on my local trails I get told it just won't work or that it will be slower on trail. I also ended up in a head to head for KOM on several of the downhill singletrack runs done by flatbars and still had room to improve easily. In some cases dropbars are the answer, there are some drawbacks if you are doing jumps but if it is an XC style race then there probably isn't any real reason not to. Like you said though it does take some time to get comfortable being pitched that far forward and riding the drops in technical sections, but once you do get comfortable it is a lot of fun and does have some notable advantages. If you are in a UCI race though they are banned if the race is considered a MTB class event.

[@Mas421]

so we need more subcategories

[@PuffinPass]

@@Mas421 bound to happen whether we need them or not. Look at how specific music genres have become with their sub categories

[@Imagine2035]

Well done! Worthy challengers like Logan or GCN consistently push to excel and innovate, driving to reach new heights and deliver even better results.

[@Imagine2035]

you were faster than Logan?

[@adamgaisser1875]

Great video. Would love to know what and how you eat / drink during a race like this.

[@johnwoodard8717]

What got lost until I thought about it was that he gained 20 minutes. 19 of those minutes were gained in the second half, due to his pacing. Yet what is glossed over is that even though he paced, he not only didn't lose any time in the first half he actually gained a minute.

[@avocette]

Dylan uses Plotaroute... Huge fan of the platform in terms of cataloguing bike routes especially on rural areas ❤❤

[@PiquePictures]

Awesome video! Well done!👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍👍

[@PiquePictures]

?????@user-ve8oh7jd2f

[@hornet224]

For this race 50mm drop bars give you more steering leverage and control than 40mm.

[@grzegorzlabencki2970]

Good content. Thank you.

[@tyler.london]

Full on John Tomac build!

[@Aholeintheozone]

Beast!

[@gabeszilagyi254]

Another good one!

[@pcro860]

Crushed it Dylan. Curious if you factor weather conditions into pacing and time comparisons? There was a study on Western States that showed temperature was the best predictor of winning time.

[@lukewindymill8640]

love the rip on GCN, just a point on the aerodynamic benfits of drop bars, air is less dense above 3000m, its roughly 0.9 kg/m3 compared to 1.25 at sea level, about 30%. So flat bars at altitude produce less drag proportionally to the speed. F1 Cars have the same issue in mexico when generating downforce. Had this race been at sea level on that terrain i reckon you would have been even higher placed with your setup.

[@bobfoster687]

It’s relative. Both drop and straight bars are experiencing the same air density and drag.

[@ccamire]

Thanks for sharing the whole race details. Great results in any case. You speak a lot about bike set up and power but nutrition strategy could also been an important variable. I am sure you looked at it but is there something else you could have tweaked. Still not an easy race by any standard

[@stephenkohler3472]

Drop-country... the hot new category of mountain bikes.

[@BullGooseLooney904]

You do a gravel conversion on your HT MTB to get faster. I do it bc my wife won’t let me get another bike. We are not the same. 😂

[@lechprotean]

trade wife for n+1

[@stevenporter9484]

Saw you briefly at Steamboat this past weekend. Cheers nicely done.

[@pieterboshoff2982]

Well.paced