Velomobile vs Road Bike vs Recumbent - an Aerodynamic Showdown

Velomobiles are really efficient aerodynamically, but how efficient and why are they so efficient? Let's compare some numbers to find out.
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[@casualguy393]

A chart showing the speed and power data would be a lot easier for everyone to digest instead of people having to remember the power/speeds and the metric conversions, or for those of with short attention spans having to click back and forth across the video timeline.

[@mnveloguy]

I wasn’t looking to get quite that technical and specific. There are studies posted online for folks that want a deeper dive. The brief takeaway is intended to be that a velomobile is at least twice as efficient. The specific numbers obviously will vary depending on route.

[@sindresvindal2290]

@@mnveloguyto you have any links of studies comparing all three? (Racing bike, recumbent and velo)? :)

[@mnveloguy]

@@sindresvindal2290 www.gala-ev.org/images/Beitraege/Beitraege2022/pdf/24.pdf www.bentrideronline.com/messageboard/forum/main-category/specialty-discussions/velomobiles/141387-comparison-of-velomobiles-speed-vs-watts www.cyclingforums.com/threads/unfaired-recumbent-vs-upright-speed-comparisons.32475/

[@sindresvindal2290]

@@mnveloguy wow thank you so much!!!

[@VelomobileHarpiaBrasil]

Ótimo vídeo!!

[@RoyRoy-wg2qq]

As noted: Great video! Most of your velo rides seem to be long-ish distance, mostly uninterrupted. My commute would include lots of urban riding with lots of short runs between stoplights and intersections. It’s rare to get up past 15-mph for short bursts before having to stop at an intersection. I feel like the extra weight of a velo would be a disadvantage in an environment like that. I’d be interested to hear your opinion. Thanks!

[@mnveloguy]

Yes. Frequent stop lights are a drag on speed. I think it would depend on the urban environment. I’ve been able to find routes to and from appointments and grocery shopping that allow me to at least get up to speed and cruise a bit before the next intersection, but I still end up averaging 14-16mph on those routes. In that sort of instance, a velomobile is not so valued for its speed, but rather cargo capacity and protection from the elements. I do a couple longer rides on the weekends, but my normal daily loop is 20 miles with around 20 various traffic signals. There is a stretch, the TT course I mentioned, where I can cruise at 24+ mph for 5 or 6 miles. My average speed usually jumps from around 18 mph to 20 mph or more after passing through the TT course. I actually didn’t buy a velomobile for the speed, though I do enjoy that. I bought it to extend my outdoor riding into the harsh Minnesota winter. It has been great for that, so much so, that I’ve largely abandoned using my car and almost never ride on the indoor trainer. It’s just much more fun to ride the velomobile.

[@RoyRoy-wg2qq]

Thanks for stating that the aero advantage is lost around 10mph. I always wondered what the threshold was for that. This was a good video with well-digested facts for the common man. I was surprised to see the recumbent performance to anemic. )I thought they’d be a little closer to the velo Your videos continue to steadily improve. Nicely done.

[@mnveloguy]

Thank you for your kind words. The Bacchetta Giro20 is not the worlds fastest recumbent. A low racer with a disc rear wheel would perform better than my Giro20. The Giro is really intended as a touring bike. I have an old Volae Sport with dual 650C wheels that is probably slightly faster, but it lives on the basement trainer and is not very road worthy at the moment.

[@cha1rtech]

thanks for the informative video- as an owner of a Bacchetta Corsa I was interested in hearing the comparison to the velomobile and am wondering if the Corsa's higher bottom bracket reduces the frontal area. From the video it's not clear what backrest angle you're using but I'd guess it's close to 30 degrees from horizontal

[@mnveloguy]

It’s quite upright. I know from prior experience that reclining as far as possible does improve speed. I regret. Or taking the time to reset it. It was upright enough to be uncomfortable. I have no idea how I ever rode with it like that for so many years. I’d guess maybe around 1-1.5mph improvement had I reclined more. The corsa is definitely faster than the Giro20, but I don’t think quite enough to make up the 7-9mph difference 🙂

[@sindresvindal2290]

Thanks for this great video. The US seems to be a great country for velomobiles? I do believe you have lomg flat stretches plus speed bumps?

[@mnveloguy]

It depends where you are in the US. Some places have long flat roads, others have hills, and in others there are mountains. We have some speed bumps here, but not so much where I live, and usually only in parking lots and other places where you would not be going fast.

[@sindresvindal2290]

@@mnveloguy Can I just ask a final question? how do you feel about the stability of your veto (three wheels) vs your recumbent (two wheeled)?

[@mnveloguy]

@@sindresvindal2290 I prefer the stability of the velomobile. It is nice to not have to worry about putting my feet down and h clipping from the pedals at stops. I also like that when I am going slowly, especially up hills, I don’t have to worry about balance. It is also much easier to keep a straight line at low speed. I find I am faster climbing hills with the velomobile even though it is heavier simply because I do not waste energy trying to balance.

[@vorpalbits7720]

I think the question should be "How fast are you on a road bike compared to the velo. keeping the engine the same and what not. Of course Im commenting before watching the whole video

[@mnveloguy]

I unfortunately don’t own a road bike, so I’m not able to do that comparison. Generally a bike store isn’t going to loan out a Pinarello or Canyon Aeroad so a velomobile rider can show just how slow it is on the flat and downhill compared to a velomobile. However, the fact I have the fastest recorded time in Strava on quite a lot of longer flats and downhills despite having pathetically low power outputs should give a pretty good idea of just how fast a velomobile is compared to a road bike. The speeds on the recumbent in comparison to the velomobile should give some semblance of an idea just how much an unfaired bike loses to a faired one.

[@vorpalbits7720]

I was on a road bike for many years. I am now on a carbontrike for 3 years. I am so interested in a velo. thanks for replying @@mnveloguy

[@3ATGL]

Surface area or frontal area ?

[@mnveloguy]

Frontal area. Good clarification. Missed that when I proofed the video.

[@Expandacraftboats]

How do you measure your Wattage output?

[@mnveloguy]

Duo Assioma power meter pedals, calibrated before testing and set to correct crank length.

[@LaomerKedor]

I looked up Tour de France 2023: 2126.1 mi (3421,6km) distance 174,092 ft (53063m) elev. gain This should translate to about 1,55% (1,55cm vertical/1m horizontal) average gradiant for the Tour de France 2023. I don't remember if it was you or some other velomobile enthusiast, who estimated to be faster in a velomobile for gradients lower than 4%. Therefore the Tour should still be faster in a velomobile. (of course there are some shortcomings to this estimation, since cornering and decending might happen at about the same speed)

[@mnveloguy]

That was me that theorized about the Tour de France. Descending could actually be slower because a velomobile can’t bank into the corners and would need to hit the brakes much more when descending. The climbs can be very long and steep. I think that is where we might fall too far behind. It would be interesting to see an equally fit velomobile rider do the tour just to see, but I don’t think there is any velomobile rider who is as fit as the best tour riders so we may never know.

[@LaomerKedor]

@@mnveloguy I looked up your Tour de France video, but I was watching it the first time. Anyway: One point worth of mentioning might be: Velomobiles allow for larger riders (with potentionally more power output) in two ways: - Being larger inside a velomobile doesn't increase wind resistance. - The weight of the rider doesn't matter that much, since the velomobile is so much heavier anyway.

[@mnveloguy]

@@LaomerKedor those are very good points. Rider weight will have an impact on climbing just like it does with an upright, but a velomobile will climb very slowly anyway. Aside from that, yes, a heavier and stronger rider will not have the aero penalty in a velomobile that they have on an upright.

[@mariamakamara5592]

Do you think it’s possible to make a velomobile so efficient that it would be able to do 30mph at only 100watts?

[@mnveloguy]

I’m not quite sure how to answer this question, partly because in the velomobile community this is a hotly debated topic and occasionally people will ask this question but be partly making a joke when they ask it. I think you are asking it seriously though so I will try to answer it seriously. Yes, theoretically this is possible in the right conditions. On a very flat course with favorable weather a velomobile like the Snoek or Milan SL could go 30mph for 100 watts. The designer of the W9 that I own claims the W9 is capable of this, but I have not found that to be true in the real world. The fastest models, if you ride with a very aerodynamic racing hood, very fast racing tires, on very good and flat pavement, can come very close to 30mph for 100 watts. If the velomobile was built even smaller than the Snoek it is possible such speed could be reached with a lightweight rider.

[@seppoinnanen5577]

To my experience, the real life condition of the roads has a big effect on speed. Even the most aero dynamic velomobiles can't do anything about the situation. Silky smooth asphalt where the velomobile feels like flying is so very rare, at least here where I live. Just worn or rough road surface that slows the speed signicantly, just like with an upright bicycle. I think that those kind of figures are nice theory but can't really be achieved. Still, velomobile seems to be the fastest thing with pedals on the road, and that's good enough for me at least

[@alexwilsonpottery3733]

Might be attainable in an indoor velodrome, where the track is smooth, but public roads are generally in such poor repair the constant whacking of minor craters/rumble strips/paint lines/loose gravel would doubtless slow you down.

[@MiguelMartinez-ch3tp]

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