Winningest TT Bike in History
There's really no argument here: the P3 was, until the appearance of the Cervelo p4, the fastest frameset ever. There's real, hard data backing this up, and Cervelo has spent millions in the wind-tunnel proving it. But just how much faster is the P3 than its pro-peloton competition and how does that relate to, say, your age-group triathlete or Cat 4 time trialist? Well, you don't need to ask reigning two-time World TT Champion, Fabian Cancellera, that question because Cervelo has already done its homework. Up against the next fastest aero frameset in the pro ranks (which, by the way, STILL creates more drag than the Cervelo P2 and the Cervelo S2 and the Cervelo S3!), the P3 creates 60 grams less drag at 25 mph. That, by the way, equates to 30 seconds over 40 km at a pretty leisurely 25 mph.
The data speaks for itself. But, then again, so do the results. Here's a short list of the P3's phenomenal accomplishments:
More than 20 Ironman victories
World Champion Time Trial, 2006
US Pro Chamion, 2006
World Champion Time Trial, 2007
Men's Olympic Champion, 2008
Women's Olympic Champion, 2008
Tour de France Prologue, 2005.
Tour de France Prologue, 2007.
More than half of all Grand Tour victories in 2005 and 2006 were won on the P3C
Kona bike count leader two years running
Depending on the speed of forward movement, 70% to a whopping 95% of the energy produced by a cyclist (measured in Watts) serves to overcome wind resistance. But there are a lot of other forces working against a rider trying to attain and maintain high speed. The primary forces are:
- Rolling resistance from tires
- Rotational resistance from wheels
- Gravity
- Friction from moving parts , and
- Wind resistance
A bike frame can really only assist in overcoming resistance in two of the five above categories: weight and wind resistance. While weight is a factor in acheiving and holding speed, for time trialists and triathletes it's well known that weight is far from a critical factor. Wind resistance, on the other hand, is critical.
When Cervelo took up the redesign of the P3 they knew that using carbon would allow them a number of tube shaping advantages to considerably improve the already formidable profile of the aluminum P3. The shaping of the headtube provides a much thinner frontal profile despite the P3's use of a 1 1/8" fork; the ultra-thin stays allow air to exit the bike with hardly a hint of turbulence; the deep profile tubing (reportedly the narrowest in the industry and which still adheres to the UCI's strict 3:1 aspect ratio), and the seat tube cut out which maintains a constant width to shelter the rear wheel from unwanted drag are all factors which make the P3C nearly invisible to the wind.