“Retüling” my aero position

Did the unthinkable this morning: took a break from writing and drove to Athletefitting.com near Aalst to have my optimal aero position “retüled”. Shop owner John – a former amateur cyclist turned amateur triathlete – is Belgium’s first qualified Retül fitter. Retül brings 3D motion capture to bikefitting. It is a very accurate, tech-heavy and transparent method for establishing optimal cycling position. Costs a pretty penny, too.

The protocol works like this: following a brief intake interview, motion detection markers are attached to your wrist, elbow, shoulder, hip, knee, ankle and foot. Two cameras then record your pedal stroke. This allows for very accurate, dynamic measurements of cycling biomechanics. For instance, in the video below, you can see that my right leg pedal stroke is slightly irregular in comparison to my left leg pedal stroke (which is perfectly horizontal).

In the end, your measurements are translated into an optimal aero position. Here is the before and after video. The top frame mirrors the bike position I had during my LD debut in Brasschaat. Notice the more compact, relaxed bike fit in the bottom frame.