Is the IRONMAN Nice course Kryptonite for Blummenfelt, Iden and the ‘Superman’ riding position?
Gustav Iden – and Kristian Blummenfelt – have both pushed the boundaries with the ‘Superman’ position on the bike but the stresses of the IRONMAN World Championship course in Nice looks to be forcing a rethink.
The Superman position in cycling moves the aero bar extensions forward, so the rider’s elbows are way out in front of their shoulders and their arms are stretched forward – all in the pursuit of aero gains.
And 2022 IRONMAN World Champion Iden first gave notice it was making a return when he posted a video from his final pre-Kona training camp in Arizona last year, but the jury was then out as both he and Blummenfelt endured testing times in the race itself.
READ MORE: The inside story on the Superman position
‘Forward visibility limited’
The science does indeed suggest there are gains to be made but as the photo below illustrates there are challenges too, which Iden pointed out are even more pronounced on what is a very hilly and technical bike course on the Cote d’Azur, certainly compared to Kona.
Speaking from Nice, where he and Blummenfelt have been on a training camp, Iden told the latest Santara Tech podcast (full version embedded below) that a few tweaks might have to be made.
He explained: “I would say it’s quite a stressful course – even the flat sections you can’t just put your head down, you really need to be mentally clear for the whole bike course basically.
“There are corners everywhere and you don’t have a lot of long, straight stretches where you can just push power.
“So I’m a bit mindful of my position that’s very stretched out, because forward visibility is sometimes a bit limited.”
Iden loving Nice course
Iden’s time trial bike is currently being repaired after being broken in transit but it should be back with him shortly and when it is, there’s work to be done.
He added: “So that’s part of the reason why we’re here now – to check out different options for the sitting position, maybe a bit shorter, maybe a bit lower.
“We haven’t quite figured it out yet because we have basically only been on our road bikes so far to really get to know the course.”
But it’s clearly a challenge that Iden, who was first crowned IRONMAN 70.3 World Champion in Nice back in 2019, is relishing as he signed off by saying: “So yes, I would say it is quite a stressful course but I do like it a lot!”
