Originally posted by gntlmn
Actually, the tall rider will have the advantage in the time trial because the lung capacity and other physical attributes comprising the human motor increase much more than the corresponding increase in frontal surface area exposed to the wind. Therefore, there is less wind resistance per unit of body weight. This advantage evaporates in the steeper climbs because wind resistance is not much of a factor. I suppose that heat dissipation would be a disadvantage for a tall rider in the mountains, even if he is very thin because he would still be thicker than he would be with the same proportions at a shorter height, and the thicker you are, the harder it is to stay cool. This is why keeping the overall body mass minimized becomes ever so important for the taller cyclist. Consider Merckx' fanatical attention to this detail. A shorter cyclist, like Ullrich for example, would not be quite as concerned. He is bigger proportioned than most, but due to his shorter height, his body mass is still a lot lower than a cyclist of say 6'2" Indurain.
