Quote:
Originally Posted by tgold
Aerodynamics matter more.
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We've been down this road before...
It depends.
To say flatly that aerodynamics matter more than weight is not true.
It depends.
Weight has more effect on acceleration...up to a point. Aerodynamics have more effect in certain circumstances.
Less weight gives you more consistent benefits in acceleration and braking.
Better aerodynamics gives you benefits as speeds increase, but only if you are in a full tuck (no knee out) and at WOT - and speeds are consistently high.
Significant streamlining of the rear of a cycle will give more benefit than reducing frontal area, but that's not very practical (or legal) in road racing. A cycle is an aerodynamic mess compared to most vehicles, especially behind the rider. There may be gains to be had in reducing frontal area, but unless you are racing at Road America, weight reduction and increased usable power would show more improvements in laptimes. If you are talking no fairings at all compared to full fairings, the difference would be more significant, but going from one design to a similar but sleeker design won't show the same improvements.
My argument is basically that weight reduction and more power have a positive effect for more time per lap than aerodynamic improvements.