Re:Why Tour de France Cyclists Shave Their Legs
by clownpepe on Monday July 03, 2023 @03:36AM
(#36569957)
I thought it was to prevent (more) rupture of the skin when they fall.
Re:Why Tour de France Cyclists Shave Their Legs
by LanceH on Monday July 03, 2023 @03:47AM
(#36570023)
It's easier to clean out the wound if there isn't hair in it.
Re:Why Tour de France Cyclists Shave Their Legs
by bagels on Monday July 03, 2023 @05:10AM
(#36570542)
There are limitations on the clothing imposed by the rules, eg no knee high aero socks, for reasons of tradition. I'm sure there are others. There are even rules about the position you can hold on the bike, no superman and certain tuck positions are banned.
Re:Why Tour de France Cyclists Shave Their Legs
by mariusor on Monday July 03, 2023 @05:50AM
(#36570793)
Making a sustained high intensity effort for 4-5 hours is not easy to do when you're in a full body suit that prevents you from cooling off.
The only types of race in which they use something close to what you're suggesting, where the aerodynamic gain of the suit is higher than the danger to overheat the rider, are time-trials, or velodrome races, which have a lower duration (max 1h).
If hairless skin is more aerodynamic than their jersey, I'd expect them to show as much skin as the officials allow them to. And if skin is less aerodynamic, I'd expect full body suits. The current jersey seems like it has to be wrong, but I assume I must be missing something.