A triplet bike is lighter and has less resistance per person, so is more efficient than a tandem, which is more efficient than a regular bike. Does this trend hold however long the bike? (continued)
Hilary Johnston, Perth, Western Australia
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At a cycling event in Perth 30 years ago, a group of men brought out a 10-seater bike.
Despite much sprinting with the bike to gain enough speed to jump on and start pedalling, the men never successfully rode it because the minimum speed to maintain balance couldn’t be reached. It proved impossible to keep the centre of gravity under the cyclists on such a long bike.
Jerry Shiner, Toronto, Canada
Any useful gains in the ratios between riders, bicycle, air or mechanical resistance would become more limited with each extra rider, soon becoming so minuscule as to be meaningless.
Mike Follows, Sutton Coldfield, West Midlands, UK
Intuition suggests that tandems and triples should be more efficient because of the slipstream benefit for the rear riders and the smaller mass of machine per rider. However, the men’s tandem world record for 1000 metres is only just faster than that for a regular bike.
Time trials on UK roads show that there would usually be a close finish in a men’s race between a regular bike and a tandem over distances of 10 to 100 miles, and that women riding solo should consistently beat a tandem.
Tandem racing ceased as an Olympic event after 1972, but continues at the Paralympics, with an athlete with a visual impairment in the rear seat.
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