Editing Profiles for Dummies

[Gadget]

I've been using the iPro for a few months now, and have traded many files with Coach Boyd. That's worked well for me, but I would love to be more educated about how I can reasonably tweak my own profile. I've tried searching through the manuals and the forum, but it looks like this information hasn't been concisely documented anywhere yet.

So I'm putting out a request to the experts to publish an "Advanced Guide to Editing iBike Profiles". It would be extremely helpful to hear iBike's official definition of the following fields, and even more importantly to learn how each field is used in the iBike's processing. For example, the combination of Aero and Fric forms the primary key for a unique iBike profile. Or that it's not recommended to change the CdA that the iBike calculates, but it's less risky to tweak the Aero or Wind Scaling while keeping the CdA constant. For each field it would be great to see some tables outlining rules of thumb; for example, a 165lb rider on a road bike will usually have an Crr between .006 and .005.

Lastly, some narrative about how to use the new Tweak CdA, Crr, Cm... function would also be great.

In lieu of a formal document, I would also appreciate any quick overview that could be thrown together. Or maybe those in the know could start informally posting different "Editing Pearls of Wisdom" and eventually we'll amass all of the raw materials so the Advanced Guide can easily be assembled.

[Velocomp]

Something is in the works that you'll like...

[NCH1]

I too would appreciate some more detailed materials on these features, and thanks John for working on this. I'm thinking of upgrading further to the iaero (considering I have purchased all the other firmware and options available), and I would really like to know how to tweak the settings effectively

Nik

[dtrousdale]

Something is in the works that you'll like...

Would this be the rumored March 2010 announcement of a "game-changer"? Is that date still good?

[Velocomp]

The only "game changer" we can comment on was announced by Apple today.

We like the iPad.

No, Steve Jobs did not consult with us prior to announcing it.

[N3GWIR]

Great news John! – This development will be most welcome as it will demystify the process and improve market appeal. I hope it will also include a reliaable and repeatable method of calibrating the iAero to DFPMs (especially the Power Tap which is arguably one of the most popular DFPMs).

A recent article in the VeloNews magazine highlighted the fact that most drag comes from the rider's body and that's where the iAero can gain an even more powerful and sustainable competitive advantage over all other bicycle Power Meters especially for TT and Tri racers. When paired with a DFPM the iAero’s ability to measure aerodynamic drag provides an effective means of analyzing (then reducing) the drag created from the rider’s shape, position, clothing and equipment. It sure beats paying the big bucks for a wind tunnel analysis.

Monty

[NCH1]

Is there any news on the timing of the release of the "editing profiles for dummies"?. I'm quite keen to learn about this.

I was also wondering whether it was possible to create your own power/speed curve profile for an indoor trainer and load it on to the ibike unit?. I have the power speed curve and the power figures provided to me by Minoura, which I sent to Velocomp, but I think they may be too busy to develop it for the trainer mode, at the moment.

Nik

[ghost]

So, I tried to do a DFPM calibration and the fit gave me numbers that were significantly overestimating relative to the DFPM in the cal ride. I was able to modify the wind scaling/aero to get the numbers to more closely match the DFPM, but I'm not sure how valid my changes are. Can someone take a look at the cal and fit files and let me know if it looks okay?

[coachboyd]

hmm, that looks a bit off when I look at the modified (it's giving me an average wattage of 58 for the out and back).

Do you happen to have a long ride file (just a regular ride, don't worry about it being out and back) that you did with both power meters. I'll see what I can do to get it to match using that since there'll be more information available. Make sure it's a fairly calm day, do the ride by yourself, and start and finish in the same place and I should get you great results.

[ghost]

I was borrowing the PM, so I only have about 18 miles with both...

[coachboyd]

That's all I need, I was able to get everything to match up pretty much perfectly throughout the ride. If you look at your power meter comparison you can see that the results are good and will be good from here on.

Save this file to your computer, then open thge iBike software, go to profiles->edit profiles->import and select this file. Send it to your iBike and you are good to go.

[Gadget]

I have a request for the Advanced Guide: it would be invaluable to get a step-by-step breakdown (a Case Study) of what Coach Boyd does in cases like this. So you could start with a ride file and a snapshot of all the settings. Then walk us through the different sections of the iBike software and the different analyses (e.g., analyzing wind for an out-and-back ride and making sure the average is <1mph), etc...

Basically, teach us how to fish!

[dtrousdale]

I have a request for the Advanced Guide: it would be invaluable to get a step-by-step breakdown (a Case Study) of what Coach Boyd does in cases like this. So you could start with a ride file and a snapshot of all the settings. Then walk us through the different sections of the iBike software and the different analyses (e.g., analyzing wind for an out-and-back ride and making sure the average is <1mph), etc...

Basically, teach us how to fish!

I completely agree. There is too much mystery here.

[Velocomp]

We are working actively on a new version of iBike software that will radically simplify all of this. We are getting close...

[NCH1]

Will the software though come with documentation on how to analyse and adjust settings, because that is the main issue we are having difficulty with?

Nik

[Velocomp]

We are working on a highly automated implementation; think of it as a "Boyd Wizard"

[NCH1]

That is excellent news, thanks John.

Nik

[Russ]

We are working on a highly automated implementation; think of it as a "Boyd Wizard"

Sort of like a Mouse named Boyd? (Sorry Coach, couldn't resist

Can't wait to click the wizard!

Russ

[scsteven]

Any word if this "tutorial" is complete? Thank you!!

[Velocomp]

We haven't forgotten!

[benlane]

Really looking forward to this one, as someone who has had to enlist the help of Boyd whenever I move the unit to another bike, I really hope that I can become dself sufficient here, I have never really been able to get 'sensible' profiles just from the calibration process, despite numerous efforts and following protocol very closely.

[Avanti]

Yep this will be fantastic, any idea's on timing yet?

[racerfern]

I just changed my bike setup to a much more aggressive one. Now that my legs don't hit my stomach I can get more aero.

So I flipped the stem and took out a spacer along with raising the seat and headed out for a ride. Using the est aero feature I came up with a quick profile and proceeded to do a fairly hard training ride and then two cal rides of two miles each. At home I downloaded the two cal rides which were done in relatively windy conditions. The first cal ride was almost completely into the wind and back while the second was more of a cross wind; not ideal conditions but until I get out at 5:00AM, wind is something I deal with all day long. The wind scaling for the first ride was .549 and for the second one .554. This compares to .462 for my old setup so I was satisfied I got a good and consistent number. Tilt was -.5 for both cal rides, down from -.3 for my original setup and that made sense since I have more weight on the stem with this setup.

As a curiousity I applied this profile to the ride I did just prior to the cal rides and the numbers were dead on with what I
expected. Cimbing numbers matched spot on and power on the flats was a little less than with my previous setup. I suppose I'll tweak the profile slightly once I coast down some hills to confirm my aero number is good but it's amazing how easy the process is.

Bottom line, using the Est Aero setup with a set Crr I had a perfectly good profile within minutes and I'm confident in my numbers without any aggravation or doubt.

[lorduintah]

I will be happy to see the witch craft published. I had replaced my iPro - the wind scaling went berserk. I ended up with a pretty good setup for my Ksyrium ES wheels (clincher). Then I put my Cosmic Carbone Aero clinchers on and did another series of calibrations. The results looked good on the analysis end. At high effort - uphill or accelerating I get comparable watts to the Ksyrium wheels. It is on the flats at cruising speeds that I get a big delta in watts between the two. About 50 watts difference at 17 mph - with the Carbones much less in watts and periods of almost zero. Both sets of wheels have about the same Crr, Now I don't expect the same effort with an Aero wheel as I would with a small profile (and lighter) - but I have to bust it much more to get the watts out of this profile. Coasting looks pretty good as the watts in coast get pretty close to zero, so CdA is dialed in, wind scaling looks OK, too.

So I will be really interested to see what comes out of the insiders guide to profiling.

Tom

[dtrousdale]

Any news on the "Boyd Wizard"?

[Velocomp]

We've been busy with iBike Dash activities. The Boyd Wizard is part of the iBike software that is part of the iBike Dash stuff. Hopefully we will be able to get this out soon.

[MultiRider]

I borrowed a PT and did a ride with it and the iBike on my Specialized Transition. Like others, I am interested in getting my profile tweaked to match the PT. I sent an email to Coach Boyd over the weekend, but no response yet. The ride had a 30mph downhill and then a return back up that same hill at 10mph, so I'm hoping that will help isolate the aero-vs-friction components. It appears the iBike is about 3w low on the climb and about 12w low on the high speed section. That was with a non-aero PT wheel; I usually race with a Zipp disc.

Help would be appreciated!

[Gadget]

Still waiting for the Boyd Wizard!!!

[Velocomp]

So are we...but it IS being worked on!

[smhagger707]

So are we...but it IS being worked on!

Cool, thanks John. We know you're working hard on all sorts of things at the moment. Can you give us an idea of when the Boyd Wizard will be ready?