Hello All! PP Calibration on TT Questions

[activereality]

Hey everyone! I have an older PP BLE (think 1-1/2 years old). I have used it mostly on my road bike and mostly experienced that my perceived efforts between the road and trainer (cycle-ops power-pro, so has power) were always pretty close.

I have recently started ramping up my triathlon game and got a TT Bike. However, i have had some issues trying to
A: get a good calibration or
B: maybe something is wrong with my trainer .

On the road, I am averaging less than 100 Watts/avg, and I feel like I am pushing much harder. On the trainer, I can easily maintain a 130-150 Watt/Avg.

troubleshooting:
- I have completed 3 different calibration rides on this bike, all with similar effects.
- I have verified that the Powerpod is angled correctly (on TT bars so had to 'nose' it down a bit, but it the PP logo is level to the ground - admittedly, i did have to smooth the rear mount stop (the square edge at the back of the mount prongs) to get this angle)
- switching profile back over to my road bike and I see/feel the correct wattages while riding my road bike

Firmware version is latest: 6.41
Me: 185 ish (heavy day)
Bike: A2 Speed Phreak ~ 20 lbs (ride ready: full kit, water, nutrition, shoes, etc)

Below are two files. Both rides were with calibrations. Roads are decent asphalt, traffic is not usually too bad.
Hopefully, you can see something i am doing wrong here .

iBike_07_20_2018_0026_8_Miles.ibr

11-21-19

(96.74 KiB) Downloaded 160 times

iBike_07_20_2018_0045_21_Miles.ibr

11-6-19

(255.14 KiB) Downloaded 171 times

Note: I did set up the profile with the TT as well. I have Profile # 2 with the road bike, cause i am using the out front combo mount. Using the TT bar Combo mount on TT bike.

Let me know if you see anything crazy or need other information to start to narrow in a direction.

Thanks in advance, for any help!!

Aaron

[Velocomp]

Now you know why people ride TT bikes...they require less effort to ride on the flats!

Your PP is properly calibrated and your ride file looks fine.

On a TT bike your ride position is different from your trainer; perhaps all that is going on is that you can't pedal quite as hard.

I don't see anything wrong with your device.

[activereality]

Awesome! Thank you for looking at the file!

Very odd to hear though- I don't think I communicated it clearly in my OP, haha. I am riding my TT on my trainer (change out rear wheel for different tyre, but same gear ratio and such). So I would think that my power would be pretty close to the same - riding the TT on the trainer inside vs riding the TT outside.

It really must just be me then. I would hope i can push the same. I'll have to go back and get my fit checked (got a bike fit when i got the bike, and a second evaluation after about 300 miles on it). Maybe I am just not able to push the same power, but that would also mean that my trainer power is off - even though it generally matches the values seen by the PP when on my Road bike. Haha, idk if all that makes sense lol.

Thanks for taking a look and can't wait for more! I have an Olympic Tri this coming weekend (Key West Olympic Distance). Only goal for this one is to complete it comfortably (took 3 years off for school) and hoping to get under 3 Hours at my next one. Before tackling a Half.

Thanks again!

[lorduintah]

It is possible to modify the trainer coefficients to get your power into alignment with what you see on the road - I do not think you mentioned what type of trainer you have, nor what trainer settings you are using. If you browse through the trainers and the files that can be used - there are often more than one file for the same trainer - each yields a different power output across the range of speeds.

Bottom line - what the companies provide for power curves on the trainers may not always yield the closest values to reality.

What you can do - and avoid a long back and forth about what is right and what is wrong with Velocomp - use the trainer and whatever setup file - ride your training sessions and judge any effort RELATIVE to other rides with the same trainer file. Improvement will still show up as you increase the workout efforts. Increases in total power effort will still be captured by the power meter. You can still trust that the outdoor results will be better, if the trainer efforts show you are working harder, too.