This Sunday will see Bradley Wiggins attempt to smash the hour record. There’s been a huge amount of interest in the record since the UCI relaxed the rules so that you no longer need to ride a Merckx style bike.
Eddy Merckx’s 1972 hour record bike compared to Alex Dowsett’s 2015 track bike!
Many people are expecting Wiggins to destroy the record, setting the bar so high that nobody else can touch it. There’s even talk of him going further than Boardman’s 56.375km all time record! I’m hoping that doesn’t happen. I’d like there to be more attempts on the hour for some time still.
I made a prediction back in May of 54.105km for Wiggins.
I’m sticking with that. It will mean easily breaking Dowsett’s 52.937km record but hopefully not putting it “on the shelf” and discouraging other riders from having a crack. I’d like to see Alex Dowsett have another go at it and see if he can break the record a second time! What’s your prediction?
Tempo Cyclist - Tasmania 
I am anticipating a close one, 53.1km, but I think he will still get it.
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I would like to see him crack it, at least to leave a mark. Alex Dowsett rode a phenomenal hour, so let’s see how good Wiggo goes, sideburns and all.
One last thing, can you imagine if the Cannibal had had one of these new fandangled carbon machines?
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My prediction is that Wiggins will damn near draft himself on that track. I am a little bummed that they relaxed the rules though…
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I still think they should have the “Merckx Hour” on a traditional bike and then a “Modern Hour” on all the new aero tech.
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That’s a fantastic idea!
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Considering how precise Wiggins is when it comes to training, and how readily measurable times are on the track, I reckon he’ll get close to his own prediction of 55.250km. It seems ridiculously fast, but I don’t think he’d have made a public prediction without good reason to think he could achieve it.
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That would be a phenomenal ride! If anyone can do it, it’s Wiggins. I’ll be watching with great interest come Sunday night! :-)
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Unless something goes wrong I think he’ll definitely break 54km.
Did you see this? http://www.powerthehour.com/
SIS are giving away energy gels if Wiggins breaks the record
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Yep! All signed up for my free gels!
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Free gels …. with a minimum purchase as I recall, but lets not be pedantic.
As was said earlier, for Wiggins to have publicly stated a little while ago that he could “break the record tomorrow” he must be in pretty good shape and very confident.
I reckon at least 54.6 if not higher.
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You got damn close there! Official distance of 54.526km. He didn’t have the best of luck with the air pressure and you could see the fatigue towards the end when his lap times went up. Alex Dowsett must be thinking about having another go now that the record is still below 55km.
Wonder who will be next?
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Reckon Dowsett may have another crack, but I think that record will stay for a while. He should have perhaps done what Merckx did and gone to altitude for his attempt, he’d have smashed it out of sight (although I don’t know if thats allowed these days)?
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Apart from Dowsett, I think any other pro attempting to break this record will go to altitude for max gains. I think Alex and his team of people will be busy crunching some numbers this week to see what’s possible. He’s a lot younger than Wiggins too so has a few years left to give it another good shot!
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Just finished reading an article by Graham Obree saying he reckons Dowsett will give it another go fairly soon. When you remember that Merckx said he was never the same cyclist after his hour record, I’d suggest he waited towards the end of his career.
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Well that was a quality ride from Sir Brad! Pacing was almost spot on and he looked super aero on that machine. New record of course but probably not quite as high as he was hoping.
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