Aero road bikes have been around for a while now. They lost a bit of popularity but have come back with a vengeance in 2019. Many of the major companies have been busy updating their aero frames or, like Cervelo, completely rethinking their aero bikes.

As you go faster on your bike, more and more of your power is used to overcome air resistance. While this might seem obvious, even slower riders can save power by riding aero. In fact, it might be more significant than for a fast rider. So aero might not matter to Peter Sagan, but for us mere mortals, it might be great.

Aero road bike sums

These power savings come about by physics and a little bit of math.

Power to overcome aerodynamic drag = ½*(air_density)*CdA*V_wind^2*V_road.

This equation tells us the power we need to overcome air resistance. Some bits you can’t change. You can’t change air density. You can’t change the wind speed. You can, however, change your CdA.

CdA is drag coefficient multiplied by frontal area. The Cd part is how slippery you and your bike are, how well the air flows around you. The A part of the equation is how big you are. The reason pros ride with their stems slammed and their heads low is to try and keep this number low.

Anything that hits the wind will increase this number. So a loose jersey, a bigger number. Brake cables flapping in the wind, a bigger number. Your frame is not aero, a bigger number. A bigger number here means that you have to put out more power to go the same speed as before. Get an aero road bike and make your life easier.

Why would you want to do that? You can go faster. You can get home earlier. All by buying a new aero road bike. How does aero help you if you are going slower? The answer is if an aero road bike helps you lower your CdA then you will have less air resistance around you, and you will use less power. It will push you further for your current power output.

Aero road bikes are back

Being faster is why aero has come back, though to be honest I don’t think it ever went away. Just look at the pro peloton, they are all riding lovely aero bikes. We also have companies building their own wind tunnels or running Computational Fluid Dynamic design processes, or teaming up with motorsport partners to make the most aerodynamic bikes around.

We decided to look at three new bikes for 2019 that are aero road bikes. Bikes that we feel will help you cut through the air like you are a hot knife. These aero bikes are from the best manufacturers and are the best designs each company has to offer.

Cervelo S5

Cervelo is a company that started aero when they released the Soloist back in 2002. It might have been aluminum, but it showed the design direction for carbon fiber bikes. In 2019 a new aero design has returned.

One of the first things you will notice is the handlebar and stem combination. The V-shaped stem has attracted some love and hate. Cervelo claims this design is the fastest stem in the air. Time will tell if this catches on or if people prefer a standard stem design.

The S5 has been refined from previous versions and has all the well thought out designs and tube shapes that you would expect from the masters of aero bikes.

Trek Madone SLR 9 Disc

Looking at the new Madone, you can see how much a bike company is committed to aero bikes. The Madone used to be Trek’s lightweight racing option. It has now evolved to be a pure aero bike.

The interesting thing about the very tall Kamm-tailed aero bike is that it now features Trek’s IsoSpeed. An adjustable shock damper at the top tube/seat tube junction. You can use this to set the compliance of the bike. It works at taking the worst of the sting out of the road.

The Madone looks good in its new guise, and it is great to see bikes evolve with the times to catch up to the aero bike trend.

ICAN Aero 007

The 007 is an aero bike, as its name suggests. One of the great things about ICAN is that they name their products by the task they perform. There is no guesswork involved in what you are about to buy. With the Aero007, you are buying a newly shaped and refined aero road bike.

This 2019 model is designed for a British spy to slice through the air through Eastern Europe with ease. The bike has been lovingly sculpted into its tube shapes so that you can save vital power overcoming air resistance. The 007 will not flex under power. It will just get on with the job.

Built from high-end Toray T700 carbon fiber, with internal cable routing, and using a large BB86 bottom bracket area, this bike means business. To make sure you can steer a bike that goes this fast, the aero headtube is tapered to give you the best steering accuracy when you are riding.

2019 will see these bikes everywhere. 2019 is the year when everyone makes an effort and rides an aero bike. So why not get ahead of the other guys and pick up this bike.

It may not be as good looking as the Cervelo or Trek, but it comes in at a fifth of the price of a £10,000 superbike. Try and keep your CdA to a minimum.