53 - FLO Co-Founder Jon Thornham

What this episode covers

This is Endurance Innovation's one year anniversary! 🍾 If you like the show, please support us [https://ei.supercast.tech/]! * 3:15 the FLO story * 7:30 the early challenges of the direct-to-consumer model * 10:00 unintentional scarcity  * 11:15 the value of learning from the mistakes of others * 12:45 the value of transparency in business * 14:45 the FLO Gen 1 process * 17:00 FLO studying the real world * 21:00 the evolution of wheel design over the course of FLO's presence in the market * 26:00 the brand new FLO all sport and gravel lines of wheels * 29:00 how rolling resistance became a cornerstone of design consideration for FLO * 34:00 the evolution in thinking about the right tire pressure * High pressure leads to wheel bounce and power loss * 36:00 testing rolling resistance with help from Aerolab * Turns out, a wider rim reduces rolling resistance  * Optimizing for both rolling resistance and aero drag, saves up to 2W per wheel * 38:00 rolling resistance impedance affected by weight, tire type, road surface AND rider speed * 40:45 how to determine optimal tire pressure? * Start with the FLO tire pressure charts [https://flocycling.com/collections/road-tri-collection/products/flo-64-rim-brake] (scroll down to see the chart), use these values as you maximum pressure * Experiment and maybe drive those numbers down * Decrease in CRR with decreasing tire pressure is gradual, but the increase in CRR above the breakpoint is substantial! So err on the side of lower pressure. * Refer also to the Silca tire pressure calculator [https://info.silca.cc/silca-professional-pressure-calculator] * 44:45 don't sweat the accuracy of your pump, since your pressure will change with several variables: temperature, altitude, air loss, etc. * 46:45 the effects of altitude and air temperature on tire pressure * Only about 5psi difference over an elevation change of 10,000' (3,000m) * Only about 5psi difference over a temperature change of 30F (17C) * 48:30 what's next for FLO and performance wheels? * 53:45 how FLO gives back and respects environmental impact * Bike for a kid program [https://flocycling.com/pages/bike-for-a-kid] in partnership with the Ironman foundation * Use 100% recycled materials in wheel boxes and use no plastic in packaging * One wheel, one tree program [https://flocycling.com/pages/one-wheel-one-tree] results in a negative carbon footprint  Check our the rest of the FLO Cycling page here. I certainly recommend their primer on rolling resistance [https://flocycling.com/blogs/blog/understanding-rolling-resistance-impedance-for-cyclists] as a good reference too.