53 - FLO Co-Founder Jon Thornham

This is Endurance Innovation's one year anniversary! 🍾 If you like the show, please support us! 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 (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 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 in partnership with the Ironman foundation Use 100% recycled materials in wheel boxes and use no plastic in packaging One wheel, one tree program results in a negative carbon footprint Check our the rest of the FLO Cycling page here. I certainly recommend their primer on rolling resistance as a good reference too.