Assessing Trajectories and Bike Handling Abilities in Road Cycling with Global Positioning System Data

In road cycling, developing bike handling skills can prevent crashes and falls. Nevertheless, bike handling remains largely unexplored in the world of road cycling. The goal of this research was to develop a methodology to assess bike handling during races and training by estimating the rider-bicycle roll angle and road-plane accelerations from global positioning system (GPS) data only. A multi-dimensional bike-rider mathematical model was included in an optimal control framework to follow a reference trajectory generated from GPS data points. Estimated variables and experimental data collected with a cost-effective setup showed good agreement, i.e., root mean square error (RMSE) of 12° and 0.1 g for roll angle and both longitudinal and lateral accelerations, respectively, in the worst-case scenarios. This methodology might allow for the estimation of key bike handling variables during fast segments with cost-effective instrumentation. It can therefore constitute a tool for objectively assessing bike handling in road cycling training and racing.