Dmitry Merzlikin: aerodynamics, endoprosthesis and love of mountains

Guest

Useful from the issue

1. Training is only a third of success

   Sleep, nutrition, recovery and life weigh no less than the intervals themselves. The system beats talent: the mode is more important than one-time feats.

2. Don't run through the pain

   Dmitry felt a crunch in his leg and continued to run — the result was a fracture of the femoral neck. If you can reduce the load or take off without harm to your health, it's better to do so.

3. Check the body like a machine

   Take regular tests and monitor the indicators. There is no point in doing sports without health.

4. Aero starts with landing

   The most significant gain is given by the position of the body on the bike and the aerodynamic frame. Trust advertising tests carefully — many of them are sponsored.

5. The little things in flat races decide

   Glued irregularities on the system, holes from the flask holder, a tight—fitting shape are penny solutions that give seconds during TIME trial.

6. The form should sit tight

   The dangling jumpsuit slows down. Choose a shape based on the fit and quality of the fabric, not on the popularity of the brand.

7. Find out about frame replacement after an accident

   Some manufacturers have a program for replacing a broken frame at a discount. Dmitri's new frame cost him about 1800 euros with delivery.

From a marathon on a bet to an ultratriathlon

Until 2017, Dmitry was almost not involved in sports. A friend from the business club bet that he would run a marathon, and Dmitry volunteered to run with him: a couple of 10 km runs - and a week later they finished at the St. Petersburg marathon "White Nights". Then it started: a lot of running, an ironman in Tallinn, a coach, five marathons in seven days, hundred-kilometer races.

In 2021, he went on a three-day ultratriathlon: swimming, 500 km cycling and 100 km running. He didn't sleep much then — a small child, a business, the motto is "sleep for weaklings" — and three weeks before the start he was already running on painkillers. In the last kilometers of the run, he felt a crunch in his leg, but did not get off, and about two kilometers before the finish, he broke his hip neck. He was fitted with a hip replacement, he had to finish running and triathlon.

Health is one, there are many races

After the injury, Dmitry reversed his attitude to training: now he puts more emphasis on sleep and recovery than on the training itself. He takes tests, works with a nutritionist and a rehabilitologist, monitors recovery using trackers. His main thesis: people check the car once or twice a year, and the body — sometimes never in a lifetime.

The prosthesis imposes restrictions. It has a service life, there may be one or two replacements per lifetime, and high loads are contraindicated: at a power above 400 Watts, it can be very painful. The operated leg is shorter and about 10% weaker, so he never broke 1000 Watts in the sprint and put up with it. Dmitry does not go to gravel and MTB: vibrations are dangerous for the prosthesis.

Among the other problems of the season are two accidents: On July 1, he was hit by a car, two days later — again, with cracked frames and a broken rib. Because of this, the child he is raising alone, and the limitations of the prosthesis, he rides races selectively.

Coaching as a boutique

Dmitry trains people, but hardly advertises it. He first checks the techniques on himself, and considers training to be about a third of success: the rest is sleep, nutrition, recovery, life and work. Not everyone is ready for such a regime: go to bed at the same time, eat homemade food from containers, refuse beer on Saturday before a long one. He even dissuades some of them.

Therefore, he has few students, and he compares his approach with a boutique versus a mass market. It's worth writing to him if you are obsessed with numbers, the system and the result: places are periodically vacated. One of his students is Vladimir Rajapov, a guest of the previous issue.

Aerodynamics: from instruments to electrical tape

Dmitry and his friends did aerodynamic projects on the track, he has devices for measuring the drag coefficient in different landings — on the highway, the chopper, and even the MTB. So you can compare, for example, a new helmet with an old one for this particular person and this landing. The main idea: aerodynamics allows you to be not the strongest, but the fastest.

The nickname "Electrical tape" appeared after the test: he drove a segment with a stock system, and then taped its irregularities with electrical tape and drove faster for a few seconds at the same power. The sealed hole from the flask holder on the chopper is also a small gain. On flat races, where heavy riders have an advantage in absolute power, such trifles are especially important for a light miner.

Many marketing tests of producers and popular channels, in his experience, lie because of sponsorship, and he double-checks the myths himself. Most of all, in his opinion, give the correct position of the body on the bike and aerograms, and least of all convince the miracle lubrication of the chain: skewing the chain, he believes, takes more than dirt. In 2026, he wants to devote a whole month to aerotests.

Uniforms and bicycles

The shape, according to Dmitry, is very important — for aerodynamics, comfort and durability. His favorite is the British brand, from which the uniform of his team "Maria" is made (named after the daughter of one of the participants). He speaks harshly about the brand popular in Russia: the size did not match the grid, it did not work out to return the item, the quality disappointed. At the same time, cheap Chinese bibs from the marketplace have been living on the machine for two years as new.

Dmitry's Park: mountain Specialized Tarmac, aerial and cutting Canyon, Track Canyon, MTB and cheap fix. He calls himself a Canyon fan and talks about the frame replacement program after the accident: the broken frame was replaced with a significant discount, while the new Tarmac frame was asked for about 5,000 euros with almost no discount.

"Three Mountains", haight and plans

Dmitry's favorite race is "Three Mountains" in Sochi: mountains, organization, tracks, although it has been pouring steadily in recent years. He calls Krasnaya Polyana a place of strength and dreams of moving to Sochi; with mechanic Andrei Sazanov, they arrange training camps there. On the May "Three Mountains" he reached the peak — about 5.7 W / kg on twenty—minute ascents with a weight of about 60 kg - and next year the organizers call him to ride in the elite.

He explains the haight in his direction with an episode from the same race: he went into a breakaway with the elite, they didn't work, and he wrote a sharp post about it. I also added fire to the comic cabin with Kolya Zemlyanom, on which beer was put in chat rooms. Dmitry's position: it is better to express claims in person and discuss them.

The plans include an hour record on the track with a target of about 50 km, work on aerodynamics and mountain starts. He passes the baton to the Cycling Race organizer Danila Gribanov: I wonder how he sees the development of amateur cycling in Russia. At the end, the guest asks Ilya questions himself and offers to do a children's race on the Tsar Grader, following the example of the Ironman festival formats.

Timestamps

1. 00:00Acquaintance and December mood
2. 01:32The way to the triathlon and the main starts
3. 04:50Training camps and trainings in Sochi
4. 08:18Approach to training
5. 11:47Aerodynamics and technology
6. 15:31Injury and story with disability
7. 28:34Health and physical activity
8. 32:06Team "Maria"
9. 32:57Electrical tape and aerotests
10. 39:57Power and personal bests
11. 47:30Races and restrictions
12. 51:22Upgrade marketing and Haight
13. 56:26Plans and hour record
14. 59:16Relay race and blitz
15. 1:02:19Ideas for organizing races

Mentioned in this episode

Three mountains · Krasnaya Polyana · Canyon · Specialized Tarmac · Ironman · White Nights · Cycling Race · Tsar Grader · GCN · Wahoo