With no domestiques, individual time trials offer no hiding place; the throttle stays on the floor until that targeted KOM is reached in "the race of truth."

Traditionally each Tour de France has commenced with a Prologue time-trial, and the penultimate Stage, before the final signature day into the Champs Elysee, may also be a time trial, with two other time trials interspersed throughout the 20 or so Stages. The 2008 TdeF was an exception as the Prologue wasn't a time-trial. Commencing at 1 minute intervals, the winner is the cyclist who completes the route in the shortest time. Since drafting is not allowed in an individual time trial, there are no team tactics; each cyclist is against the clock.

The 16th stage of the 2004 Tour de France was a 15.5km time trial from Bourg d'Oisans (760m above sea level) up to the legendary L'Alpe d'Huez (1,850m altitude) escalating 1,090m, which included 13.8km ave 7.9% gradient. There is a signpost for each of the 21 angular hairpin turns ("switchbacks") to enable cyclists to keep track of their painstaking progress. Lance Armstrong won both the polka dot jersey and the le maillot jaune averaging over 23km p/h, with more than one million cycle enthusiasts lining the route. Perennial bridesmaid, German Jan Ullrich for Team-Mobile was second taking 1 min 1 sec longer.

Leading up to the 16th Stage, Bob Roll, a former Tour de France rider and member of the US cycling hall of fame, described climbing amidst encroaching crowds with their painted faces and alcohol-fuelled enthusiasm, "You feel like you're carrying Quasimodo ringing the bells at Notre Dame on your back," Roll said. "You feel like your teeth will fall out, that your eyes will bleed."

The men's Olympic time trial race ranges from 45 to 55 km, the women's from 25 to 35 km.

Time Trial World Championships - Men www.terra.es/personal/jlpenag/cyc_wc2.htm.shows that Britain, French, Spain and Germany men have recently dominated, including Chris Boardman, Laurent Jalabert, Abraham Olano, Jan Ullrich and David Millar.

Time Trial World Championships - Women www.terra.es/personal/jlpenag/cyc_wc4.htm evidences French, Russian and Germany women dominating over the last 10 years - Jeannie Longo, Leo van Moorsel, Mari Holden, Zoulfia Zabirova and Joane Somarriba.

Time trialing has held a larger profile in other countries than in Australia. Time trials have been integral to British Cycling which has been supported by regulatory authorities due to the relative safeness of commencing at 1 minute intervals. The development of the British time trial cycling authority over 80+ years is noteworthy:

In order to administer cycling time trials on the roads of England and Wales, a group of cycling clubs formed the Road Racing Council in 1922. In 1937, it was expanded to the Road Time Trials Council (“RTTC”) to provide a national uniformity in the conduct of road time trials.

RTTC successfully expanded and improved for almost 60 years when it became evident that a corporate body would be advantageous. On 1 Dec 2002, the administration of time trials in Britain was further professionalised by RTTC of 77 Arlington Drive, Leigh executing an agreement with 'Cycling Time Trials' of 12 Hulsewood Close, Wilmington, Dartford, Kent which continues the long standing aims, standards and integrity of the RTTC.

The most effective manner to improve your performance is to race, as the atmosphere of competition, when juxtaposed at a Start line with fellow competitors generally ekes more from you motor than any training ride ever could.

Many of us are too old to race, and upon a fall or bingle, bones and sinuses can take longer to heal, and sometimes they don’t come back as good as before. As noted at Risk Warning, cyclists die on Australian roads every year. Hence, the ideal fitness initiative for recreational cyclists is the individual time trial with the added relative safety of hammering up steep hills on low traffic roads, as opposed to pummeling along the flats or downhill, which this website does not condone or cater to. Lactate thresholds can be extended with a higher heart rate achieved for time trial training; enabling a cyclist to ride longer and harder under relatively safe cycling conditions.