Becoming a more economical cyclist . . .

An article in Runner's and Triathlete's Web News highlights the importance of riding "economically" in achieving peak performance.

Learning to ride more economically means, basically, that you learn to go faster with the same amount of effort:

An example of the power of economy can be seen as follows: Two cyclists enter a hill climb or time trial. Both have the same VO2 max, but Cyclist A is more economical. They both ride at the same high speed. However, to reach and maintain this speed, Cyclist B must ride at a pace equal to 95% of his max VO2. Cyclist A, on the other hand, can ride the same speed, yet only be at 90% of his max. Should he pick up effort to 95%, he would out ride Athlete B and win.

Factors in learning to ride more economically include developing a better spin and adopting a more aerodynamic position (more details in the article). It also includes learning to relax muscles some muscles:

It was found that this group of elite mountain bike cyclists were less economical than many of the elite road cyclist that have been tested at the training center. Discussion among the group of scientists, coaches and athletes pointed out that this may be due to their increased use of their upper body's in pulling on the bars while even cycling at submaximal workloads. "You can improve your economy on the bicycle by improving your pedaling mechanics and eliminating unnecessary muscle movements, you must learn to relax your upper body while cycling hard," noted Jay T. Kearney, to the group during the data return session. "This same information holds true for all of us, no matter if we ride the roads or trails," added Kearney.