Do you climb on your big ring?

[Multebear]

I may be wrong, but surely I am turning a bigger circle. The leverage , leg mechanics must be different. round the big ring to the small ring which has a shorter turning circle.

Xena, you really need to understand the basic math of what gears actually do to your speed and cadence.

[xena]

Just like the points made in the article I linked. For "me" riding in the big ring is easier . Its that simple.
I have tried the same gears using the small ring and its just not as effective for "me"
If it was I would not climb in the big ring.
Of course its not the best possible chain line but for me it works and it worked pretty well for Valverde this year and Pantani " known for climbing on his big ring"

I fully understand the points you make and I posted a article that backs up "my view" how I feel the benefit of riding in the big ring. Its horses for courses as I stated . I have never stated that "you" should ride on your big ring only that for me it feels better.

I have responded to all the points.
And once again I have 2 WW bikes so don't have any data for my climb times . If you want to ask me questions about my times etc then PM me and I will try and answer any questions you have.

Thanks

[Hawkwood]

Good article here . That sort of backs up my point but it is minimal. Definitely horses for courses

http://cyclingtips.com/2010/04/the-big- ... advantage/

Extremely minimal: `Burgess says that if Boardman had doubled the size of his sprocket wheels, he would have added 100 metres to his record. Although the increase in efficiency is small–equivalent to a saving of 6 seconds over 25 miles'.

Then I guess if you followed Burgess's logic you'd be climbing lugging around more weight in chainrings, sprockets and chain.

[cyclespeed]

I have responded to all the points.
And once again I have 2 WW bikes so don't have any data for my climb times . If you want to ask me questions about my times etc then PM me and I will try and answer any questions you have.

Thanks

Haven't really elaborated much on those stunning climb times. Why pm? I'm sure there's plenty here that would love to know.

And think about it - if you think a big chainring gets you some kind of magical advantage then we'd all be riding around on 80 front and 40 rears wouldn't we? (Which is doable).

[ergott]

And once again I have 2 WW bikes so don't have any data for my climb times .
Thanks

So how do you know those times? Did you track the sun?

[xena]

I have responded to all the points.
And once again I have 2 WW bikes so don't have any data for my climb times . If you want to ask me questions about my times etc then PM me and I will try and answer any questions you have.

Thanks

Haven't really elaborated much on those stunning climb times. Why pm? I'm sure there's plenty here that would love to know.

And think about it - if you think a big chainring gets you some kind of magical advantage then we'd all be riding around on 80 front and 40 rears wouldn't we? (Which is doable).

I don't have any power metre or data of any kind on my Bike. I looked at my watch at the bottom of the climbs and looked at it again at the top when I stopped. Its that simple.
I rode most of the time 53x24 ,that's my go to climbing gear. I try not to change gear unless I really need to.
I have no idea of my cadence I'm just not into that side of training .
When I go out and ride /train I chase the next harder gear. I aim to do certain sections fast and then when I achieve that I then switch to a lower cog and start again. Its a slow progress but I can really punch hard on climbs in "huge gear" I used to be a bodybuilder and we do say a 200 pound bench for ten reps ,when that gets easy you can add reps or add weights to progress , so I apply that to my riding. I try and go full gas for even longer and also add more weight i.e. switch to a harder gear. It works ok for me . Its very basic but I work hard at it. 3 times a week I do these sessions on the hills where I live.
It not a quick progress but you do progress just like you would lifting weights.
It works ok for me.

[xena]

I have responded to all the points.
And once again I have 2 WW bikes so don't have any data for my climb times . If you want to ask me questions about my times etc then PM me and I will try and answer any questions you have.

Thanks

Haven't really elaborated much on those stunning climb times. Why pm? I'm sure there's plenty here that would love to know.

And think about it - if you think a big chainring gets you some kind of magical advantage then we'd all be riding around on 80 front and 40 rears wouldn't we? (Which is doable).

Like I said its horses for courses . Froome spins and Ulrich does not . We do what suits us. Its best to find your own path IMO.

[Nefarious86]

I have responded to all the points.
And once again I have 2 WW bikes so don't have any data for my climb times . If you want to ask me questions about my times etc then PM me and I will try and answer any questions you have.

Thanks

Haven't really elaborated much on those stunning climb times. Why pm? I'm sure there's plenty here that would love to know.

And think about it - if you think a big chainring gets you some kind of magical advantage then we'd all be riding around on 80 front and 40 rears wouldn't we? (Which is doable).

I asked hoping for a genuine answer and got told to get in the epo / anabolic chicken. Sad really as his tuning and attention to detail I really do admire but his attitude and doggard behavior just kills it. Despite what some may think I'm not always an antagonizing prick haha.

All I can say now is go get a Garmin/Polar GPS watch like Hansen and prove the non beleivers wrong perhaps?

[racingcondor]

Just like the points made in the article I linked. For "me" riding in the big ring is easier . Its that simple.
I have tried the same gears using the small ring and its just not as effective for "me"
If it was I would not climb in the big ring.
Of course its not the best possible chain line but for me it works and it worked pretty well for Valverde this year and Pantani " known for climbing on his big ring"

Unfortunately Xena you are missing the point. As said above gear inches is gear inches and your 53x24 is almost exactly the same as 36x16. The only measurable difference is that the chain line is better on the 36x16. At a given speed, cadence and effort will be almost identical and any 'it works for me' feeling is purely psychological.

The pro's who climb on the big ring are doing something completely different, they are riding at a lower cadence but pulling more gear inches to compensate. This is (from my amateur knowledge) harder on the legs but easier on the lungs and therefore may suit some riders. I personally do the opposite because I find that grinding a huge gear in a race means I can't respond to changes in speed (and I'd argue that this summer at times nor could Valverde and it clearly works for him).

[xena]

Just like the points made in the article I linked. For "me" riding in the big ring is easier . Its that simple.
I have tried the same gears using the small ring and its just not as effective for "me"
If it was I would not climb in the big ring.
Of course its not the best possible chain line but for me it works and it worked pretty well for Valverde this year and Pantani " known for climbing on his big ring"

Unfortunately Xena you are missing the point. As said above gear inches is gear inches and your 53x24 is almost exactly the same as 36x16. The only measurable difference is that the chain line is better on the 36x16. At a given speed, cadence and effort will be almost identical and any 'it works for me' feeling is purely psychological.

The pro's who climb on the big ring are doing something completely different, they are riding at a lower cadence but pulling more gear inches to compensate. This is (from my amateur knowledge) harder on the legs but easier on the lungs and therefore may suit some riders. I personally do the opposite because I find that grinding a huge gear in a race means I can't respond to changes in speed (and I'd argue that this summer at times nor could Valverde and it clearly works for him).

I can respond to changes in pace on my big ring . I practice it 3 times a week 1-2 hours each session.
You ride the way that suits you best and I ride the way that suits me best.
We are all different and ride differently. There is no right way. Look at the comments the Froome gets about his riding style or Bertie always out of his saddle. We do what suits us, there is no right or wrong if it gets great results and your happy.
I don't ride for 6 hours a day. I just train so that when I go to Scotland or France etc I can climb nice and comfortably sometimes slow sometimes fast. I'm not trying to win a race or beat anyone I just enjoying riding my bikes.

[Nefarious86]

Grab a gear calculator and try to train yourself to use different gear combos perhaps? Not a dig, just an observation in mechanical simpthy at worst you may spend 2-3 weeks trying to pair the mental component of the gearing shift with the physical aspect of it?

On paper inces are inches, you shouldnt be able to feel the difference associated with the chain wrap at the Watts produced to climb as you do. Just remind yourself of this as you try the changes.

It may well see you chew less Recon drive train components out over time too.

Go buy yourself a damn GPS watch too, it's 2016 man. Get with the cool kids [emoji14]

[cyclespeed]

I'm curious, are you in the saddle or out of it when climbing in these big gears?

What would you estimate your cadence to be?

If you see a pro climbing in the big ring, it's usually because they're going fast enough (23 ish km/h ++) to justify it.

If you're doing less than that, you should really be in the small ring. It's there for a reason.

The reason people are sceptical is because you are posting climb times that would draw the attention of pro teams. And to do all this while churning a big gear is even more impressive / incredible....

[xena]

I'm curious, are you in the saddle or out of it when climbing in these big gears?

What would you estimate your cadence to be?

If you see a pro climbing in the big ring, it's usually because they're going fast enough (23 ish km/h ++) to justify it.

If you're doing less than that, you should really be in the small ring. It's there for a reason.

The reason people are sceptical is because you are posting climb times that would draw the attention of pro teams. And to do all this while churning a big gear is even more impressive / incredible....

I pointed out that I don't do long rides so I thought my faster times were good but they are just one effort.
If I rode for 3 hours before I would not be achieving those times. They are what they are. There is not really anything else I can say unless you want to know what I eat, supplements I take.

I have tried the small ring I even bought a fibre lyte 40 t its on the Guru but it just does not work for me,
perhaps in the same way Ulrich tried spinning to match lance but it just did not fit.

I ride for my own enjoyment I don't need a power metre etc. I'm not racing anyone I'm not doing
5 hour rides [ well I do the odd one now and then]
I just enjoy what I do. My training/riding is still progressing I'm getting faster on the climbs etc so I'm happy with my progress and the way I get there.

Forgot , I spend most of the climbs out of the saddle.
I cant tell you my cadence on any given time because I don't ride with data, I also tend to attack the steeper parts of climbs early on and then settle back down again so I would say its not consistent cadence anyway.

I'm sorry I can't be more helpful.

[de zwarten]

I get the feeling about better climbing in the big ring: better chain tension + less slack. Especially when standing on the pedals.

But why don't you install 50 in the front? It's lighter, too

[cyclespeed]

Forgot , I spend most of the climbs out of the saddle.
I cant tell you my cadence on any given time because I don't ride with data, I also tend to attack the steeper parts of climbs early on and then settle back down again so I would say its not consistent cadence anyway.

I'm sorry I can't be more helpful.

Given that you seem to have plentiful cycling experience and are knocking out superb climb times, you must have some idea of your cadence surely? 30, 60 , 90?