Can someone tell me if I got this right?

[DoubleJ]

not really.

the overall ratio in the end is what matters - how you get there,in cycling at least, is irrelevant.

we can start talking about mechanical losses, centripetal forces etc. but those are really negligible in the end (for cycling I need to add).

again; the overall ratio is what counts...

the engine (i.e. you) is still the same no matter how you get to the 1:5 ratio, or whatever you are working with.  

 

just in general: cycling is a W/kg game - the only way to get faster / stronger is to up your power or loose weight. by doing that you'll be able to climb with them "lighties" flying up the hills.

I understand thanks, the main reason I ask about the gear ratios for climbing is that when I got off my 40/28 and got onto my mates 38/24 I climbed one of my kryptonite hills like it was nothing (well ...almost). Yes he's got a Aluminium Canondale medium frame and I have a carbon KTM large frame...but I cant imagine my bike is so much worse than his when it comes to climbing? Probably opening up a whole new can of worms here.

[Bobbo_SA]

Perhaps your mates have 29'ers, we all know they climb faster...

 

hat, coat, door

[DoubleJ]

not really.

the overall ratio in the end is what matters - how you get there,in cycling at least, is irrelevant.

we can start talking about mechanical losses, centripetal forces etc. but those are really negligible in the end (for cycling I need to add).

again; the overall ratio is what counts...

the engine (i.e. you) is still the same no matter how you get to the 1:5 ratio, or whatever you are working with.  

 

just in general: cycling is a W/kg game - the only way to get faster / stronger is to up your power or loose weight. by doing that you'll be able to climb with them "lighties" flying up the hills.

I understand thanks, the main reason I ask about the gear ratios for climbing is that when I got off my 40/28 and got onto my mates 38/24 I climbed one of my kryptonite hills like it was nothing (well ...almost). Yes he's got a Aluminium Canondale medium frame and I have a carbon KTM large frame...but I cant imagine my bike is so much worse than his when it comes to climbing? Probably opening up a whole new can of worms here.

[NordicElf]

some advice would be appreciated.

 

I have a question regarding climbing vs the gear ratios you have on your bike.

 

I currently have 40/28 chainrings up front (11/36 rear). I got this as I thought it would make rocket away from my mates with their little 38/24 chainrings. Now when it comes to straights it's neither here nor there, so i don't really see a difference, but when it comes to climbs I get dropped like a rock. I'm pretty sure that my 28 ring on my 36 at the back is just too difficult to compete with any of my mates (even the guys with 3 x 10). I see guys that are much newer to the sport than I am coming past me on climbs on their 24t rings probably in their 3rd biggest/easiest blade in the back. I have however ridden a mates bike with a 38/24 and I could really feel that the strength in my legs seriously increased and I am thinking/hoping this could be because of the bigger chainrings I have gotten used to on my bike.

 

So my question is this - Do smaller chainrings in the front allow you to select harder gears (smaller rings) in the back and that in turn adds more speed with less effort?

 

I'm thinking of going Kalbo 1 x 32f-oval/42r, but then I think to myself would a 24 chainring not help me get up the hill faster if it will allow me to select a harder gear in the back as apposed to having a 32 single infront? I really would like to try the Kalbo oval setup.

 

Hope this all makes sense....ek moes kop hou ;-)

 

The other explanation could also be that I am just plainkak and should HTFU! 

 

I thank u.

 

 

I've just done an exercise in gear ratios but mine was the other way around, trying to prove that my road compact wasn't going to hinder me against the folk on their standard cranks. 

I found this website really useful   http://www.gear-calculator.com/ - you can compare different setups. I set it to show speed, so you can kind of get a feel for how heavy the gear is and the difference between them. Helped me to visualise my gears.

[Pure Savage]

I understand thanks, the main reason I ask about the gear ratios for climbing is that when I got off my 40/28 and got onto my mates 38/24 I climbed one of my kryptonite hills like it was nothing (well ...almost). Yes he's got a Aluminium Canondale medium frame and I have a carbon KTM large frame...but I cant imagine my bike is so much worse than his when it comes to climbing? Probably opening up a whole new can of worms here.

 

Did you actually climb it faster or did it FEEL faster, maybe you just need to buy a garmin

[DoubleJ]

Did you actually climb it faster or did it FEEL faster, maybe you just need to buy a garmin

 

I definitely went up faster, even got up out of the seat and grinded that biets down. Strava concurred....also, I have never gotten to the top of the hill before my mate and I was up there well before him.

[Pure Savage]

I definitely went up faster, even got up out of the seat and grinded that biets down. Strava concurred....also, I have never gotten to the top of the hill before my mate and I was up there well before him.

 

Maybe because he was on your bike

[Bub Marley]

I think you're being unnecessarily technical. I'm not sure how experienced you are but I can tell based on my cadence whether or not the particular gear I select is correct. If you're battling to turn the rings and you're on your lightest then you either need to get stronger or change your setup. Everyone has a different sweetspot. You need to find yours and work from that. Bigger guys normally prefer a slower cadence but they've got the power to maintain that. Smaller/lighter riders tend to favour higher cadence. Find your sweetspot and stop worrying too much about gear ratios.

[Blackheart]

Loads of research and pseudoscience surrounding this topic.

Trial and error to find what works for you..

I was running a 34T front elliptical chainring and an 11-40T Praxis cassette (10 spd) and I could climb just about anything around here. The steep conc on Noordhoek Peak and Mo*#@F*R on TM were just about at the limit of being comfortable. I tried a 32T front and have decided to stick with that now, I lost a little bit on the flats initially, but my leg speed has improved so I've got that back. Also my legs are not fried anymore from grinding the climbs.

 

Having said that, there's no better feeling than turning a big blade and just feeling the power flow at speed.

 

Big blades, if you can turn them, also have less friction...

 

 

 

[madbradd]

Yeah something sounds very fishy if you're that much faster on your mate's bike.

 

so since you're climbing I assume you're in the 28T not the 40. the difference between the 28 and the 26 is 2 teeth: which is around 7-7.5% difference.

 

The only place this will "make a difference" if you're in 36T on the back because otherwise you would have other gears to make up that difference.

 

Unless the hill is really steep and you're going really slowly so your cadence is really low, gearing shouldn't be the limiting factor. 

 

A little explanation if you're interested:

So all things equal (bike, power to weight and speed), you would pedal 7.5% slower (cadence) on the 28T (because cadence is a function of wheel speed and gear ratio) BUT to keep the same power (which is a function of cadence and force) you would have to push 7.5% harder. Therefore the only way convert more power from your legs into speed (if all is constant) is to reduce the losses of the bike (weight, rolling resistance etc). However being on different bikes potentially changes the amount of power which you can exert.

[dirtypot]

But seriously - is your bike a 26 and your mates a 29er?

[DoubleJ]

But seriously - is your bike a 26 and your mates a 29er?

Both 29ers

[dirtypot]

And do you feel like you're straining on your bike to keep the cranks spinning or are they turning easily?

[Pure Savage]

Both 29ers

More importantly, what is the crank length of both bikes, some people do better with shorter/longer cranks

[Mathieu_Schneuwly]

Did you check your mates bike for a motor?

[DoubleJ]

More importantly, what is the crank length of both bikes, some people do better with shorter/longer cranks

 

2013 KTM Myroon Master for sale - offers welcome ;-)