Standing is a lot like dancing, when it works well. The smooth rhythmic motion is a wonderful feeling. However, it took us several months of riding before we were climbing easily. I suppose like most people, we started out holding the frame steady and mostly moving our bodies. This feels awkward and I expect many tandem teams give up on standing during this phase because it just doesn't feel right. Eventually we reversed the balance and moved the bike more and our bodies less. The result is a motion that makes some use of your upper body and arms. If you row, its a little like moving from a fixed-seat rowboat to one that has a sliding seat.
The key to successful tandem riding is thinking like a team. I know it sounds silly but it seems to work better for us when we wear matching jerseys. Initially standing requires a lot of verbal communication, particularly about when to stand and when to sit. For us the bike feels most awkward if only one of us is standing so we always try to stand and sit on the same stroke. Like I said in my earlier message, we have been doing this for over 45 years. Now Jean can sense when I'm going to stand, without any verbal communication, and usually is up on the same stroke as me. Jean also is fast, agile, and very strong.
Not all tandem teams stand when they climb. Our friends in Corvallis probably have ridden more miles than us and they seldom stand. In fact, they have their cranks ninety degrees out of phase in order to reduce peak loads on their drive train. This arrangement makes standing very difficult since the motion of their bodies is out of phase. We climb a little faster than our friends; however, they move along on flat terrain, usually a little faster than us. Their secret is low gears (until recently our lowest gear was 41 inches) and strong legs.
The photo below was taken on a ride with these folks back in 1982. We are at Timberline Lodge on Mt. Hood.
