Originally Posted by
krispenhartung
Cripes! This thread turned dark quick!
This whole gear thing is almost like religious dogma for some track racers, leading to gnashing of teeth, ad hominems, etc. I am wondering if there any hard, scientific data to support any of the anecdotal claims and advise? Seems that in the absence of such hard data (if it doesn't exist), Carlton's general stance seems the most rational by default, namely, use what works for you. If one has enough ride data to show that when they use big gears they do better than with smaller gear (meaning, they win more races or place better, etc), then use it...and visa versa. But, as we all know in the world of data analytics, one instance of data does not imply a general claim. That I believe is referred to as an inductive fallacy or hasty generalization in the world of logic. :-)
Hence the reference to Slowtwitch and the infamous h20fun aka Dave Campbell
There's a range of gearing that works for each individual for any particular event, to be modified by the conditions and the strategy employed. Changing gears several times over the course of an evening is pretty common. Here's one bit of advice: make sure you have steel chainring bolts, and have some spares. Glue the female end into the crankset -- it'll save you time and also might keep you from losing your bolts. Having a 5mm T-allen wrench that you can get enough torque yet still spin is also nice to have.