foggycity

hello everyone, i really need your advise. Physical test is coming up and i have to ride about 50 miles total with many hills. One good loop is about 17miles with many short hills and long gradient hill for a total of 1800ft elevation gain. And i have to do ride 3 loops before breaking for lunch

i m a mediocre rider. My current bike is specilized with 53/39 in front and 11/28 in the back.

I have a very hard time to climb those hills. I would like to change/modify whatever it needs to help me out physically. Thank you very much for your sincere.

veganbikes

You might consider going with a 50/34 Crankset (or just replace chainrings depending on the crankset) that will help or you can go with a longer cage rear derailleur (assuming yours cannot handle a 32) and put an 11-32 cassette on the back. Also making sure your position and fit is right will help greatly.

If you use youtubes or googles you can search this phrase: "global cycling network climbing hills" and get some great videos to help out on hill climbing.

jimincalif

Your gearing might be fine, it depends how much you weigh and how steep the gradients are on these hills. Also how long do you have to prepare for this? A week, a month, a few months? How much do you regularly ride now?

Also, you need to practice climbing hills, 3 loops would be 5,400', a decent amount of climbing. With practice you can know how to pace yourself on the climbs. Using a heart rate monitor helps with this rather than just going by feel.

One other word - intervals. They make you stronger, push your cardio and train your body to recover more quickly between the climbing bits.

HeHateMe444

Yeah I'd also say try a 50/34 crank with an 11-32 cassette.

Machka 

When is your physical test?

rydabent

Just pick a gear that lets you comfortably spin up the hills.

joelcool

The best way to get better at climbing hills is to climb hills.

tagaproject6

How long have you been riding and when is the test? If you have not done your due diligence in training for the ride, no amount of "tips" will get you over that hill. The only way to get better at anything is consistent practice or maybe an enhancement of some sort, be it biological or mechanical augmentation. or you could get a hidden motor in your bike.

ThermionicScott 

Far and away the biggest improvement in my hill-climbing came after I decided I loved it.

gregf83 

At the end of the day climbing hills comes down to your power to weight ratio. Training more to increase power will help as will losing weight. If you can't spin up the hill at 80-90RPM you should consider lower gears.

hillyman

Best to not even start hill climbing. You'll find yourself looking for bigger meaner hills. Then lightening your bike. Then weighing your food. Then a doped up has been that the government is suing. Wait,some of that not me.

GrainBrain

Mediocre isn't probably a good way to describe yourself, that's what I would say about someone who takes too many hits off their inhaler to celebrate.

What do you mean by having a hard time climbing? You're in the 39x28 mashing and gasping?

Or you're in the 39x28 at a comfortable cadence and not too fatigued but you feel like doing 8mph isn't enough?

How much money you got to spend?

fietsbob

Have you learned out of the saddle climbing? It's not much different than getting out of the saddle to get started from a stop,

you just keep at it longer..








..

ph0rk

True enough, but if my low gear was 39x28 I’d be changing something.

Kedosto

Two things; change your chainrings to 50/34 and do more hill riding. If possible, change your cassette to 11-32 or 11-34 (if your rear derailleur can handle it).


-Kedosto

Bmach

I’m curious as to what type of test this is and what it is for? As for the question, gearing, weight and get in shape by riding hills and doing HIITs.

canklecat

What sort of test requires a 50 mile ride? Even the Army's physical fitness test's bicycle option is only 6.2 miles.

If you're even remotely eligible for a 50 mile bike test, you're already physically capable of doing it. I'm going to assume you're trying out for a spot on a cycling team. The rest is training and the mental game.

Ditto the GCN videos on YouTube. Best you'll find -- concise, well edited, entertaining, with credibility from former pros who are still strong riders, but aimed at any cycling enthusiast. Check out their tips on hill and interval training.

That's what I did last summer. I'm 60, hadn't ridden a road bike since I was in my 20s, and was dead last on Strava hill segments riding my hybrid. Assuming I could even finish a hill without an asthma attack.

I got an older road bike last June, followed the GCN tips on hills and intervals and within a couple of weeks was making progress. By August I was middle of the pack on local Strava hill segments, and better on a few that I train on often. I recently cracked the top ten on one climbing segment, one dominated by local pros and serious amateurs. Yeah, it was wind assisted, but so were all the top tens on that climb. I was just having an unusually god day. I'm never going to be a strong climber, but I was able to improve with focused training.

Your bike and gearing are fine. My bike is an old school steelie, 52/39 and 13-24 and weighs at least 24 lbs, assuming I don't carry a water bottle or tools. Closer to 28 lbs as I actually ride it. Most of my 50-60 mile rides have more than 2,000 feet total elevation gain and our area isn't particularly hilly, mostly lots of roller coasters. A 28T large cog on the freewheel wouldn't make me faster on climbs, just easier. To get faster I'd need to be stronger and work at it a lot harder.

Retro Grouch 

I don't think so. Otherwise why would the topic come up? If you have to ask, you need easier climbing gears.

If you have a physical test that you aren't sure that you can complete, slow and steady is more likely to be successful. Don't let yourself get sucked into attempting a pace that you can't maintain.

Retro Grouch 

Sounds to me like a Boy Scout cycling merit badge requirement. I don't think that's unrealistic but it will be a lot more fun if you gradually build up to it. Ride frequently and try to ride a different route every time that you go out. If you do that, longer and faster will come naturally. Cycling should be a joy not a job.

HerrKaLeun

www.gear-calculator.com
Put in the gearing you have and see that cadence you are at lowest gear. Then set up the second set with gearing you need to get higher cadence.

The 53/39 chainring combo is more for professionals (or more fit people), for mere mortals the compact 50/34 is more appropriate. But you can decide if you ever use the 53:11 at all and if a 50:11 still would be fast enough. your cadence should be 80-90 for normal riding and 100 or more for quick sprints. When you put that in the gear calculator you see a 50:11 still is very fast unless you have 20" wheels.

Or do what I did and get a hybrid, my lowest gear is 28:36 LOL

Flip Flop Rider

on the downhill, when approaching a hill, go all out. push a big gear down the hill, and shift to an easier gear for up the hill

stand and pedal up the hill

attack the hill before you get to it, build your speed up

leob1

Don't upgrades rides, ride up grades. Who said that?

xodondum

3rd'ed; 39 to 28 sounds painful. I would luv to try 34 to 34, but never heard of it for a road bike.

jimincalif

Don't think we have enough information on the hills involved or the OP's current condition. 4 years ago I couldn't get up a 6% grade near my home in a 1:1 gear without stopping to rest. Now I can do repeats in a 2:1 gear. And I'm just a recreational Clydesdale club rider.

Agreed, pacing is essential, he won't make the third lap if he blows it all on the first one. It sounds like the test does have some sort of time element to it, so the other side of the coin is training to be able to sustain the pace needed to pass the test.

berner

The Gear Calculator linked in post #20 is a very good resource. You can slide chain ring and rear cassette icons around to simulate your current gearing. From that you can get an idea of what gearing you need. Compact chain rings in front of 50T and 34T will be a big improvement over our current setup. On the back, a lowest gear of 32T or 34T will get you to gearing that will handle almost any hill.

It is possible to go to even lower gearing if need be. Touring cyclist carrying heavy loads over long distances frequently have triple chain rings in front with with the lowest gear having 26T or even lower. I'm not a long hauler but I'm an asthmatic old guy. I have a 26T low chain ring in front with a 30T gear in the back and I can climb any hill in my area. Were I living in a mountainous area, the cassette in back could have a 32T or 34T gear.

The Gear Calculator allows you to graphically slide various gear combinations around to see the effect.