Going below 1:1 ratio
#26
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I guess if you have something to prove than never walking is the only option
If you are out to enjoy the ride and see some scenery than walking for a bit helps one take it all in
If you are out to enjoy the ride and see some scenery than walking for a bit helps one take it all in
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I’m ashamed to say that I put a 40t on my 26”wheel mtbs. And I’m running 24/34 chainrings. So I am definitely below 1:1 with my 24:40. I’ve used it on occasion and it isn’t bad.
John
John
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It's amazing that you and the other guy seem to imagine that riding that is perfectly common, and perfectly normal for so many folks, is so amazing. Balancing on a bike is a basic skill. I'm surprised that folks find it too be such a challenge that they have to walk their bikes instead.
It is not that it is a challenge, in all honestly I've never owned a bike that would let me try it. It is just that on a road/tour bike by the time I need such a low gear I'm typically spent so don't enjoy the hampster wheel. Better to just stop the burn and let the legs recover.
Mountain bikes are a different story, need to low gears for short steep hills in bad terrain.
But hey, if ride at 2 mph is what defines you by all means do it.
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There comes a time when it is better to simply admit you are wrong.
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Oh no, my gearing is too low for this climb, said nobody that matters, ever.
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Interesting.
but I guess that is another "straw man" comment
Last edited by Pop N Wood; 09-26-20 at 04:29 PM.
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What are you planning to do with the leftover straw?
#34
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Alright this is stupid of me to respond but all I did was post a personal preference. Does that make sense to you?
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So I didn't say you were wrong in your preference, but instead wrong to say others have something to prove. There is no reason to be that argumentative. That statement served to do nothing but inflame.
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Again with the straw man arguments. You are amusing.
Not interesting at this point. Just sad.
The other guy, who you seem to agree with, falsely claimed that "Maybe a few dozen can ride more than a quarter mile at less than 2.5 mph" as an excuse for his lack of skill. He didn't make it out to be a choice, but a requirement.
Not interesting at this point. Just sad.
The other guy, who you seem to agree with, falsely claimed that "Maybe a few dozen can ride more than a quarter mile at less than 2.5 mph" as an excuse for his lack of skill. He didn't make it out to be a choice, but a requirement.
Just relax dude.
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#38
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20-30-40 chaining 11-40 cassette. Pushing up a gravel (or any hill) hill sucks and it's easy to ride slower than you can walk, even on a heavily loaded bike.
#39
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I think the problem here is you projecting your values on others, rather than attempting to understand a different point of view.
It is not that it is a challenge, in all honestly I've never owned a bike that would let me try it. It is just that on a road/tour bike by the time I need such a low gear I'm typically spent so don't enjoy the hampster wheel. Better to just stop the burn and let the legs recover.
Mountain bikes are a different story, need to low gears for short steep hills in bad terrain.
But hey, if ride at 2 mph is what defines you by all means do it.
It is not that it is a challenge, in all honestly I've never owned a bike that would let me try it. It is just that on a road/tour bike by the time I need such a low gear I'm typically spent so don't enjoy the hampster wheel. Better to just stop the burn and let the legs recover.
Mountain bikes are a different story, need to low gears for short steep hills in bad terrain.
But hey, if ride at 2 mph is what defines you by all means do it.
You did express that walking on steep hills was a personal preference---but also made derogatory remarks about people who disagreed.
Maybe next time you don’t want people to respond as if you have insulted them …. Simply don’t insult them?
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A few on-topic points:
First, I don’t particularly find it hard to walk a bike up a hill, loaded or not. One hand on the stem, or two hands on the bars, lets you keep the bike going straight. An “advanced” technique is to lean the bike toward you so you don’t bark your shins on the pedals.
Second, as I noted above, walking uses different muscles. In the middle or at the end of a long day, walking for a few hundred yards can make a refreshing change from grinding.
Third, if you stop for any reason, it’s difficult to get moving on a steep slope (say, > 15%). Many of the roads I’ve seen pitched like that are too narrow to make a U-turn if you start downhill. How many times do you want to climb that hill? It’s supposed to be a tour, or a brevet, not a hill climbing training session!
Fourth, if you’ve never found the low end of your speedometer/cyclometer registering, you can probably walk faster than that. Sure you lose style points, but getting to the top of a hill faster beats the loss in style, IMHO. YMMV.
Is #4 hard to believe? Well, consider that you’re going about 2.1 mph with a cadence of 40 on 75 gear inches (a 22x34 crank/cassette). You can probably walk faster than that, and you won’t look like a clown spinning the pedals and going nowhere fast.
Speaking of clowns:
Why are “helpful” people always found on-line, instead of offering to help you carry 10-15 pounds of your gear up to the top of that crazy steep hill when you’re touring? Could it be because they’re much better at pointing and clicking than riding a bike?
And track stands. Really? If there’s a 15 month old toddler in your neighborhood, ask the parents if you can borrow them for a race. You’re going to track stand, the toddler is going to walk two blocks. You can’t win. If the kid beats you, the parents (and neighbors) will never let you live it down. If you beat them, well obviously you need to review some videos on how to track stand, because you certainly couldn’t hold it for long.
What does a track stand have to do with riding a bike on a road? On a bike geared lower than 20 gear inches? If you tried racing on a track, you’re going to have a much bigger gear. On that 17.5 gear inch bike at 120 rpm cadence, you’ll be topping 6 mph. A track stand has no more relevance for hill climbing, with or without a touring load, than the maximum airspeed velocity of a common sparrow in level flight. Although we can debate which would be more entertaining.
First, I don’t particularly find it hard to walk a bike up a hill, loaded or not. One hand on the stem, or two hands on the bars, lets you keep the bike going straight. An “advanced” technique is to lean the bike toward you so you don’t bark your shins on the pedals.
Second, as I noted above, walking uses different muscles. In the middle or at the end of a long day, walking for a few hundred yards can make a refreshing change from grinding.
Third, if you stop for any reason, it’s difficult to get moving on a steep slope (say, > 15%). Many of the roads I’ve seen pitched like that are too narrow to make a U-turn if you start downhill. How many times do you want to climb that hill? It’s supposed to be a tour, or a brevet, not a hill climbing training session!
Fourth, if you’ve never found the low end of your speedometer/cyclometer registering, you can probably walk faster than that. Sure you lose style points, but getting to the top of a hill faster beats the loss in style, IMHO. YMMV.
Is #4 hard to believe? Well, consider that you’re going about 2.1 mph with a cadence of 40 on 75 gear inches (a 22x34 crank/cassette). You can probably walk faster than that, and you won’t look like a clown spinning the pedals and going nowhere fast.
Speaking of clowns:
Why are “helpful” people always found on-line, instead of offering to help you carry 10-15 pounds of your gear up to the top of that crazy steep hill when you’re touring? Could it be because they’re much better at pointing and clicking than riding a bike?
And track stands. Really? If there’s a 15 month old toddler in your neighborhood, ask the parents if you can borrow them for a race. You’re going to track stand, the toddler is going to walk two blocks. You can’t win. If the kid beats you, the parents (and neighbors) will never let you live it down. If you beat them, well obviously you need to review some videos on how to track stand, because you certainly couldn’t hold it for long.
What does a track stand have to do with riding a bike on a road? On a bike geared lower than 20 gear inches? If you tried racing on a track, you’re going to have a much bigger gear. On that 17.5 gear inch bike at 120 rpm cadence, you’ll be topping 6 mph. A track stand has no more relevance for hill climbing, with or without a touring load, than the maximum airspeed velocity of a common sparrow in level flight. Although we can debate which would be more entertaining.
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#41
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A few on-topic points:
First, I don’t particularly find it hard to walk a bike up a hill, loaded or not. One hand on the stem, or two hands on the bars, lets you keep the bike going straight. An “advanced” technique is to lean the bike toward you so you don’t bark your shins on the pedals.
Second, as I noted above, walking uses different muscles. In the middle or at the end of a long day, walking for a few hundred yards can make a refreshing change from grinding.
Third, if you stop for any reason, it’s difficult to get moving on a steep slope (say, > 15%). Many of the roads I’ve seen pitched like that are too narrow to make a U-turn if you start downhill. How many times do you want to climb that hill? It’s supposed to be a tour, or a brevet, not a hill climbing training session!
First, I don’t particularly find it hard to walk a bike up a hill, loaded or not. One hand on the stem, or two hands on the bars, lets you keep the bike going straight. An “advanced” technique is to lean the bike toward you so you don’t bark your shins on the pedals.
Second, as I noted above, walking uses different muscles. In the middle or at the end of a long day, walking for a few hundred yards can make a refreshing change from grinding.
Third, if you stop for any reason, it’s difficult to get moving on a steep slope (say, > 15%). Many of the roads I’ve seen pitched like that are too narrow to make a U-turn if you start downhill. How many times do you want to climb that hill? It’s supposed to be a tour, or a brevet, not a hill climbing training session!
#42
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A few on-topic points:
First, I don’t particularly find it hard to walk a bike up a hill, loaded or not. One hand on the stem, or two hands on the bars, lets you keep the bike going straight. An “advanced” technique is to lean the bike toward you so you don’t bark your shins on the pedals.
First, I don’t particularly find it hard to walk a bike up a hill, loaded or not. One hand on the stem, or two hands on the bars, lets you keep the bike going straight. An “advanced” technique is to lean the bike toward you so you don’t bark your shins on the pedals.
Second, as I noted above, walking uses different muscles. In the middle or at the end of a long day, walking for a few hundred yards can make a refreshing change from grinding.
Third, if you stop for any reason, it’s difficult to get moving on a steep slope (say, > 15%). Many of the roads I’ve seen pitched like that are too narrow to make a U-turn if you start downhill. How many times do you want to climb that hill? It’s supposed to be a tour, or a brevet, not a hill climbing training session!
Fourth, if you’ve never found the low end of your speedometer/cyclometer registering, you can probably walk faster than that. Sure you lose style points, but getting to the top of a hill faster beats the loss in style, IMHO. YMMV.
Is #4 hard to believe? Well, consider that you’re going about 2.1 mph with a cadence of 40 on 75 gear inches (a 22x34 crank/cassette). You can probably walk faster than that, and you won’t look like a clown spinning the pedals and going nowhere fast.
As for riding at slow speeds, it’s not nearly as hard as you seem to think it is. I can even take a picture while riding up a 10% grade at only slightly faster than you say is next to impossible.
IMGP1727 by Stuart Black, on Flickr
That’s taken on a loaded touring bike with an SLR that I had to take out of the handlebar bag while riding and while holding the camera in one hand and the bar in the other. It’s wasn’t the simplest task but my skills aren’t really all that extraordinary.
Speaking of clowns:
Why are “helpful” people always found on-line, instead of offering to help you carry 10-15 pounds of your gear up to the top of that crazy steep hill when you’re touring? Could it be because they’re much better at pointing and clicking than riding a bike?
Why are “helpful” people always found on-line, instead of offering to help you carry 10-15 pounds of your gear up to the top of that crazy steep hill when you’re touring? Could it be because they’re much better at pointing and clicking than riding a bike?
And track stands. Really? If there’s a 15 month old toddler in your neighborhood, ask the parents if you can borrow them for a race. You’re going to track stand, the toddler is going to walk two blocks. You can’t win. If the kid beats you, the parents (and neighbors) will never let you live it down. If you beat them, well obviously you need to review some videos on how to track stand, because you certainly couldn’t hold it for long.
I’ve had to nearly stop behind walkers on bike paths when I can’t pass them. I suspect that you have had to slow down and wait for pedestrians. Do you fall over every time you do it?
I don’t run at the bicycle when I start. I can pull away from a stop at walking speed for as long as I want or, more importantly, for as long as I need. That comes in handy when turning left and I have to wait for traffic coming at me to clear. Trackstands are just an extension of that slow riding.
What does a track stand have to do with riding a bike on a road? On a bike geared lower than 20 gear inches? If you tried racing on a track, you’re going to have a much bigger gear. On that 17.5 gear inch bike at 120 rpm cadence, you’ll be topping 6 mph. A track stand has no more relevance for hill climbing, with or without a touring load, than the maximum airspeed velocity of a common sparrow in level flight. Although we can debate which would be more entertaining.
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Stuart Black
Plan Epsilon Around Lake Michigan in the era of Covid
Old School…When It Wasn’t Ancient bikepacking
Gold Fever Three days of dirt in Colorado
Pokin' around the Poconos A cold ride around Lake Erie
Dinosaurs in Colorado A mountain bike guide to the Purgatory Canyon dinosaur trackway
Solo Without Pie. The search for pie in the Midwest.
Picking the Scablands. Washington and Oregon, 2005. Pie and spiders on the Columbia River!
Last edited by cyccommute; 09-28-20 at 07:52 PM.
#43
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#44
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Update:
I finally finished building the bicycle this spring and rode it through summer and fall.
It works well though at one point the advent derailleur hanger bent probably from a bad shift that I did. The chain may not be long enough for it.
So I did pair the advent with a double front chainring. It is a 50/34 front chainring. Advent goes from 11-42. Lowest gear is 34/42 and I do use it often for climbing the steep hills in my area.
I use a bar end shifter too. I could have used any brifter.
The only thing I would change is I would probably make the front chainring smaller. As of now I spend most of the time in the 34. The larger chainring definitely needs to be reduced to 48 and the smaller one I'm unsure if it needs to be smaller.
I finally finished building the bicycle this spring and rode it through summer and fall.
It works well though at one point the advent derailleur hanger bent probably from a bad shift that I did. The chain may not be long enough for it.
So I did pair the advent with a double front chainring. It is a 50/34 front chainring. Advent goes from 11-42. Lowest gear is 34/42 and I do use it often for climbing the steep hills in my area.
I use a bar end shifter too. I could have used any brifter.
The only thing I would change is I would probably make the front chainring smaller. As of now I spend most of the time in the 34. The larger chainring definitely needs to be reduced to 48 and the smaller one I'm unsure if it needs to be smaller.
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#45
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My bike, a 1x11, came with a 40t front and an 42t rear. I was already under a 1:1 but even though I do climb frequently, I suck at it and hate it. I wanted all the help I can get so I swapped the 42t rear out for a 46t and am very happy with it now. I still suck at climbing and I still hate it but my legs are much happier now..
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#46
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Update:
I finally finished building the bicycle this spring and rode it through summer and fall.
It works well though at one point the advent derailleur hanger bent probably from a bad shift that I did. The chain may not be long enough for it.
So I did pair the advent with a double front chainring. It is a 50/34 front chainring. Advent goes from 11-42. Lowest gear is 34/42 and I do use it often for climbing the steep hills in my area.
I use a bar end shifter too. I could have used any brifter.
The only thing I would change is I would probably make the front chainring smaller. As of now I spend most of the time in the 34. The larger chainring definitely needs to be reduced to 48 and the smaller one I'm unsure if it needs to be smaller.
I finally finished building the bicycle this spring and rode it through summer and fall.
It works well though at one point the advent derailleur hanger bent probably from a bad shift that I did. The chain may not be long enough for it.
So I did pair the advent with a double front chainring. It is a 50/34 front chainring. Advent goes from 11-42. Lowest gear is 34/42 and I do use it often for climbing the steep hills in my area.
I use a bar end shifter too. I could have used any brifter.
The only thing I would change is I would probably make the front chainring smaller. As of now I spend most of the time in the 34. The larger chainring definitely needs to be reduced to 48 and the smaller one I'm unsure if it needs to be smaller.
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