Gears...

[swiftylee]

Just wanted to know...

i had a giant rapid 1 with 12-28 10 speed rear cassette and 50-34 compact 2 ring crank which i could cover about 26 miles in 2 hours at a push.

i always wanted to know what a racer was like so bought a s/h carrera tdf which has 12-26 8 speed with
52-39 crank 2 ring which with my first ride covered 26 miles in 1h 45 mins but found it hard work.

if when i come to buy a decent bike, would i get better performance out of it or is it just i have reached my bodies max performance...

what is the best gear ratio...

 

[SWSteve]

How long have you been riding?

 

[swiftylee]

im 40 and only since march.

i did do the coast to coast 54 mile the other day in 4h 9 mins on the rapid

try to get out once a week and do a 54 mile or something

 

[goody]

Any gains from getting a better bike will be very small and a result of you feeling better about the bike / yourself / the world. The best gear ratio is the one that goes faster for longer with the least amount of effort.
There is a formula to work it out I think it's rider weight/bike weightXgradientXeffort(watts)+amount spent on bike+2.

 

[vickster]

How does the weight of the two bikes compare?

The Carrera isn't exactly light as alu roadbikes go - 11.7kg - in reality it's a £400 bike with 2300 and an alu fork that Halfords occasionally sell for £600 so they can sell it for £400 and claim a massive discount as they do with all of the Carrera bikes (cynical moi? Mais non)

 

[mcshroom]

You missed out weather somewhere in that equation. The same bike can go a lot faster when it's warm and sunny than when it's cold and wet (well mine can anyway - perhaps I'm just solar powered)

 

[swiftylee]

carrera is 11.7 kg not sure what the rapid was... lighter i know

 

[vickster]

That could be it. My hybrid and my carbon roadbike both have 11-32 SRAM apex, I can definitely go faster on the roadbike, 23mm tyres (vs 28mm), probably 2-3kg lighter (the hybrid is a commuter with rack), SPDs vs flats and I push myself rather harder on the plastic summer toy!

 

[swiftylee]

its deffo the gears. tried going up enmore hill which is a killer.

on my rapid with a struggle i could make it all the way to the top.

on the racer half way and i was all over. a quick 10 min walk to the top....

 

[MikeW-71]

The Rapid seems to be a Defy frame with flat bars, so should be approaching 9kg. That's not what is making the difference IMO, it's the gearing. The Carrera is much higher geared and you aren't used to it, which is why the hills are suddenly a struggle.

There isn't as much between the two bikes as you might think IMO. I think you can push the Rapid faster than you are

 

[doog]

Stick your calculations in this and you will find out why one is easier to ride than the other

http://sheldonbrown.com/gears/

In your first set up you had 33 gear inches for the hills, the second 37. No wonder you found it hard work with the road bike. As for the flat even with the first set up you would have to be doing 33 mph to spin out at 100 RPM...thats fast unless you are descending long hills.

What you need is a lighter road bike with your original compact set up. That will do you .

 

[swiftylee]

Thanks doog a great help something like a defy 0 maybe

 

[doog]

Thanks doog a great help something like a defy 0 maybe

I went from riding a CX bike ( Tricross ) for 5 years as a road bike to a CAAD10 . The difference is 4kg and performance like night and day, so you may find the same with the defy.

 

[ColinJ]

is it just i have reached my bodies max performance...

Er ...

im 40 and only since march ... try to get out once a week and do a 54 mile or something

No!


You've only just started riding and you are not doing anywhere near enough yet to reach your potential maximum performance. Try and do 3 or 4 rides a week totalling (say) 100 miles, push yourself hard here and there, and after 2 or 3 years you will be getting much nearer your limits, but you will probably never actually hit them. You certainly should be able to get fit enough to do a sub-6 hour 100-miler by then.