Hybrid or road bike for climbing hills

[CXRAndy]

Lower gearing is generally less amazing than you might imagine. You get used to the ratios and it soon feels as hard as before.

I tend not to use the 26 ring much unless the gradient goes above 10% but it always feels a great relief. I have used it on occasions when I feel shattered to drop down in effort to zone 2 and gently spin.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

Hehe, thats not low 26 chainset-40 cog

Or 22 / 34 for a very slightly lower gear for less weight. Old school mtn bike gearing from 15 years ago.

 

[CXRAndy]

Or 22 / 34 for a very slightly lower gear for less weight. Old school mtn bike gearing from 15 years ago.

I can't use that chainring. Im using a XTR Di2 triple front derailleur, which has a short-ish cage, Im using it to its limits accommodating 48t down to 26t.

I really dont need any lower, as >25% are generally few and far and not long in duration. Im knocking on 100kg so a few grams nothing to worry about

 

[johnblack]

A road bike would always win for me uphill, I don't think a hybrid would come close. 39-28 is the lowest I've got on my summer bike, haven't had anything beat me yet but think I might move to 36-32 for my 50th, the knees are starting to complain.

 

[delb0y]

When I bought my first new bike about a dozen years ago (for the preceding 30 I'd been riding the same same Sun five speed I had in my teens!) the salesman in my LBS sold me a Claud Butler Roubaix telling me that the gears were low enough that I'd be able to get up "anything around here". Foolishly, I believed him. And half-killed myself failing to get up many of them. Eventually I took advice and put a bigger cassette on the back. Still couldn't get up some of the hills. Put a compact on the front. Nope, still found hills I couldn't get up. Then, about ten years ago, I bought the Tricross. Triple on the front, big cassette on the back, and suddenly some of the hills that I couldn't get up before I now could.

But still not all of 'em...

Last year- or was the year before? - I invested in a Giant Toughroad SLR2. Flat-barred touring / gravel / hybrid thing, and for the first time I've been able to get up all the hills I've put before it. These gears are low (19") but that's what I needed. You may be younger, fitter, lighter, stronger... But for me that's what I needed.

I've now put equivalent gears on the Tricross and it's like the best of both worlds - light (compared to the Toughroad) but with low gears. Only trouble is the brakes...

 

[oldfatfool]

Depenbds on ability and the gradient if the hill and the surface of the road/track

 

[Mick54]

Many thanks for all the replies,opted for the Boardman as shown and a big improvement with gearing and tyres compared to my last bike