Triples are for wimps
ColinJ
Posts: 2,218
"No climb in the UK requires anything lower than a 39/23 gear ratio"
I have only three things to say...
(1)<b> Ride this!</b> (problem with this new slideshow in Opera browser; should work fine using Internet Explorer [:(])
(2) If you <i>can</i> ride it in 39/23 - <i>chapeau!</i>
(3) Hi, my name is Colin - I'm a wimp [;)]!
A Miss is as good as a mile, especially if she cycles...
I have only three things to say...
(1)<b> Ride this!</b> (problem with this new slideshow in Opera browser; should work fine using Internet Explorer [:(])
(2) If you <i>can</i> ride it in 39/23 - <i>chapeau!</i>
(3) Hi, my name is Colin - I'm a wimp [;)]!
A Miss is as good as a mile, especially if she cycles...
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yes ,won't open. glad to be a wimp with you!just fitted a triple with 30x26 and it will be well used round here,lancashire/yorkshire.i like to climb in comfort.0
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Triple for me I live in lincolnshire..jacob doughty0
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Triple for me, please. Surrey.0
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triple here too, base of peak district (cat & fiddle a 10km jaunt to the pub from home).
if i had a better signature, i'd use that insteadriding on my bicycle, i saw a motorcrash…0 -
Cant open the link either because Im not a member on that site [:(] Like to see pictures of hills, for comparison. Im a firm believer in the use of a Triple.
I lived in Lincolnshire for a while - out between louth and Grimsby. Coming from Torquay I burst out laughing at what my cousin referred to as a "hill" out there [:D] Seemed like a cycling paradise, long wide straight quiet country roads, could cycle 10 miles without breaking a sweat out where I was [:D]. That branch of the family gets reffered to as the flat earth society.0 -
Everyone should use the gear range which suits their cycling requirements. The double v triple debate is akin to motrists aruing about 2 doors or 4, of 4 gears or 5.
If others want to call me a wimp for having a triple then fine. I need it on occasions.
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Be nice to grumpy old men (or else)0 -
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by ColinJ</i>
"No climb in the UK requires anything lower than a 39/23 gear ratio"
I have only three things to say...
(1)<b> Ride this!</b> (click on <i>Slideshow</i>)
(2) If you <i>can</i> ride it in 39/23 - <i>chapeau!</i>
(3) Hi, my name is Colin - I'm a wimp [;)]!
A Miss is as good as a mile, especially if she cycles...
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Whatever floats your boat. Cycling is an activity for a wide range of people. The Miller/Wiggins fraternity will ride most things on a high gear. But, importantly there is room for triples, compacts and race gearing. Personally, I like a compact over a triple and have not needed to get of and walk on any hill - yet!
I was riding the Ryedale Rumble at the weekend and cycled for a distance with someone on a fixed. He was keeping with me on all the hills - a seriously impressive performance.0 -
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by DavidTQ</i>
Cant open the link either because Im not a member on that site [:(] Like to see pictures of hills, for comparison. Im a firm believer in the use of a Triple.
I lived in Lincolnshire for a while - out between louth and Grimsby. Coming from Torquay I burst out laughing at what my cousin referred to as a "hill" out there [:D] Seemed like a cycling paradise, long wide straight quiet country roads, could cycle 10 miles without breaking a sweat out where I was [:D]. That branch of the family gets reffered to as the flat earth society.
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Oh, that's annoying! I didn't realise that they force you to sign up to view albums - I'd left myself logged in when I checked the link. I'll find somewhere else to host the pictures and post a new link below.
<b>[EDIT]</b>
Okay, I've now created a Flickr account and put the pictures there. This new slideshow works in Internet Explorer, though my Opera browser seems to have problems with it.
A Miss is as good as a mile, especially if she cycles...0 -
Heh. Triple front (30x40x52) and 13-29 cassette AND I used the lowest gear several times yesterday, within the M25.
At the end of a long ride I often need my lowest gear through sheer knackeredness.
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If I had a baby elephant signature, I'd use that.--
If I had a baby elephant signature, I\'d use that.0 -
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Greenbank</i>
Heh. Triple front (30x40x52) and 13-29 cassette AND I used the lowest gear several times yesterday, within the M25.
At the end of a long ride I often need my lowest gear through sheer knackeredness.
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If I had a baby elephant signature, I'd use that.
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Mine is 30x39x52 and 14-28 (Campag). I didn't use the old 13 sprocket much and fancied a 28 so I recently changed my cassette. The 30/28 combination gets a surprising amount of use here in hilly West Yorkshire, but the biggest change was how much longer I can now stay on the bigger two rings - that was a nice bonus.
A Miss is as good as a mile, especially if she cycles...0 -
"No climb in the UK requires anything lower than a 39/23 gear ratio"
whose quote is that Colin?0 -
Incidentally, I wasn't really trying to stir up the old debate again, I just wanted an excuse to show you my photos [:)]!
And also to tempt a few people to have a go at Mytholm Steeps of course. We tackled it last week on Pain in the Pennines.
A Miss is as good as a mile, especially if she cycles...0 -
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by IsledeBlanc</i>
"No climb in the UK requires anything lower than a 39/23 gear ratio"
whose quote is that Colin?
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I've actually read that in a few places. I'm sure that there are people who <i>can</i> get round the Fred Whitton Challenge, Etape du Dales and so forth on that gear ratio but I'm not one of them. I think that it isn't the most sensible way of approaching steep hills. Apart from anything else, it can't be good for the knees.
When I did the <i>Pendle Pedal</i> last year a bunch of younger riders shot past me towards the foot of the steep climb at Quernmore near Lancaster. They playfully mocked my triple as they passed me. 5 minutes later I overtook them as they walked their overgeared bikes up the climb. I took a long swig from my bottle as I went by and said "So lads - anybody want to buy my triple [:D]?"
A Miss is as good as a mile, especially if she cycles...0 -
you may have got up it on a 23/39 but you must have stopped a couple of dozen times to take the photo's....so does it still count as getting up on a 23/39[;)]
my first bike had a 39/23 as the lowest gearing and i never had to get off riding the southdowns but i did have to grind up some of the hills. just brought a new bike with a triple and so haven't run out of gears yet so i'm happy. i know i'll not race just want to get round the rides reasonably quickly without killing my knees in the process.
Windy
Wot, get up early and ride to work.... are you mad?0 -
Nice one Colin!
Looks like flat Surrey's North Downs [;)]
Who's the bloke puking over the wall - someone who's sprinted from the bottom?!
Triples - I'd rather spin than walk!0 -
Conversely, I was thinking of going over to a compact from a triple at some point, as I dont use the 'big ring' on my triple very often and also end up changing from big, to middle to small ring and back a lot, in order to maintain a decent chain line, whereas I'd not need to change gear at the front so often on a compact. Depending on my initial chainring and cassette selection, a compact could give me exactly the same range of usable gear inches as a triple.0
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my old dad could go up the Haley Brae leading out of Largs with just 3 gears , nevermind 3 cogs on his racer,
dlambdlamb0 -
As a plodding Audax rider (moving average speed of 23kph, for 9 hours though) I find a triple works well for me. I spend the vast majority of my time on the middle ring (42) and using the full range of the 13-29 cassette. I don't have any problems with the chainline.
For a tailwind assisted blat, or slightly downhill, 42x13 is good enough, at 100rpm it gives me 40kph. If it goes up steeply (or I'm just tired) I've got the small 30 tooth chainring to wimp out with. If it goes down steeply I've always got 52x13 at my disposal.
My previous bike was a classic 39/53 double (13-26 cassette) and I was constantly changing between small and large front ring over undulating terrain.
A stronger rider may cope fine with a double or a compact double (if hilly) but a triple suits *me* fine right now for what I do (although this may change in the future).
Mind you, I've done not pan-flat 100km Audax on 71" fixed and got by fine on the hills (I think it's easier if you just don't have a choice).
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If I had a baby elephant signature, I'd use that.--
If I had a baby elephant signature, I\'d use that.0 -
hi colin - when i ride out of allerton and through hebden, around, trawden, denholm, mytholmroyd and that really really steep hill that goes up out of thornton to the highest parish in engliand (or something) i use my standard road double.
the climb up out of hebden to the pub/inn on the corner and then round and across the moor is quite harsh and long.
winter: http://tinyurl.com/2xkbbs
summer: http://tinyurl.com/2hsagv0 -
My cassette is 12-23 with a 39 tooth middle chain ring, and I end up using the little ring on very steep hills or on steady but very long hills. I used all three chain rings in the Alps as the long ascents and descents are so different from anything in the UK, but here in the UK I use mostly middle and small ring - or I would be able to, if I didn't have the large ring. Having the 52 tooth large ring, just ends up necessitating a change up at the front when using one sprocket from the last sprocket on the cassette, but changing to the large chain ring means that I have to use an accompanying shift at the rear, to a larger cog in fact, in order to select the next gear up in the range, so in reality I hardly ever use those last two smallest sprockets on the block. Without the 52 tooth large chain ring, I could use these smallest sprockets without crossing the chain. Rather than carrying two sprockets I can't use unless I'm descending (in which case there is no need to pedal anyway, as I'm not racing), it seems more sensible to rid myself of the excess weight and cost of an entire chain ring, as I obviously don't need to be carrying it round with me!0
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<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by WindyRob</i>
you may have got up it on a 23/39 but you must have stopped a couple of dozen times to take the photo's....so does it still count as getting up on a 23/39[;)]
my first bike had a 39/23 as the lowest gearing and i never had to get off riding the southdowns but i did have to grind up some of the hills. just brought a new bike with a triple and so haven't run out of gears yet so i'm happy. i know i'll not race just want to get round the rides reasonably quickly without killing my knees in the process.
Windy
Wot, get up early and ride to work.... are you mad?
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Hey Windy... I wouldn't have a hope in hell of getting up that brute in 39/23 these days! I had to dismount about 25 metres from the top of the 25% bit last week and I was using 30/28! I was very strong about 6 years back and I did do some 20% climbs on 39/23 then but I think that I'd have struggled on 25+%.
I actually walked up the hill a few days ago to take the pictures for a few people who had asked me just how tough the climb is. I thought a few others on the forum might like to see them.
A Miss is as good as a mile, especially if she cycles...0 -
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by JWSurrey</i>
Nice one Colin!
Looks like flat Surrey's North Downs [;)]
Who's the bloke puking over the wall - someone who's sprinted from the bottom?!
Triples - I'd rather spin than walk!
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I thought the old guy was puking too! He was actually leaning over his wall to do some gardening.
A Miss is as good as a mile, especially if she cycles...0 -
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by ColinJ</i>
"No climb in the UK requires anything lower than a 39/23 gear ratio"
I have only three things to say...
(1)<b> Ride this!</b> (problem with this new slideshow in Opera browser; should work fine using Internet Explorer [:(])
(2) If you <i>can</i> ride it in 39/23 - <i>chapeau!</i>
(3) Hi, my name is Colin - I'm a wimp [;)]!
A Miss is as good as a mile, especially if she cycles...
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Wow thats a devil of a climb!![:0]
with these Devon hills i couldn`t manage without a triple either!![B)][:p]0 -
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by Blonde</i>
Conversely, I was thinking of going over to a compact from a triple at some point, as I dont use the 'big ring' on my triple very often and also end up changing from big, to middle to small ring and back a lot, in order to maintain a decent chain line, whereas I'd not need to change gear at the front so often on a compact. Depending on my initial chainring and cassette selection, a compact could give me exactly the same range of usable gear inches as a triple.
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Hey Leo, I think a compact would probably suit you. If you recall, I was behind you on Saturday when you got your chain stuck changing chainrings on that steep little rise. With a compact you could have stuck on one ring all the way up. You are strong enough that you <b>don't</b> need to use big sprockets, so you <i>could </i>get the same range of gears with a double. I would have to use a mountain bike cassette to get my wider range and then I'd have nasty big steps between gears. The thing I don't like about compacts is the big step between the rings.
A Miss is as good as a mile, especially if she cycles...0 -
Personally I would not go for a compact nothing to do with feeling a whimp but in my experience I have not got off a climb yet and lowest gear I used is 39/27 but thats not the main reason, the main reason is on steepest of climbs using that gear, I was doing just under 3mph so any slower and it would be quicker to walk [:D]
Feel free to browse and donate:
http://www.justgiving.com/davidbethanmills
My winter and summer bike pics
http://oldwelshman.myphotoalbum.com0 -
I've ordered an Allez Sport Triple.
I'd rather have the extra cog, I'm used to an MTB triple and so there is a comfort zone element too.
I have a weak left leg and sometimes the bike has to help me out!
It suits my requirements. End of.
See you at the top (If you get there)[:)]
Richard
Best thing I ever bought for a bike?
Padded shorts![:D]Richard
Giving it Large0 -
By the way, in my album below you can see me struggling up a very hard climb, up to 28% in a couple of section, 2 miles in total, using 39/23 admittedly struggling hanging on the bars [:D], nice view though.
Feel free to browse and donate:
http://www.justgiving.com/davidbethanmills
My winter and summer bike pics
http://oldwelshman.myphotoalbum.com0 -
No matter what gears i have i always need one lower. Started out on a 39/53 with a 21 cassette....ouch. But i now have a 39/53 25 and a compact (?/?) with a 26 cassette.
I do miss grinding up corfe hill in 39/21
http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p67/ ... 81/MTB.jpg
http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p67/ ... CN1063.jpg
http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p67/ ... rFrame.jpgI\'m a little man on a Giant bike!
MTB:-http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p67/gaterz1981/MTB.jpg
HackBike:-http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p67/gaterz1981/DSCN1063.jpg
SummerBike:-http://i125.photobucket.com/albums/p67/gaterz1981/SummerFrame.jpg0 -
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"><i>Originally posted by oldwelshman</i>
Personally I would not go for a compact nothing to do with feeling a whimp but in my experience I have not got off a climb yet and lowest gear I used is 39/27 but thats not the main reason, the main reason is on steepest of climbs using that gear, I was doing just under 3mph so any slower and <b>it would be quicker to walk</b> [:D]
Feel free to browse and donate:
http://www.justgiving.com/davidbethanmills
My winter and summer bike pics
http://oldwelshman.myphotoalbum.com
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The problem I had was trying to walk on a wet 25% climb with Look cleats on my shoes - it just wasn't safe [:0]! The new cleat I put on that morning is now half worn [:(]. I'm experimenting with road SPDs now for that very reason. The only thing is - I think that I may suffer from 'hotspots'. I sometimes get cramps in my feet on long rides and I like the support that Looks give.
A Miss is as good as a mile, especially if she cycles...0
