Big enormous cassettes for climbing mountains !!
Comments
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Officially, 27 and although I've seen bigger squeezed on, I wouldn't. It will help.
The problem with the alps is, and what makes it different from climbing in the UK, is the distances involved. 20k at 8% gets wearing. A 500m climb can be dealt with out of the saddle, low cadence, rip the bars off but try doing the same for 2 hours with no break and it's not funny!0 -
Thanks that's settled I'll go for a 27.
I must be a sadist. Following the mountain stages around the Spanish Vuelta I enjoyed the long sustained suffering of the climbs. Problem I find with shorter steeper ones like those over here is a few minutes of out of the saddle heaving on my hoods I am out of breath and can't sustain it. Is this a part a of my fitness thats lacking? What type of training will improve this weakness?0 -
Hard to give you anything but general advice, especially as you haven't told us things like how old and espcially how heavy you are.0
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I'm 37 13 stone 6 feet tall do about 3 rides a week total weekly mileage about 100 miles plus 10 miles running and one swimming session per week. I have quite a lot of muscle bulk around my shoulders and upper body which I think could be the problem. Would I be better dropping one of my steady rides for some sort of power session?0
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Ken Night wrote:oldwelshman wrote:For the record for the Marmotte I am usinf 50/34 12,25 .....................
I find the gap 50/34 too great, much happier with 48/34
Using the 12, which gives a 108" gear, you won't spin out, even on the Lauteret descent (40mph at 120rpm)
(BTW, let everyone else waste themselves there-just tuck in and wheel suck, it's so easy to get into the state of mind that because you can go so fast down it, that you have to drive your peloton on. Don't, you'll pay for it towards the end, when it kicks up again, and of course on AD)oldwelshman wrote:I reckon if I use a 34 x 25 at 60 will be ok, any less will be so slow would be easier to get off and walk .
having 12-27 (OW is a Shimano user) is a no brainer-low sprockets 21,24,27, compared to 21, 23, 25, , and even if you don't use the 27 on the first couple of ramps, by the time you've been climbing for 45mins in 40degrees as last year, the chances are you'll need it, even if you haven't on the Galibier which is much cooler
I didn't use my low gear on the Galibier, and as above, was glad to have it on AD-I finished around 1000th overall for gold in my category, so while not brillant, I wan't hanging about either
What is your goal time OW?
The only goal I have currently is to finish Ken
Reason being I have no previous experience of such a ride.
Last year I did Pinarello Gran Fondo and finished 320th in 6:32 but that has not got the same type of terrain, hilly but not as high.
I will also be on my new Prince so hope that will help
I also hope to get my weight back down to last years, and get some good miles in next few weeks to prepare properly yo give me a good chance of doing well.
Then after this year I will have an ide what to expect for following years and for when we do the bike raidar ventoux challenge 3 in a day 0 -
Funny how selective the memory is.....
398 1579 LACEY JOHN M M3 09-Mar-64 ANALOG DEVICES / HEMEL HEMPSTEAD CC 06:49:19.39oldwelshman wrote:[Last year I did Pinarello Gran Fondo and finished 320th in 6:32 but that has not got the same type of terrain, hilly but not as high.ken night wrote:didn't use my low gear on the Galibier, and as above, was glad to have it on AD-I finished around 1000th overall for gold in my category, so while not brillant, I wan't hanging about either
1157 MIDDLEMISS KEN E Homme de 40 a 49 ans 08 h 49 mn 30 s 382
Good luck and we look forward to hearing about it when you've done-it's epic and really well worth doing
Love to do the 3x Ventoux one day-when is the Bike Radar event?“It is by riding a bicycle that you learn the contours of a country best..." Ernest Hemingway0 -
Ken Night wrote:Funny how selective the memory is.....
398 1579 LACEY JOHN M M3 09-Mar-64 ANALOG DEVICES / HEMEL HEMPSTEAD CC 06:49:19.39oldwelshman wrote:[Last year I did Pinarello Gran Fondo and finished 320th in 6:32 but that has not got the same type of terrain, hilly but not as high.ken night wrote:didn't use my low gear on the Galibier, and as above, was glad to have it on AD-I finished around 1000th overall for gold in my category, so while not brillant, I wan't hanging about either
1157 MIDDLEMISS KEN E Homme de 40 a 49 ans 08 h 49 mn 30 s 382
Good luck and we look forward to hearing about it when you've done-it's epic and really well worth doing
Love to do the 3x Ventoux one day-when is the Bike Radar event?
Yes John did quite well and I dropped him on the 3 big climb
On the official site I had:
329 1577 MILLS DAVID M M4 28-Apr-61 INDIVIDUALE 06:39:26.72 31,24 37 456 01.16.27 430 02.05.52 215 02.38.36 214 00.38.31 LUNGO
But this was taken using time the event started not the time I crossed the line, there was another link to site for corrected times, I cannot find it now, but my start number was 1577 and I was in third batch to start.
I know my time was actually 6:33 as I just missed out on 6:30
it also had me down as 320th but who will split hairs about 9 placings.
By the way, we are doing Pinarello again this year and John is riding with me again with several others and he is going better than me at the moment.
The bike radar event will be when we organise it 0
