compacts for sportive

Bruce Thornton

I have a VN Yukon with a Campag Veloce 53/39 chainring with a 10speed cassette. Which is fine for riding in Norfolk but I'd like to do some sportive's near my daughters in Surrey. Reading the C plus supplement they mention a 50/34 or 50/36 compact as being better for hills.
What I'd like to know is do I need change other parts of my bike i.e. chain, cassette, rear / front mech,bottom bracket or can I just buy the rings? to make it easier to get up hills.
Bruce

Noclue

I think you need an entire chain set, although i could be wrong, but i know you you don't need to change anything else on shimano set ups so you could well be okay.

dombo6

I believe you can fit a Campag cassette up to 29 teeth which should be ok. There are a couple of 18% and 20% horrors in Surrey but they are quite short and doable on a 39x23 at a pinch. I did them on my first road bike after years of mtb-ing but now have a triple.
The longest hill is from Dorking up to Coldharbour/Leith Hill which is about 3 miles but only around 7-8%.
The great thing with sportives is that there are loads of other riders around you so relative speed becomes more important. While 4mph could have you hanging your head in shame on your own and dismounting, in a sportive it can give you a sense of achievement as you pass somebody who's only doing 3mph
Worked for me in the etape anyway!

Mister W

On that set up you should only need to change the chainset and move the front mech. But unless you're going up Box Hill I'd just stick a 29 on the back.

dombo6

Box Hill is only about a steady 6% for just over a mile. Easily doable on the 19 or even 17 cog, 25 lets you spin up it comfortably. Anything bigger at the back and you'll spin out.

Mister W

I tend to go up the other side. 16%

And you're assuming Bruce is a fair climber, which he may not be if he rides in Norfolk.

jibberjim

Dombo6 wrote:

The longest hill is from Dorking up to Coldharbour/Leith Hill which is about 3 miles but only around 7-8%.

It's slightly undulating for most of those 3 miles, I reckon it.s 2km long, with an average of 6.6% and a maximum of 15% http://jibbering.com/hills/#Boar_Hill

As to a compact, I can get up everything in the surrey hills on 34x25, and I'm not much of a climber.

Droops

Converting to a compact is easy. I've done it 3 times now on various bikes. Just swap the chainset (you'll need a couple of tools, but not too expensive) and slide the front mech down a few mm. It really isn't very scary, even for a first timer.
My view is that a compact just makes so much sense. How often do you use 53x11 or anything even near? Much better to have a few bail-out gears up the other end IMO.

dombo6

Mister W wrote:

I tend to go up the other side. 16%

And you're assuming Bruce is a fair climber, which he may not be if he rides in Norfolk.

Is that the fast wide road up from the roundabout on the A25? Pebble(combe?) Hill? Nice sweeping descent.
I assume everyone is better than me at climbing/descending/powering along the flat until proven otherwise Saves any embarrassment :oops:

kozzo

Droops wrote:

Converting to a compact is easy. I've done it 3 times now on various bikes. Just swap the chainset (you'll need a couple of tools, but not too expensive) and slide the front mech down a few mm. It really isn't very scary, even for a first timer.
My view is that a compact just makes so much sense. How often do you use 53x11 or anything even near? Much better to have a few bail-out gears up the other end IMO.

Changing casette is much easier and cheaper.

It is enough to have one starting from 13 and in if you look at gearing ratio the same result is obtained without changing chainset and rear derailleur that often has to have longer cage.

It is just a fever of compact chainsets that is in reality just a fashion and marketing.
Simple calculation of gearing gives the answer, for example just compare:
53/39 and 13-28 with 50/34 and 12-25.

Campagnolo offers casette starting from 14, Miche even more combination...

itboffin

I have to agree with the bigger cassette option in fact I swapped my compact for a double for last Sunday HOTA which had a 25% and a couple of 20% hills, I found the 39 upfront with a wide range at the back very comfortable.

I'm no racer or climber just like cycling.

roger_merriman

i do have a compact and a low range cassette, and i live on the edge of london, so loads of steep hills....

but seriously it's more for the some of the lanes nr my folks places that have some seriously steep parts.

never used by the sportives in the area though who go for the more alpine like slopes up various hills.

sdbiker

Why not have a compact AND a wide range cassette?
Firstly, a standard cage rear mech WILL cope with a 28 tooth cog - I have 2 bikes, one Tiagra and one 105, with 28 tooth cogs. The problem comes when you try to find a NINE speed cassette with 28 teeth - assuming you have a Shimano hub. The only one I found was a BBB cassette, which is OK but quite heavy.

John.T

The max range that Shimano recommend for a short cage mech is 29 teeth. That is 50/34 and 12/25 or 50/36 and 12/27. It will take 50/34 and 12/27 but that is as much as the chain tensioner can cope with. You may get away with more but you risk a slack chain on small/small or wrecking your mech on big/big. I know you should not use these but I think many of us do on occasion.

Anonymous

Maybe a wise choice to go straight for a front 34 Compact....these sportives are fairly addictive and the Surrey events may wet your appetite for more challenging efforts...and If you ever head to Cornwall or Cumbria,Yorkshire,Wales etc then you will be well happy you invested in lower gears to start off with....I've got a 34 x 27 Compact on my training bike and I can manage upto 20% gradients on it...but anything over that Im stuffed...I never go for sportives without my trusty triple...