8 speed vs 9/10 speed

sirdjango

i want to ask for opinion about this. ive been joining group rides for a few weeks now. and its great fun. but the problem is that im having trouble to keep up with these guys. they usually ride with speed between 30-35-40km. hard for me to maintain at this speed sometimes. so most of the time i maintained my speed between 25-30-35km. most of them have very good bikes with carbon frames which are lighter and good groupsets compared to mine aluminium frame and sora components. the question is does 8 speed has that much difference with 9/10 speed road bikes? i mean the option of more gear option is there, but if an 8 speed's' 53-13 vs 53-13 on a 10 speed (example), is it the same in transfer of power (cadence n speed) ive tested with one of the rider in the group about this when we were using the same gearing (53-15) but he still way far ahead of me. maybe its the weight that plays the factor as most of their bikes are much more lighter than mine. my ride is a merida road race 880 8 speed with sora group set, alexrims race 24 32holes(both). care to give any suggestions lads? what can i do? im planning to do some upgrades also.

dmch2

An extra gear or a few grams of bikeweight are not going to make that much difference. More miles in the legs needed I think.

sicknote

I say the same thing as ^^^ more miles in your legs

Hoopdriver

It's just a matter of fitness I suspect. You were probably not used to going out at such speeds when you were riding on your own and now your asking your body to do things it hasn't adapted to yet.

No doubt lighter weight bikes and high tech gear help if you want to go fast. Buying neat new stuff much, much easier and more pleasurable than looking at the tougher question of self and fitness. Shaving grams, and even the odd kilo, off your bike is inconsequential to all but the fittest of riders - face it, most of us, even those of us who are fairly lean by today's standards, could still comfortable lose half a stone.

Eight speed in and of itself is just fine. It wasn't so long ago people were winning the Tour de France on eight speeds, and at a pace that would leave your mates gasping. I suspect too that if Andy Schleck was to join you all, and ride your eight speed, he would have no trouble keeping up.

Garz

The engine they have is more superior. Time to get fitter!

sirdjango

thanks... i will try to improve my fitness and leg strength. from a leisure rider to a fast pace rider... looks like its a long way to go....

unixnerd

Biggest advantage with more gears is less of a gap between them, easier to find the perfect gear for a given situation.

Best money you can spend would be lighter wheels. Easier to accelerate and keep up with the other guys or climb. But to be honest you need a few more miles under your belt first.

Berk Bonebonce

These guys are perhaps not necessarily a great deal fitter than yourself, but if you can't keep up with them I would be inclined to think that you have quite a lot less riding experience than them.

And big lads can think there's something good about riding around fast on the flat. If you are lighter you might go uphill quicker.

neeb

+1 about it being down to miles in the legs. It'll be half fitness and half technique - the more you ride the more efficient you get, even for the same level of fitness. Pedaling technique improves, your position on the bike etc. But it'll also just be cycling fitness too - even if you are fit already off the bike it takes months or years for your body to become really efficient on the bike.

The bike will make a little bit of a difference if you are comparing a £500 entry level bike to £2000+ carbon bikes, but really not all that much.

Still, if you get a better bike you will go faster! The new bike placebo effect is not to be underestimated...

mattward1979

I joined a club for a few rides recently, and I had the same issue...

I was fine keeping up at the start, even sticking with the lead lads, a couple who were very experienced riders, but come 15 miles into the journey, I was huffing and puffing, dropping further back, and eventually sat with the main group.

near the 20 mile mark I was barely keeping up with the main pack, and starting to fall off..

So for me it was the same too. Needed fitness over gear!!

edhornby

mattward1979 wrote:

I was fine keeping up at the start, even sticking with the lead lads, a couple who were very experienced riders, but come 15 miles into the journey, I was huffing and puffing, dropping further back, and eventually sat with the main group.

near the 20 mile mark I was barely keeping up with the main pack, and starting to fall off..

that sounds like pacing rather than legs alone, it takes longer than you think to get fully warmed up and your metabolism used to supplying energy. if you sit with the main group it may seem slowish at first but you'll be motoring later on

ForumNewbie

sirdjango wrote:

i want to ask for opinion about this. ive been joining group rides for a few weeks now. and its great fun. but the problem is that im having trouble to keep up with these guys. they usually ride with speed between 30-35-40km. hard for me to maintain at this speed sometimes. so most of the time i maintained my speed between 25-30-35km.

If by that you mean your overall average speed is 30kph, that is about 18.5 mph which seems pretty fast to me over what I assume is fairly long distance as it's a group ride you are on - so I would say you are fairly fit by most cycling standards.

chunkytfg

Just to answer the original gearing question though 53/13 on an 8sp will be the same as 53/13 on a 9 or 10 speed assuming the circumference of the rear wheel is identical. You will get small variances in that figure for different width 700 tyres as the taller tyres increases circumference on the wider tyres.

sirdjango

thanks a lot guys... now i have a clear view about this...

masterchef

more miles mate:) iv started goining out with the "fast section" in my club now we tend to do 85-110milea at around 21mph maybe abit more depending on whos out:) i struggle sometimes as iv only been riding 6 months but the only time i struggle is when we do a long road of about 15miles going down it at 26-28mph all the way! lol thats hard

Garz

..and southport is flat I guess, if your doing them speeds over the pennines then you need to be knocking on team sky's door!

simon_e

Bike weight isn't the issue that some people (particularly manufacturers) make it out to be. 1kg or so off rider weight vs bike weight would probably make a similarly small difference, though the marketing people don't want you to know that.

Number of gears and groupset level will not make any difference, providing the drivetrain is well maintained. I suggest you persevere with your current bike. Your condition will improve, enabling you to keep up more often. Make sure you eat and drink suitably during the ride so you don't run out of energy. Try to shelter behind other riders as much as you can, it may be worth saying before you start that you're struggling to keep up - they will understand that you can't move to the front and do a turn in the wind.

The one upgrade I would suggest is better (and lighter) wheels. Even my relatively inexpensive Shimano RS10s (~£110) were a noticeable improvement on the stock Alex DA22s on my SCR 2. Lighter, faster rolling tyres run at 80-100psi may help a little if your current tyres are cheap and/or worn out. Vittoria Rubino Pro, Michelin Krylion Carbon, Schwalbe Durano all have some puncture protection and are popular training tyres.

unixnerd

For light wheels you can do a lot worse the Pro-Lite Braccianos, Ribble have them for 176 a set. Made a big difference on my bike when climbing and accelerating, 1500g vs my old 1950g set. But I'd suggest building your strength more first.

masterchef

@garz ye southport is flat as anywhere round here lol but i tend to ride upto or though most of the time the trough of bowland or wales:) not flat round there;)