How come so hard???

jmcc500

1st post on here.

Just taken delivery of a second hand Bob Jackson road bike, having got fed up with everyone going past me whilst commuting on my mountain bike. Am really pleased with it so far, though managed to get a puncture on the way home (fortunately my LBS were just round the corner and still open so they fixed it for me - my usual kit was attached to the MTB at work!)

So, thoughts: Seems nice and smooth and fast, but gearing is much taller than the MTB. The last bit of my return journey is reasonably steep uphill, and where I could drop to the small front gear and cruise up on the MTB, I found it a real struggle on the road bike even in 1st. Is it normal to be like this?

Can anyone point me at a guide for setting up the riding position? I don't feel quite right (bit too head down, bit too cramped maybe?) so want to try getting some better settings.

Thanks,

James

XtotheZ

same here, my first month of proper cycling was walking up hills, dont worry though climbing gets alot easier as you get a bit of muscle.

The best thing to do is get the bike fitted properly

mattward1979

+1 to stick with it

My first weeks commuting to Greenwich from Dartford takes in the lovely Shooters hill.. now the race snakes and the pros dont even rate this as a hill but it really destroyed me...

6 Weeks later, and today I annihilated the hill from crayford to Bexleyheath and was out of the saddle smashing my way up Shooters hill for 90% of the hill. I had a nice spin over the crest then enjoyed the 40mph descent overtaking cars =D

You will get there dude. No amount of money spent on a bike will make the journey easier, as its all about practice and fitness.

As for a setup, I just read loads of t'interweb posts about ideal setups and took it from there...

The basics being:

When sat on the seat with your leg extended, your heel should meet the center of the pedal with a completely straight leg. This gives you a nice bend in the knee when fully extended while pedalling.

KOPS (Knee over pedal spindle): Seat position should allow for a drop line (fishing line with a weight it ideal) to extend from the front of the knee, and the line pass by the center of the spindle when your pedals are at 90 degrees (3 and 9 o clock)

I never really looked further than this, and Ive managed to tweak it to carry me 60+ miles at a time, but for the 100m target of next year Ill be going for a pro setup..

Good Luck!

danlikesbikes

Stick with it I don't think anyone would lie about having the same issues.

I recall my first few times out was a certain hill I used to really worry about and feel I was dying before getting the top of. Now I just fly over what I call a little rise and just love the climbs.

bobtbuilder

Your position may just feel weird comming from your MTB riding background.

I'd say stick with it for a couple more weeks unless it is causing you sserious discomfort. You may just need time to adjust.

Headhuunter

It all sounds perfectly normal. Road bikes have a much more "head down" riding position, with weight spread across both bars and seat. As for going uphill, you just need to build the muscle, you've clearly had it easy with the MTB...