Gearing - Ironman

Max Bonkers

Newbie here neding a bit of help, i am entering Ironman next year in Bolton. My current bike has 50-36 and 26-12 gearing. the course has 1 large hill with a partial undulating then flat section. would changing to say 53-39 + 30-11 be more beneficial. i have only commuted to work on an old MTB not sure which squeeked more the bike or the knees. I have picked up a set of rollers to train on and want to do a good time rather than just get round. Any advice would be fantastic. ps alcohol can lead you into all sorts of trouble

desweller

You can change the gearing on your bike any time you want. It only takes a few minutes to swap a cassette. If I were you I'd concentrate on getting my training plan under way and worry about the gearing for the event closer to the date.

rogerthecat

Rollers will not help you up the hills m8 regardless of gearing; a 30 - 11 may be difficult depending on your rear mech, as was said get out on the road and see how you do on your current gearing. A 39 - 25 will be quicker up hills but that depends on your body mass, fitness and climbing ability, but to answer your question a 53-39 should be fine with a 11 - 28. However........

bahzob

"You can change the gearing on your bike any time you want. It only takes a few minutes to swap a cassette. If I were you I'd concentrate on getting my training plan under way and worry about the gearing for the event closer to the date." <<< Best advice. Gearing is fine tuning, you can only sensibly do it once you are in final prep for an event and have a good idea how fit you will be when riding.

With this in mind, the best guide for whether your gearing is OK or not is your cadence.

Except when coasting downhill you should always be pedaling at over 70rpm. This may drop as low as 60 on steep hills but should never drop below this. (Most pros maintain 85-95rpm average throughout long events like tour de france, including when climbing)

So the question for you is:
- Do you spin out on your biggest gear?
- Can you maintain 70rpm on climbs on your lowest gear?

If yes/yes > fit a standard chainring and adjust cassette so it stays that way
If no/no > need smaller rear gear
If no/yes > fine. Leave it at that
If yes/no > experiment with a standard chainring and smaller rear gears. However chances are you won't find an ideal combination. In this case prioritise being able to climb well. Chances are you will be max speeding/spinning out on descents and this is where you get the worst amount of speed gain for power so better to spin easy or coast/recover on them rather than push to max. Only long term fix for this combo is getting fitter.

Rollers should be a great to get up hills and with the ride as a whole. You will be able to develop your threshold power using them which is the single most important thing to train for an ironman. They will also force you to keep cadence up and ride smoothly (if you dont you will fall off). This will be a help because its more effective and means you will be less fatigued coming out of the bike onto the run.

However you need to be riding hard to use the rollers. If they dont have resistance (most don't) then you may not be able to go fast enough to improve. Test is how hard you are breathing when working out. You should be having to breathe very hard to keep going but at an effort that you can keep up for 20 mins +.

cougie

36*26 gear will get you over most hills. Does depend on how well you climb though !

As the others have said - gearing can be changed easily. For now I'd swim a bit, run a bit, and bike a lot. That's the way I train. The bike is the biggest chunk of the day so you need to focus attention on that. Swim cut off is easy to beat for the vast majority of people and if the run goes wrong - you can walk it in the time allowed.

Pross

I'd stick with what you've got. The biggest gear will get you 32.5mph more or less at 100rpm and the gap between gears is smaller so it will be easier to find a gear to suit you on the flat / undulating section. Going for an 11-30 on the rear may need you to change the rear mech as it will leave you with a very large tooth difference. You could always drop the 36t chainring for a 34t chainring to give easier gears on the hill.

Max Bonkers

As expected top info from all of you . i shall get my backside in gear and start the bike fitness and wait till early next year to assess my gearing needs.
Again cant thank you enough

tiredofwhiners

You won't need more than 25 on the rear with Sheephouse Lane at Bolton. Its really not that bad at all as long as you spin on the third lap and don't try and grind your way up it.

oldwelshman

rogerthecat wrote:

Rollers will not help you up the hills m8 regardless of gearing; a 30 - 11 may be difficult depending on your rear mech, as was said get out on the road and see how you do on your current gearing. A 39 - 25 will be quicker up hills but that depends on your body mass, fitness and climbing ability, but to answer your question a 53-39 should be fine with a 11 - 28. However........

Not the best advice for a beginner really, unless you can enlighten us why rollers are no good for training.
To the op, I would stick with what you have as the ratios are pretty good for top end and for climbing, 36 x 26 should get up the hills with some fitness unless your really unfit and overweight :-)
I would not even consider a 11, the ampunt of effort you will have to put in to try to maintain a decent cadence on that gear is not worth the effort, much better to get aero on descents and conserve energy for harder parts of the course.

rogerthecat

I was given the impression that the best way to improve climbing was to go up hills, or work on a resistance trainer; if this is not the case then I stand corrected, however with regards to the 11 cog, its there if you need it, and an 11 normally comes with a 12 anyway. That said we have comments on here from guys that I assume have done the course, so as the OP I would be more likely to listen to them rather than you or I!

cougie

I've never bothered with rollers. Turbo is better for me. I can add a lot more resistance and also not fall off them doing hard intervals.

iPete

tiredofwhiners wrote:

You won't need more than 25 on the rear with Sheephouse Lane at Bolton. Its really not that bad at all as long as you spin on the third lap and don't try and grind your way up it.

This! I did Bolton this year with 50/34 25/11, I actually wish I had a bigger gear but I never expected I'd be so fast

It is just one 'major' climb and from the hype I expected it to be much worse. I live and cycle in London, it's pan flat and I smashed sheephouse. Riding at threshold and putting in the miles is IMO the same as hunting for hills. As for the course itself, it feels like you get a lot of downhill for your money following sheephouse.

dubcat

Got a good training plan? I hear Be Iron Fit by Don Fink is good.

iPete

Mate of mine used the don fink. All a bit technical for me, I prefer to just go out and ride/run hard but he seemed to enjoy following it.

Have they even confirmed Bolton for next year? If they do and it is exactly the same, here is the tcx file I mapped for my Garmin 800. http://ridewithgps.com/routes/1446799

The height profile screen made my race as I didn't know the course.

Here is the race day GPS:
http://app.strava.com/activities/14194260

And for the run, be warned, I didn't look pre race and it was much 'hillier' and undulating than expected!
http://app.strava.com/activities/14221849

good luck with the training and sign up to tritalk.co.uk, this thread will grow over the year with plenty of friendly banter and tips.
http://www.tritalk.co.uk/forums/viewtopic.php?t=87651

Max Bonkers

Again cant thank you all enough for the VERY GOOD ADVICE.
iPete that is top info well done on being an Ironman