Want to go faster uphill? Ride single speed

Cheeseface22

I'm a cheapskate. I can't afford plush £££ road bike nor have the time for constant maintenance.
I'm on 80s road bike converted to SS (48x17, 74.6 GI) with 25c Marathon+.
I never wear lycra; I'm on running top and baggy cargo shorts with 25L backpack with all sorts of stuff.
Heavy slog ghetto commuter.

With the warmer weather I'm seeing more people on bike, both commuters and team lycra, which is great!
More people on bike, less cars to worry about.

A (snobby) observation I made recently. Team lycra seem to bomb down hill much faster than me. But when it comes to even a slight incline, then instantly slow down and I pass them like a car passing a pedestrian. I have no idea who they are, novice or serious, how long they've been riding before I encounter them, what they're on, etc. Consistenly, I'm on a different level from those "leisure" cyclists on uphills.

By riding single speed all the time, I seem to have built up some serious beans going uphill.

So if you want to get faster going uphill, get a single speed!*

*or just stay on heavier gear and grind...

imposter2.0

Struggling with the conflation and flawed logic here - but I assume you're just joking, so its fine...

Matthewfalle

i'm struggling with his sentence structure and grammar, tbh

#wtfisheonabout?

darkhairedlord

he overtook an old man turning left and thinks he's the new schleck.

jgsi

Ive no shame to admit (honest) that the Brickworks beat me when I was on my fixie.
No such thing as a walk of shame when you feel like your knee caps are about to pop out.

sam_anon

Good work cheeseface, keep it up!

As you've mentioned, you're comparing against many known unknowns.

Matthewfalle

darkhairedlord wrote:

he overtook an old man turning left and thinks he's the new schleck.

got ya. clubbie in the making.

#rucksack

First.Aspect

I passed a single speed going up a hill yesterday. On a cross bike with mudguards.

If I've understood correctly this makes me faster than the OP and training with mudguards improves climbing.

Matthewfalle

First Aspect wrote:

I passed a single speed going up a hill yesterday. On a cross bike with mudguards.

If I've understood correctly this makes me faster than the OP and training with mudguards improves climbing.

#speedy

Wayne Plunger

I passed a large one on Tuesday.

peat

Cheeseface22 wrote:

A (snobby) observation I made ....]

You said it....

lesfirth

OK Cheeseface, I have thought about this and I think the best thing you can do is remove your saddle . You will save some weight and ride out of the saddle everywhere. You will be even faster.

kingstongraham

lesfirth wrote:

OK Cheeseface, I have thought about this and I think the best thing you can do is remove your saddle . You will save some weight and ride out of the saddle everywhere. You will be even faster.

Removing handlebars will save weight and improve balance.

PhilipPirrip

KingstonGraham wrote:

lesfirth wrote:

OK Cheeseface, I have thought about this and I think the best thing you can do is remove your saddle . You will save some weight and ride out of the saddle everywhere. You will be even faster.

Removing handlebars will save weight and improve balance.

Let's take this to its ultimate conclusion and realise a unicycle is the answer; no bars, no frame and one wheel. Saddle is optional.

lesfirth

PhilipPirrip wrote:

KingstonGraham wrote:

lesfirth wrote:

OK Cheeseface, I have thought about this and I think the best thing you can do is remove your saddle . You will save some weight and ride out of the saddle everywhere. You will be even faster.

Removing handlebars will save weight and improve balance.

Let's take this to its ultimate conclusion and realise a unicycle is the answer; no bars, no frame and one wheel. Saddle is optional.

You guys are just being silly now!

david7m

This thread was only ever going to go one way.......

kingstongraham

PhilipPirrip wrote:

KingstonGraham wrote:

lesfirth wrote:

OK Cheeseface, I have thought about this and I think the best thing you can do is remove your saddle . You will save some weight and ride out of the saddle everywhere. You will be even faster.

Removing handlebars will save weight and improve balance.

Let's take this to its ultimate conclusion and realise a unicycle is the answer; no bars, no frame and one wheel. Saddle is optional.

I did see someone doing the Dragon Ride on a unicycle a few years ago. He wasn't the fastest, so that proves the OP wrong.

Cheeseface22

Remove all cars and...

WE ALL CYCLE FASTER

imposter2.0

Cheeseface22 wrote:

Remove all cars and...

WE ALL CYCLE FASTER

Disclaimer

** does not include closed road circuits, or roads where traffic is already absent...

landmannnn

It isn't such a foolish suggestion that a single speed will develop hill climbing.

As you only have two options on steep hills (keep going or walk) and not being able to spin up the hill at 5 mph, then you would develop the muscles and skills to climb at 10 mph as you have little choice.

First.Aspect

landmannnn wrote:

It isn't such a foolish suggestion that a single speed will develop hill climbing.

As you only have two options on steep hills (keep going or walk) and not being able to spin up the hill at 5 mph, then you would develop the muscles and skills to climb at 10 mph as you have little choice.

Riding up hills develops hill climbing.

If spinning up a hill is ultimately faster (look at the pros) then it's unclear to me how training the muscles you need to grind up them is going to help.

The "single speed for training" concept is one that just won't go away isn't it? Like the after taste from a kebab.

cycleclinic

Single speed can climb like scolded cats.

I would go further than removing just the saddle. Ditch the seat post too.

imposter2.0

thecycleclinic wrote:

Single speed can climb like scolded cats.

Bikes don’t climb, riders do..

john1967

Go team lycra.

Cheeseface22

First Aspect wrote:

If spinning up a hill is ultimately faster (look at the pros) then it's unclear to me how training the muscles you need to grind up them is going to help.

The "single speed for training" concept is one that just won't go away isn't it? Like the after taste from a kebab.

Oh dear. I'm sorry that you're not quite enlightened. But that's okay, if you're happy, then I'm happy for you.

imposter2.0

Obvious troll is obvious...

diamonddog

This OP has the whiff of Milemuncher. :shock:

zest28

I beat Pantani and Lance Armstrong on an e-bike climbing uphill.

So get an e-bike if you want to ride faster up hill.

pblakeney

Trumped by a Suzuki.
Although Trump doesn't like being beaten by the Japanese.

sebdangerfield

First Aspect wrote:

landmannnn wrote:

If spinning up a hill is ultimately faster (look at the pros) then it's unclear to me how training the muscles you need to grind up them is going to help.

The "single speed for training" concept is one that just won't go away isn't it?

Two things.
1. It forces the you to work hard when they otherwise wouldn't, ie at times when you just spin easy if you had gears you go hard because it's that or get off and push. (Obviously you could choose to work hard with gears, but often you don't)
2. It forces you to do low cadence training. I've don't know whether this is really a benefit, but I saw a video where mikel landa said he does it so I gess at least some pros do. If you also ride a geared bike I expect the variety is beneficial versus always spinning. Low cadence to stress the muscles, high cadence to stress the heart and lungs (stressing things causing adaption and all that)

Obviously you don't need a single speed to do this, I think the key thing is that once you've chosen to ride it, your forced to do these things. Which for most people who don't actually train, is important.

From personal exprience, before I got the road bike I had a single speed for getting about town and had a pretty steep hill on my way to work. I reckon this helped alot with climbing on the road bike.

imposter2.0

SebDangerfield wrote:

Low cadence to stress the muscles, high cadence to stress the heart and lungs (stressing things causing adaption and all that)

It's not quite as simple as that. High cadence also stresses muscles and low cadence also stresses your cardiovascular system. Your overall energy demand (decided by your weight + the gradient + the speed you wish to ride at) will be the same or similar regardless of your cadence. Obviously there is an optimum cadence for any given situation, but the answer is not nearly as binary as you suggest.