Boy is he going to be pissed if he misses qualifying by 5 seconds. ;-)

Styrrell

Depends on which age group you are in...if you are in my age group (30-34) then I think you should remove the small chain ring. Just kidding!

I would advise against, strictly based on the wind from last year. I rode the course this past weekend and never went into the small chainring, but last year with that headwind I was in the small chainring!

...and the contrary view. If you take one off, take off the big chainring. That will help insure that you don't totally blow out your legs for the run.

Seems like a lot of work for little benefit. You have to take all the parts off, get shorter chainring bolts, plug the bar end and whatever else pops up. Then when you get home you have to put all the stuff back on- or pay a mechanic to. If you drop the chain during the race, you will have to stop to get it back on, rather than just shift it back. If the winds pick up or something happens you might need it.


I used to wrench, and still work on a few friends bikes. If they came up with this idea, I would make them go pay a mechanic rather than do it for them.

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"Remember: a bicycle is an elegant and efficient tool designed for seeking out and defeating people who aren't as good as you."

--BikeSnobNYC

We're obviously just having fun with this because you already know the answer but...........I did IMAZ last year and had very similar thoughts prior to the race as I had ridden that loop 50 times on my CT and thought there was no way I'd need the small ring. Fast forward to the 3rd loop, heading back into a 30+mph headwind at 13mph (around mile 95) and I know my cadence is dropping below "that point". The PT says I'm holding the right power. In my mind I'm thing, "I really can't believe I'm going to do this but I know what the right thing to do is". I dropped it into the small ring for 10 minutes until things picked up. I almost didn't just on principle.

Don't do it!

Saving weight is one thing, but your chain moves around far more than you realise. The FD helps keep the chain in place, taking it off increases the number of times your chain will come off. Especially on the infamous rumble strips on the AZ bike course.

My brother tried this a few years ago and it only lasted a couple of days as the chain kept coming off.

I used to see set-ups like this in the early 90's. They didn't just drop the small ring though. I think many would run something like a 48 or 50 tooth ring. Bottom brackets used to have some adjustment so the chain line would be in between where the two rings currently are. This fad passed. The drawbacks being the dropped chain issue and of course the need for more gears as most people don't want to change the whole thing up for a different course.

The obvious conclusion here is that you should just plan on riding a fixie. :)

-Jot

I am laughing my ass off at your comments. I read the OT and was like 'why', 'why' and 'why' would you even want to tempt fate. Let's see: hundreds of hours of training, thousands of dollars and equipment and then during taper decide, "hey, what a great idea I have; I'll start removing parts from my bike." Might as well take off the front brake lever and front brake, you don't need those either. Take off the cowhorns too, just use the aero bars like Badman.

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Mike Ricci
2017 USAT World Team Coach
USAT National Coach of the Year
Coaching Triathletes since 1992.

Well... I can't be the only one here who wondered if I really needed brakes on both wheels.

haa haa haa! No you aren't! I wouldn't dare do it, mostly b/c I don't want to deal with the hassle of it all. Funny day on ST.

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Mike Ricci
2017 USAT World Team Coach
USAT National Coach of the Year
Coaching Triathletes since 1992.

Well, I wanted to say it was another epiosde of "When smart people do dumb things" but did not...The only equipment variable I will contemplate in the weeks leading up to IMLP is whether to go with the 606 or 808 set up. If everything else isn't in stone by then, well, I didn't do my job.

Bob

So how many of you IMAZ'ers wound up using the small chainring? Just curious.

I used it the majority of the way out into the headwind. It was big 12 for a good chunk of the way back.

Brian

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"As a former employee of Nytro, let me just say that I was underwhelmed by some of the customers that used to come in there."

I didn't use it.. but have been guilty of mashing too much in the past. bad habit

I used it. Was surprised at the number of people not...but, I learned my lesson at IMAZ before about riding into that wind in the big ring (any wind for that matter).

I didn't use it but heading into the wind I used the 25 and the one lower in the rear for most of the time. In my "bike check" rides I was having a few issues with those cogs but I figured if it was a problem in the race I would go into the small ring and use a smaller rear cog so it was a backup...

I almost used it, but did not.

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2010: RR 100, BW, qualify for Kona at coz!!

I had a 12-21 rear and used it into the wind to keep a better chain line. Had both my Q-rings lined up equally so sitting and spinning on the small ring was not a problem.

I realize the race is over, but I just read this. Next time, instead of dropping the small ring you probably won't use, try changing both rings. Try a 55/42 set up or something like that. Give yourself a bigger gear to use with the wind, and a small enough gear to ride into it. 53/39 and 50/34 aren't the only chainring setup options.

I personally think it is great you are trying to find a faster setup, but I do agree that not having a front der on such a long ride is a bad idea, especially with a marathon to run after.

Scott

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Disclaimer: This poster is a sales rep in the bicycle industry

I didn't use it once and I felt I was spinning all day, as opposed to grinding it out (and turning my legs into mush for the run).

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Barry Dmitruk
2017: Florida 70.3 (done); Mont Tremblant 70.3 & Ironman