I got into cycling because I wanted to compete in triathlon. I figured since I didn’t want to be a road racer I should just get a tri bike, so I did. That was 7 years ago and even now I am yet to own a road bike. At the end of a ride today my friend, who is a road biker, and I decided to swap bikes for the last few miles the last one of which is a good climb. We are roughly the same height so no adjusments were needed for this short ride. Anyways the point of the story is that I never realized how much more efficient a road bike is at climbing. I would say his seat tube angle is 74-75 compared to my 78-79. Is this part of the frame geometry that makes the road bike such a good climber? It literally felt like there was a motor pushing me up the hill.
I agree, My first 2 bikes were a triathlon bike, that was ok when i lived in Miami and there is not a hill in sight. Now I live in Los Angeles and I did some of long steep climbs in my tri bike and I hated every second. 3 weeks ago I just got a road bike, and I am in love in climbing with that thing.
So I most def. recommend a road bike if you are doing climbs. Now for longer flatter rides use your tri bike.
Leo
Seat tube angle is not the only variable. Tri bikes have longer wheelbases, making them more stable, but less responsive on the climb. They also tend to have longer chain stays, having a similar effect. Tri bikes also tend to be heavier (as a general rule - don’t tell my amigo on the 15 lb P3C), but the hand position makes a big difference too.
One last thing - one a tri bike, you try you almost “isolate” your quads, so that when you get on the run, you can hammer. On a road bike, there is no T2, so you can ride with all of your strength. this is why there is a different position, but this makes a huge difference.
I have the opposite experience between my tri bike and every other road bike I’ve been on.
jaretj
get well-designed tri bike, put the seat in the ‘rear’ position (like the rear seatpost hole on a p2), put on drop bars.
done.
My personal experience is no difference in climbing with seat angle up to approx 77 - but the seated climbing suffers with steeper setup. (And standing climbing suffers too - the nose of the seat hit my legs if too forward.)
What was your friends opinion of your tri bike? Did he see a big difference as well?
Absolutely get a road bike when you can. I climb just fine sitting and spinning on my tri bike, but there are many other factors that makes a good fitting road bike more enjoyable as well. Real fun spinning and then trying to stand and shift on the tri bike if you want to go. Also, usually after a nice, long climb there is a descent looming somewhere and the road bike is even better then as I can only scooch so far back on a tri bike …
Everyone should have 4 bikes! 
Tri
Road
Town bike - for the very important coffee shop visits
Cross
Sweet! Where are my wrenches?
In the road bike to climb, it is common to slide back a bit on the seat, open the shoulders, drop your heels and spin away. On a Tri bike with huge drop, you cant sit up high enough to open your shoulders, nor can you get behind the BB as far as on a road bike…then again, I am not sure of any Tri course (other than St. Croix) that has any climbs of any concern (and if someone claims Madison I am going to puke, those are not “climbs” those are rollers).
Then I suppose we could chalk in the few extra pounds on a tri bike and that tiller that we call a handle bar…
I got into tri after I already had a road bike, but after doing little or no road racing for all of 2007-2008 I had only ridden my road bike a few times here and there. I live in a hilly area so I was used to climbing and spinning up them in my tri-bike. I actually got to the point where I hated riding my road bike as it felt too ‘upright’.
This year however I"ve done most of my spring miles on my road bike, including a 1-week training camp in Spain with a TON of climbing. I took the tri bike out last weekend for a 60 mile ride and although I didn’t have any trouble climbing up the hills by the end of the ride my quads were toasted. They were cramped like I have never felt (and no, a hot shower didn’t help) and sore for 2 days. Took the tri bike out again last night and felt much better but still a little sore.
Bingo. I rode my tribike for AmZof and that is a lot of climbing. Constantly skootching back on the saddle to open hips/chest up. If I do that race again, I’d bring my road bike I think, with some shorty clip-ons. Would have made some of the long steep descents more comfortable as well.
I also find it’s a grade issue: if the grade of the climb is less than oh 4% or so (+/- for the rider’s ability) then tribike works fine, can stay aero and climb, but past that magic tipping point and ya gotta sit up and try to skootch back.
AP
Anyways the point of the story is that I never realized how much more efficient a road bike is at climbing.\
Not to burst your bubble, but how is it that you can make this statement? I can understand that if you said it was more comfortable, or that it handled better, or that it was better out of the saddle, but unless you had some way to measure your actual speed with the same effort, the efficienty was not measured.
I’m not argueing your point, but just as with a wetsuit in swimming, what feels better, is not always faster. And if you climb on a tri bike, it has to be in the right gear, (which a lot of people do not have on steep climbs), at the right cadence, and humping it pretty good. Casual climbs are not good on tri bikes, just like casual rides. You need to be going close to race pace so that you are in the proper position and power outputs. I agree at least that casual climbing on a road bike is more comfortable than a tri bike…As for hardcore climbing, I think it will really depend on the climb. The 11.6 mile one we have here has 3 sections of 1/2 to 1 mile downhills, so the tri bike makes a lot of time on a road bike in those sections, and doesnt lose much on the rest. Bjorn holds the record, and almost never came out of the position, as Jordan also did. I do not think they would have been faster on road bikes, but perhaps one day they will try it…
Everyone should have 4 bikes!
Tri
Road
Town bike - for the very important coffee shop visits
Cross
AHEM, mountain!
Everyone should have 4 bikes!
Tri
Road
Town bike - for the very important coffee shop visits
Cross
Agreed. Most people think that because the town bike is only used for getting coffee, it should be cheap. B.S. Actually, the only logical decision is a Prince with Boras. Let’s see those hipsters look down their nose at your Pinarello!
BTW, what’s a mountain bike? Isn’t that like a cross bike that you take up steep hills?
Everyone should have 4 bikes!
Tri
Road
Town bike - for the very important coffee shop visits
Cross
AHEM, mountain!
My mistake…!
Everyone should have 5 bikes!
Tri
Road
Town bike - for the very important coffee shop visits
Cross
Mtn Bike
BTW, what’s a mountain bike?
What’s a mountain bike?! Why, only the greatest invention to come out of the '70s! (Triathlon excepted.)
You must belong to this posse: http://www.xo-1.org/2007/09/mountain-bikes-who-needs-them.html
People make bikes go up hills. If someone can’t climb on a tri bike it’s not the bike’s fault; it’s the ignorance of how to climb differently or lack of adaptation to the position.
Chad
People make bikes go up hills. If someone can’t climb on a tri bike it’s not the bike’s fault; it’s the ignorance of how to climb differently or lack of adaptation to the position.
Chad
So regardless of what bike you are on you should be able to adapt your position on the bike and climb the hill equally fast?
I have the opposite experience between my tri bike and every other road bike I’ve been on.
jaretj
Ditto. All my best hillclimb times have been on my very steep tribike. I can ride much harder going uphill on a steep setup.
Besides, as said above, bikes don’t climb hills. People do.