Do you run a 53/39 on your 700 wheel road bike? well do the math and you will find that a 55/42 is almost the same ratio on a 650 bike
"Do you run a 53/39 on your 700 wheel road bike? "
Always did with a 12/25 cassette, but am swapping over to a 50/34 compact crank which I believe is better if you live in an area with lots of hills.
are you going to keep the 12-25 in the back with the compact or are you going to go, say, 11-21/23?
I have both cassettes, so I’ll experiment and see what works best in my area.
If you use 650 amd a 53 up front what do you run on your 700 bike? a 50? That may be fine for you I won’t judge. Why do you judge others who choose differently?
Not being a smart _ss but is it better for you and everyone or better some? Why judge?
Ever hear of limiters? Well your limiter mey be different than someone elses. They may be fine on larger chainrings . I am.
i did im cda last year. i think the compacts are the way to go as there are a couple of decent climbs that you have to run through twice. in addition, there will likely be a head wind at some point around the 30-45 mile mark. there definitely was last year, although i heard rumors that usually the winds blow in the opposite direction than what we saw on race day–but there will probably be a head wind somewhere. it might be better to run an 11-23 in back though. there are a couple of extended downhills where you could conceivably spin out a 50-13.
When this tread came out yesterday about Lance’s new ride I was in a bit of awe about his front ring mated to an 11-21. I wouldn’t want to ride that in the mountains 
http://www.cyclingnews.com/teamtech04.php?id=tech/2004/probikes/usps_trek
But let’s not forget that Tyler Hamilton was on 50/34 compacts last year, including his break away stage win.
I’m all for spinning, when going from 90 to 103 rpm my HR drops 8-10 bpm.
I personally think its silly to see 54 + teeth on a 700 bike, unless the rider is pretty damn strong …
fwiw…
I’ve read that Lance does the climbing stages with 53 x 42, with 11-22 cassette (yeah, custom setup). Yeah, he spins that!
I’m no Lance, but can do > 4.3 watts/kg for 3 x 20 mins… 53/39 with 11-23 is my standard setup (700 wheels). Will use a 38 inner ring for hilly courses (long hills and/or long dist race)… and occasionally a 54/39 for short races with hills. 54-11 likes the descent! Never a 54 on a flat course; get too bogged down. That’s for multisport races.
For cycle races you need the 11 for 99.9% of races; not for the sprint, but for the high speeds. Almost all sprinters sprint in the 12 or 13 tooth. Seems like all the time some sprinters go to the 11 by accident and they can’t get the acceleration they need; someone in the 12 will out jump them. That’s why the sprinters bike needs to be shifting perfectly.
The wind here almost always blows from West to East. Last year was an aberration, all summer long. Never could count on the wind to blow the right way.
D, My road bike (700c) is also 53 with a cogset selected depending on the course. The top end speeds are higher in a bike race than a triathlon.
No judgement, but if you were a friend on a training ride with me, I’d likely tease you about suffering with extra weight and lower shifting performance from your manly chainrings. Not to mention your overly large girlie cogset! (did they give you a free skirt when you bought that?) But it’s all in good fun. You should have heard the playful chaf I gave a rider about his 700c 55T combo last year after beating him in a TT. (he just turned pro) Some folks need the big rings as they are most efficient in the lower cadence ranges. You’re right, we ride what we ride because it works for us.
On my road bike I ride 53/39 x 12/23. Tri bike 55/42 x 12/23 . I live in the Ozark hills of Missouri. I actually feel that the tri bike feels like lower gearing than my road bike.
high = hard
Low = easy
Woops I forgot my road bike has 700 wheels and my tri bike 650
.
Cogsets, therein lies the key! I usually ride an 11x23 giving up the 16t in the middle that the 12x23 has to keep my downhill top end. A 53x11 is 118 gear inches, vs 55x12 is 112 gear inches. And my bottom end is lower to get up the hills with the 39x23 vs a 42x23. With so many cogs very few will map their gear inches any more. Something we did a lot in the pre-index days. A 53x39 with a 11x23 cogset has a larger range because of the 11 on the high end and a 39t inner on the low end. The trade off is the tighter ratio while staying on the big ring.
Thanks for the respone. I was there also last year. I am thinking on the compacts with the 13-23. You are right about probably spinning out on a couple of those hills. Actually I hit over 40 a couple of times so I was coasting. On the first lap at those downhills it was still to congested to be able to push the downhill. seemed to have a couple of people a head of me who were skitish and caused me to slow down. Could not get around. I am just wondering if it might be worth the sacrifice of giving up the 12 for the 18 in the back.Still debating. It will depend on how much I find I am using my 53-14 combo the next month,that about equals the 50-13. If you are going to be there this year.We will be doing a bbq about 1/2 mile from the race start a couple of nights. Keep me informed,you are invited. Kenney
won’t be participating this season, but thanks. ironmans are an every other year thing for me right now. won’t be doing anything longer than a half this season–if i even do that. '05 is another story. would like to do one of the other n. american events just for variety, but with how these things fill up, i am not sure if i should put all my hopes in getting a slot for say, lake placid or wisco. might end up at cda again since that still took a few weeks to fill.
That makes sense. Most of my tri’s I race in my large chainring 55 most of the time. I power well in the aero position . I also like to have those small jumps in the rear to get my spin exactly where I like it.