I ordered the FSA compact crank and would like to know which cassette you would recommend, I’m MOP and have some major climbs where I live, I currently have a Campy 13-26 10 speed but could swap that out with a 11-23. I’ve seen some other sights with charts showing the gearing but they don’t make much since. Thanks.
I have my compacts mated to a 13/26 at the moment and I can climb damn near anything with this setup, and stay aerobic. When the road is a bit more level I think the 11/23 is a great match as well - I can still climb really well, though the cadence slows when the grade gets steep.
I’ve been doing my training with a 12-25. I find the missing 16 to be a pain. I always seem to be needing it on moderate grades. I really like to keep cadence at 80 or so on climbs, and the 25 allows me to do that on slopes up to about 7.5% (while keeping power under control).
I’ve got my bike fitted with a 12-23, but with an 11 swapped for the 12, for WTH this weekend. I’m bringing the 25 setup also, and I’ll test the first 2-mile steep climb on Friday afternoon to see what I want to race with. If I can’t keep cadence above 75 and power below 240, then I’ll put the 25 on the bike for the race and just live without the 16.
Julian,
You may want to test it on the climb out of the swim start and the climb back to Auburn once you cross the bridge - that one can be a ball buster because it comes so late in the game, after a long descent.
See you Friday,
John