you people out there riding double or tripple? - Page 12

Double crank...just ordered a new bike and wouldnt have it any other way...I like the idea of riding a woman`s bike with two gears...makes me feel like a man! Or at least they give me more respect when I ride with `em...God knows I wouldnt want to be a man...*grins

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If you cant keep up, then you simply dont want to.

True enough. Having the gearing options means that you not only get to choose, you have to choose.

well, time to jump into the great crank thread. (without getting cranky)

I'm not knocking anyone who prefers a double, my backup bike is.

My main bike is a Lemond, and came with a triple crank and 12-25 gearing. Having the triple has allowed me to change the gearing to a nice corncob 11-21 and still have some bailout for insane grades. Last time I used the triple was last summer on Mt Greylock.

And I prefer having my "everyday" small ring a 42 vs the 39. Would I use the 53 that comes with the double as much as the 52? Probably not, although a 53-11 would rock on insane descents.

why have a triple if youre gonna mark on your calander the days you had to use the granny

because they are the days that you are REALLY glad that it was on the bike:-)

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Regards Michael

Never argue with an idiot. They drag you down to their level then beat you with experience.

Tripple... because I'm 55 years old, 240 pounds and it makes it easier climbing some of the stupid hills I have to get up on my weekly routes, especially when I'm packing my camera gear.

EUROSPORT STAGE 18 : GAVIA STAGE :

Today on Eurosports live commentary on the hardest stage of the years Giro (9000 ft climb !!) : Dave Harmon was discussing gear selection with the great Sean Kelly.

Sean was discussing how last year - he led a group of Irish leisure
cyclists arond the Tour de France Alpine climbs.
Sean readily admitted that without have a triple - HE would not be able to climb those Alpine climbs.
(This man was four times Tour de France green points jersey winner - and one of the all time greats).

In two weeks time, once again I will be doing the Wicklow 200
and I will meet Sean, as I do each year.
As usual, he will do this event on his double - while I will pack the treble just in case.

If it's good enough for Sean Kelly to have to pack a treble - I suggest that no one can claim that those who pack a treble
are wimps !

I ride a double on my road bikes but I do know of a few short stretches in this area that quickly stress my ability with a double. If they were much longer a triple would probably be a good idea. There aren't many flat areas where I live but fortunately the climbs are rarely worse than about a 6% grade. There is one short spot about 4-miles in on a mountain where the road suddenly tilts to, as best I can figure, about a 9.2% grade and that spot makes me grind and quickly puts me well over my AT despite the fact that it's only a few hundred yards long. If I had to ride miles of that kind of slope, I'd probably be looking for a triple and a larger top cog.

Triples definitely turn up in elite pro races from time to time; they were fairly popular in last year's Giro (anyone spotting them this year? I've been missing the coverage) and pretty much anywhere else where they are certain to face big walls. They turned up at the SF Grand Prix -- and we'll probably see some in the Tour here and there.

Then again, you and I aren't staking our careers on maintaining 25mph over 10 miles of 15% grade climbing.

As I said, we're fortunate to get live coverage of all the major tours - today we had the Gavia stage in this years Giro.

I can't say that I say any trebles on the leading contenders bikes.
Before the stage start today, the general consensus was that
most bikes were being fitted with a backwheel selection from
13-25 tooth setup.

Great, great stage today - Garzelli went on a break about 10 kms
from the top of the Gavia and was caught on the the final climb
of the day by Simoni, Honchar, Brad McGee !, Damiano Cunego,
and a new climber with Panaria Emmauele Sella (a great find - and
a great little climber).
Cunego won the stage.

The Dolomites are tough, tough going - harder than the Tour de France.
But still no sign of any trebles today !!!!!!!!!!!

Garzelli was amazing. What a heartbreaker. That he melted away on the last climb was reassuring proof he's not on drugs, though. Six years ago a guy in his place would have kept the pace of his initial attack all the way through the next three climbs, and not gotten off of his bike until reaching the hotel.

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i relish complicating the obvious and trivializing the stupendous

Good effort by Brad:-)
If I had a mechanic to select and install custom gear sets for each ride I did, I wouldn't bother with a triple either:-)

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Regards Michael

Never argue with an idiot. They drag you down to their level then beat you with experience.

Brad McGee still had to cycle those mountains though : he still
managed to get over them and he did very well.

I'm riding a double and it works fine for me, though I admit to also wishing I had my own personal mechanic.

You've got some long steady climbs out west. Around here many of the climbs are shorter, like 600-1000 ft elevation gain, but many average 10-14%, with "walls" of 20% or more not uncommon. Even with a 30/25 triple, I still have to stand up when the grade goes over 15%, but I can maintain 3-4 mph with much less strain on the legs, as well as less stress on the bar, stem, and frame.