Best Gear For Short Sprints & How Short are the Shortest Sprints

[JamesAA]

Pardon my lack of knowledge and vernacular. I am obv a noob to cycling.

I have a couple questions:

(1) What are the shortest sprints? Are they 200m?

(2) What is generally considered the "best" gear for a short sprint? I have a 21 speed road bike and the highest gear is NOT the fastest for me in short sprints. (I don't know how far I'm going but I'm only going all out for about 25 seconds...I can't sustain much more). Anyway I found a few gears down form the highest (3, 3 on the gear shifters---i.e. biggest cog on front, medium cog on rear) gets me going the fastest. I accelerate MUCH better in this gear than on the highest (3, 7).

And would one ever shift within such a short sprint? I can see perhaps starting low to accelerate then gearing up when topped out. But I don't know, for me just sticking with the (3, 3) seems best.

Appreciate any input. I am getting so hooked to cycling!!!

Oh yeah, last night my friends said Lance Armstrong used to climb hills in lower gears than other rival cyclists did...that he liked pedaling at high RPMs. Is this true? And do pro cyclists ever use the smallest front cog? I can't tell by watching TV but it looks like they don't?? So much for my "couple questions" :O

 

[maydog]

Whatever gear gets you to the line quickest is the best. I mix it up with the racers in my group rides on the town line sprints. Because I rarely win, I get many chances to observe their technique.

What I see them do is shift up a gear or two from at the beginning or prior to the sprint. The sound of an upshift can announce the sprint so they may do it early so that they can get the jump on everyone.

I try to emulate the same. For me I want a gear that I can really stomp the pedals on and not spin out at sprinting speed. My techniques needs work though, I seem to do better if I can get the group to sprint early and hang on to the leader.

 

[RapDaddyo]

A "sprint" can last anywhere from 5sec to about 30sec, although one can only maintain maximum power for about 5sec. But, if a rider has a good anaerobic capacity but lacks max power he/she will start a sprint early to try and drop those that may have good neuromuscular power but only so-so in anaerobic capacity.

As to gearing, I go entirely by cadence. From experimentation, I know that I hit my peak power above 100RPM and I spin out at about 150RPM, so my goal is to select a gear that will put me at the low end of my peak power range for the start of the sprint and hopefully I won't get over 150RPM before the end of the sprint. That gives me the ability to accelerate about 50% from whatever speed I have at the beginning of the sprint, which is usually enough.

Your peak power may be at a higher or lower cadence, so you will need to do some experimenting. If you have a power meter, you can do a few sprints starting at different cadences and compare your peak power. If you don't have a power meter, you want to pick a couple of landmarks on a flat road surface that are about 150 feet apart (this is two telephone poles apart assuming standard spacing of 75' between telephone poles in urban areas in the U.S.). That will give you about 5sec assuming an average speed of 20-25mph. You want to accelerate as hard as you can from one landmark to the other and check your bike speed at the end. Try the drill at different beginning cadences from, say, 75RPM to >100RPM and see which entry cadence gives you the top speed at the end. You shouldn't have to do any shifting.

Good luck.

 

[Jester]

Hey there, no worries about being a newbie! Sprints can vary, but 200m is a common distance in races. For short sprints like yours, you want a gear that lets you pedal quickly, but not so fast you lose power. Experiment with different gears to find what feels most comfortable and powerful for you. It's great that you're playing around with your gear settings - that's how you'll find your sweet spot. Happy cycling!