how often do you ride in your big ring?

[archibella]

I was just wondering... because it seems like I'm usually in the small ring, with occassional bouts of the granny gear in the hillcountry... A riding partner of mine always seems to be in her big ring, even going up some hills, and she's always having to wait for me to catch up :o Do I just need to start riding in the big ring on flats to build up my muscles?? I'm confused because that seems to be contrary to the concept of spinning...

thx :)

oh, p.s., this is all on a road bike.

[Veronica]

I tend to ride in my middle ring unless I'm doing a sustained climb and I'm in my granny.

My middle ring maxes out at about 22 mph and I spin at about 90 RPM. If I feel like I can keep that cadence in the big ring, I'll go up.

I've had knee problems all my life so if they get at all achy, I back it off.

V.

[SnappyPix]

I only have a double, so don't have a lot of choice!
To be honest, unless I'm on a long stretch of flat, or a rising hill, I'm always swopping and changing between the two chainrings.
I used to be of the opinion that I worked through all the gears of one chainring before moving onto the next!
No, no, no, no, no!
My constant twiddling works great for me, because now I rely solely on cadence, speed and momentum - I go by how it feels, rather than what I think I should be in.
Switching from one to the other and back again allows me to get a much better ratio of gears (I have 18 instead of 9!), keep my cadence steady and achieve a much smoother transition up and down the gears.

I know it's slightly different for a triple because the gearing ratio is much lower - but for me the principle is the same (my hybrid/commuter is a triple).

[KSH]

I have 3 rings in the "front".

My granny gear... I just figured out how to get into that... 2 months ago. I have owned the bike for 10 months.

My middle gear... is where I use to stay 100% of the time.

As I have gotten stronger and faster though, I have been in the big ring a lot more. I never though I would have a reason to be there... but now it works for me... and gets me going really fast (and I am spinning, not mashing!)

In due time... you will be in the big ring.

NOTE: I always average 90-110 cadence no matter what ring I am in.

[runnergirl]

I have a double...

If I'm riding alone, unless I'm doing a sprints workout, I'm almost always in the small chain ring. Group rides, I'd say small chain ring 30%, big ring 70%. Alone I usually can't push the big ring over 85 rpm, but on group rides I've gotten up to 115 rpm in the big ring...I gauge mainly by if I can maintain a decent cadence more than anything.

[tatormc]

Everyone has a different riding style. I have a double and most of the time in the small ring. I spin like crazy going up hill cause I can't stand to be in a big gear and my thighs on fire. I don't have much of a pain threshold! But there is a lady I ride with that's similar to me in weight and size and she is always in her big gear. We did a 45 mile organized ride and she is just mashing up the hills in her big gear. I think she's crazy but as I said everyone has a different riding style.

[skibum]

I have a double too. I'd guess that I'm in the big ring about half of the time. It really depends on the terrain. I tend to use my cadence to dictate what gear I'm in. For flats/rollers, I aim for 90-95. I can usually do that in the big ring. For climbs, I'm usually in the small ring maintaining a cadence in the 70s. Well, unless the climb is long & steep and I run out of gears. Then, I go with the cadence that allows me to maintain forward momentum :)

I always shift into the big ring as I come into a downhill. That way you can carry the speed of your descent into whatever comes up next.

[Grog]

Nearly never. I have a triple and use mostly the middle ring (40), excepted for downhills and tailwinds. Oh yeah I also use the big ring when I'm drafting in a paceline.

I'd rather spin 110 rpm than 80 so... The big gear is not really an option for me most of the time.

[ACG]

I have 3 rings. I used to have a tendency to use the big ring when I had a mountain bike (I only rode the bike on the road). Now with my road bike I have found that I use it less and less. I normally end my ride on the big ring and finish it on the big ring. The middle ring is the one I am now on 80% of the time.

[caligurl]

good question! for me it depends on the ride.... the wind... and how i'm feeling!

if it's a climb... and a long one.... i'll almost always end up in my baby (granny) gear! i do train on our local hill in the middle ring..... but my cadence is not as high as i'd like it to be....

naturally if i'm coming downhill or on a really flat, flat... i'm in the big gear.... i recently did a really flat century and was in my big gear 80-90% of the ride!

on our local ride.... there are times i'm in all three on one ride! especially if it's windy! i'll be in the big ring with a tail wind.... the small to attempt to keep my cadence up for the headwind.. and the middle for other parts of the ride!

i have no ego issues with having a baby (granny) ring either.... there is no way i would have been able to accomplish the rides/climbs i did within my first year of riding if i didn't have it! i'm only getting older :eek: :eek: :eek: so i'm not willing to give it up either! i've got it if i need and and don't have to use it if i don't need it!

[bluerider]

I would say 70% big ring but if I notice my cadence slipping I go small. I'm not ashamed either to say I use my "granny" gear but I use it also to gauge how I'm progressing. I have this brutal climb about 9% gradient that goes on for about a 1km and I "test" my strength by how often I have to suck it up and slip into "granny" mode.

[mtbdarby]

I have a hybrid bike for on the road with 3 rings. I found that I was maxed out at 20mph on my big ring on a flat and that was drafting - is that normal? Does that mean that's as fast as I can go on the flat with this type of bike? I was spinning like a mad woman - it felt great but I could only keep it up for a few miles cuz he's much faster than I am.

Just curious as I do more road riding...

[CorsairMac]

I ride a triple and I would say probably 75-80% big ring!? I'm glad you asked this bella coz I was just thinking the same thing recently.

I wasn't aware how much time I spent in the big ring until another rider asked me if I found it comfortable coz I ride it so much. Since I too ride by cadence I ride the ring that allows me to keep my cadence between 90-100, usually I ride around 95-103. As soon as the cadence slips, I drop a gear in back first. Once I'm outta gears in the back I move up some gears then drop the front. It just feels to me that I can get more speed out of the big chainring, little gear, high cadence, then the middle ring, bigger gear and high cadence (make sense?). but it's probably just me! lol

Dar: it's probably the gearing on the hybrid bike. I know on my commuter and MTB the cassette is designed more for climbing or comfort riding so the gear ratio is different. I'll top out on gears on both of those and be pedalling a cadence in the 11?s coz I don't have any more gears! and my max/avg spd is always lower on those bikes.

[bikerchick68]

I ride a double... so in flats I'm in my big gear (53) and climbing I drop into my small gear...

I granny gear anything steep... already had a knee issue and would rather go slow than blow my knees up again... I'm definitely a hill slug but I ALWAYS make it to the top! :D

[CR400]

By far I spend the majority of my time on my big ring (52). I have a triple also. And recently have not been afraide to use that granny on some really steep and persistant climbs. I tend to like to power over the bigger gears to build and maintain strength. However my cassette goes down to a 26 cog so I don't mash as often as people think. Cadance can be anywhere between 120 (or higher all I know is the spin is to the point I have to go up a gear so I stop bouncing all over the place), down to 60. I also have a thing when I ride that I like to feel a little resistance to the stroke and smaller gears don't usually do that.

[SadieKate]

If you are looking for comparisons be sure that the gearing ratios are the same and you're looking at the same relative body position and terrain. I see quite a few riders in the big ring of a triple crankset using their largest cogs which is a no-no. Cross gearing is really hard on your drivetrain and leads to broken chains. The most important thing is that you ride in gears which you can drive at the proper cadance for the terrain and wind. I just started using aero bars because I'm doing a 10 mile TT every couple of weeks. I have suddenly found myself using the 50T big ring for large portions of the flat rides around my house because I can comfortably maintain a more aero position. Once I sit up or hit the hills I'm down in the middle to granny. In the mountains, I may never get out of the granny until I'm on a long downhill.

If you are doing wind sprints where you are working on max speed sprints in the shortest amount of time, yeah, you probably are going to be in the big chain ring most of the time. Serious race training programs will look at gearing this closely. If you're just looking at fitness and increasing distance, ride the gear that works for you.

SnappyPix has it right. Just keep fiddling and find the ratios that are right for you and change them with strength and fitness not because you "think" you should be in a certain gear.

[trigurl]

I have a triple and change a lot, going down hill I use the third ring and ride FAST, I complained about being dropped a lot and was told to ride in the third ring more, I did and my knees said I don't think so, they ached so bad, so now I only use it for downhills, I did get faster and wasn't dropped as bad and my thighs seem to have grown :eek: but I can't and don't have to deal with the knee pain, I am not racing this is supposed to be fun!

I read a post about butt's getting bigger a while back, I didn't have any problem until I started mashing in a harder gear, now mine definately has gotten bigger, but it was flat to begin with so I don't mind :D just gotta figure out how to keep it this way. :p

[Trekhawk]

[QUOTE=trigurl
I read a post about butt's getting bigger a while back, I didn't have any problem until I started mashing in a harder gear, now mine definately has gotten bigger, but it was flat to begin with so I don't mind :D just gotta figure out how to keep it this way. :p[/QUOTE]

I have a triple and Im pretty much always in the middle or granny gear. I use the granny on nearly all the hills around here and dream of the day when I will be able to graduate to the middle for the hills (dream on). I definitely do not need a bigger bum so can I use that as another excuse for not pushing a bigger gear. :D

[Kimred]

This is a quick usual for me.

Granny Gear - short steep hills

Middle chain - rolling hills

Tall chain - flats and going downhill Fast.

Just a guideline changes with wind,who I'm riding,if I'm working on endurance,speed,strength but you get the general idea.

[archibella]

wow-- thanks! I'm definitely going to try switching things up a bit this weekend, we'll see what happens! Oh-- and as a side note, I just got a pair of performance century short shorts (pretty comfy by the way), and some new sunglasses. You know how everybody always teases, 'oh, yea, new stuff will make you go so much faster! ha ha ha'; well... it did! On a 10-12 block little blast/sprint we usually do I hit 27 mph for the first time, 2 mph faster than usual. Maybe I need a new jersey to go with the shorts now.... :D

[CorsairMac]

wow-- thanks! I'm definitely going to try switching things up a bit this weekend, we'll see what happens! Oh-- and as a side note, I just got a pair of performance century short shorts (pretty comfy by the way), and some new sunglasses. You know how everybody always teases, 'oh, yea, new stuff will make you go so much faster! ha ha ha'; well... it did! On a 10-12 block little blast/sprint we usually do I hit 27 mph for the first time, 2 mph faster than usual. Maybe I need a new jersey to go with the shorts now.... :D


well yeah......should give ya another 2-3 mphs in speed I'm a-thinkin! ;)