Triples and low gears

[SadieKate]

Apparently, many of the pros at the Giro today used triple cranksets.

From http://www.velonews.com/tick/html/stage175.html
There are several riders who've slapped triples on today. Even the maglia rosa has opted for 34X29... that's the sort of gearing you'd put on a mountain bike. We've had MTB doubles on some of our cross-country bikes and that's about the gear choice, too. Again, this is a Category 1 climb only because the Giro doesn't use the hors categorie designation.

I was snickering (in empathy) at the bike shop the other day. One of the local racers was complaining about the crappy shifting of her compact double. She said that if it weren't for the stigma of a triple and the crap she'd get from the other racers, she'd have a triple always. For one thing, they shift better in the pressure of racing a mountain stage because the spacing is smaller.

I just find the cultural taboo against triples interesting, when people who like triples don't typically have a taboo against doubles. Fire away at me if you want want, but if the big boys can use triples so can we. Pick your gearing for you and your terrain, not due to cultural peer pressure.

[mimitabby]

SadieKate, I don't generally bow to peer pressure. The exception was my brief foray into non-Brooks saddles. I went from a women's MTB saddle to a terry butterfly and right back to a Brooks again. When I went back to the Brooks, people noticed, now a large percentage of my bike club are on Brooks, and some have Selle An-Atomica's.

If 3 chainrings are good for you; use 'em. I personally like the idea of the double chainring, but since triples work for me, that's what I have!

[maillotpois]

I remember back in 2004 when Tyler Hamilton was the first to go to a real compact crankset in the Tour. That was looked down upon a bit, but then others started using it because it was just better for some of the days than a standard double. And I believe folks used triples for the Angliru stage in the Vuelta in that same year.

Would that we could just routinely swap out components, gearing, etc. the night before a ride like the pros do! "Oh tomorrow I am doing the Tiburon loop, so I'll put my 53/39 on...."

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

There are way too many big hills surrounding me to use a double. I'm not King Kong, and I don't care much about achieving high speeds. I know several older bike club guys (50-70) who live around here who mash their way up our local hills every day in their higher gears. A couple of them seem to be getting major knee problems now. One had to stop riding for now his knees were in so much pain.

[mtbdarby]

I'm with you Lisa. I love my triple for the rolling hills around here. But then again, I don't know enough about the biking community at that level to really care what is "in" or not. I ride what I like and what feels good.

[F8th637]

Yes, my bad knees are very happy the bike has a triple crank. I'd rather know that I have healthy knees as I get older. To me, that's more important.

[Popoki_Nui]

Apparently, many of the pros at the Giro today used triple cranksets.
I just find the cultural taboo against doubles interesting, when people who like triples don't typically have a taboo against doubles. Fire away at me if you want want, but if the big boys can use triples so can we. Pick your gearing for you and your terrain, not due to cultural peer pressure.

Absolutely. I just changed one of my road bike to a mtb triple for exactly the same reason. I keep standard doubles on two other road bikes purely for period-correctness, and that's just my own thing.
Do what you gotta do to make your bikes rideable and enjoyable. Peer pressure be darned.

[HappyAnika]

Rollers and canyons and mountains, Oh My! Love my triple, so do my knees. Maybe if I lived somewhere flat in the midwest I'd switch to a double. I really don't care if someone sniggers at me because I have a triple. It enables me to enjoy the scenery and do rides I wouldn't be able to do if I had a double.

[Veronica]

I love my compact double 46 - 33 in the front, 11-34 in the rear. I can climb trees with it, or so I've been told.

V.

[SalsaMTB]

Living in the flats on metro detroit, MI, I have absolutely no reason to get a triple. The majority of my time is spent in my big chainring with the occasional shift to the smaller of the two when there is an actual hill. Our hills are incredibly small here. If I were to travel out west, south, east or north, I would definitely get a triple!

[LadyinWhite]

I have a triple which I use when I travel. My bike comes with me to Maine and Vermont and they have some serious hills up there. I still feel it in my knee when I start mashing - even a little bit, the tendonitis lingers and reminds me it's still not completely healed.

That pain is my red flag and I'll go into whatever gear I need, whatever ring, at whatever speed it takes to keep the inflamation under control.

My body deserves at least that much care.

[Eden]

Coming from another perspective I raced with a triple for nearly a whole year and it was a disadvantage. No one made fun of me - indeed no one really mentioned it and a lot of people I know use compact crank sets - no one makes fun of them either. I did find that shifting from the small ring to the middle one was too slow, as it only takes a moments hesistation to lose contact with the leaders on a hill and then you are done. If I were not racing it wouldn't have been anything I really noticed, but because I was I ended up not shifting into the small ring and using the 42 for doing most of my climbing which was also not ideal. I haven't ever used a compact double so I can't comment to if its any better or not.
One thing to remember about large stage races, is that a lot of those guys are not climbers and really, really just want to finish the stage, not win it. If using a triple is going to get the big sprinters over the mountain I can certainly understand why they would use it. It would not surprise me if anyone who thinks they are going to contest the stage wouldn't - though I have heard of some big names putting one on for certain stages of the Vuelta and Tour de Georgia.
Of course if you are not racing there is no reason in the world to not use the most comfortable gearing - my husbands touring bike has a mt bike style triple, his TT bike has some freaky big ring like a 56 or something - its all about the function of the bike. I used the small ring of the triple on my Marin all of the time even though I race with a standard double.

[maillotpois]

....get the big sprinters over the mountain ....

I always love this ("Big Georgie Hincapie", etc.). I know relatively speaking, they may be larger than the pure climbers, etc., but none of these guys are exactly "big". Well, okay, Magnus Backstedt. But that's it. :P

[Eden]

I always love this ("Big Georgie Hincapie", etc.). I know relatively speaking, they may be larger than the pure climbers, etc., but none of these guys are exactly "big". Well, okay, Magnus Backstedt. But that's it. :P

OK OK, I'll have to agree - some of the "big sprinters" are not exactly big at all - ala Robbie McEwan, or Allen Davis - who are actually kind of short guys, though I'd hesistate to call Robbie small.... can't really compare them to some of the tiny/skinny guys who are pure climbers though. Having godzilla quads makes you sprint really fast, but its not too much of an advantage when the terrain turns up though

[7rider]

Pick your gearing for you and your terrain, not due to cultural peer pressure.

That about says it all.

I had a triple for years. Loved it. I'm actually living in hillier terrain now and recently switched to a compact double (50-34 with a 12-25 cassette). Only on those rare 12% uglies do I really miss the ultra-low granny. I debated long and hard on a 12-25 vs. a 12-27, but I figure...whatever doesn't kill me only makes me stronger.

My gearing is fine for my fitness and my terrain. It may not work for you.
And I won't laugh at your triple if you don't laugh at my compact.