Is it the Indians or the arrows (new bikes vs. old bikes)?

[Bombshelter]

Thanks everybody for the replies! I guess I just needed reaffirmation of what I already knew. We are about the same size & I tried suggesting we switch bikes for a day, but she made an excuse that it wouldn't make any difference! I didn't feel like arguing with her. I didn't know about changing my wheel set out though, thanks for the advice. When you have to struggle with your ego that much on a ride, sometimes it makes me not want to deal with it, but I also realize that's part of the zen that comes from riding & ironically that's exactly why I do it. I have nothing against pushing myself to become stronger, just sometimes it can be demoralizing & I start to question "is this fun?"

[Bike Writer]

Thanks everybody for the replies! I guess I just needed reaffirmation of what I already knew. We are about the same size & I tried suggesting we switch bikes for a day, but she made an excuse that it wouldn't make any difference! I didn't feel like arguing with her. I didn't know about changing my wheel set out though, thanks for the advice. When you have to struggle with your ego that much on a ride, sometimes it makes me not want to deal with it, but I also realize that's part of the zen that comes from riding & ironically that's exactly why I do it. I have nothing against pushing myself to become stronger, just sometimes it can be demoralizing & I start to question "is this fun?"

I believe it to be a combination of the bike and the rider also as many have attested to here. I know for certain that one of my bikes is faster and climbs better than the other. That being said, your commentary about your friend not wanting to switch bikes with you for you to try her's out is a bit telling in itself. I question if this person is a friend, because a friend would want to help a friend along with coaching you up a hill instead of leaving you behind. I imagine that some people could be possessive about their equipment but still, even swapping bikes out for a couple of hills does not seem unreasonable.

Challenging yourself by trying to ride up to a different skill level is fine but continuosly getting smoked by others would be discouraging. You might want to try riding with other groups of people on occasion and you'll know right off where your comfort level is and whether riding with superior riders is helping or hindering you. Riding should be fun and no, you don't suck - you're out there riding a bike and trying to get better at it. With all your training it sounds like you are.

[ny biker]

I don't think I would have fun riding with someone who told me repeatedly that she is better than me and nothing I do will make me improve.

[Tri Girl]

I don't think I would have fun riding with someone who told me repeatedly that she is better than me and nothing I do will make me improve.

that's the truth!

I definitely climb much slower on my steel Bianchi than on my lightweight carbon tri bike- even tho the Bianchi has better climbing gears- it's just heavier and that makes a difference. But that being said- I'm a sucky climber. I can descend like a crazy woman- but climbing is torture for me (even when I was lighter climbing was difficult).

[ny biker]

that's the truth!

I definitely climb much slower on my steel Bianchi than on my lightweight carbon tri bike- even tho the Bianchi has better climbing gears- it's just heavier and that makes a difference. But that being said- I'm a sucky climber. I can descend like a crazy woman- but climbing is torture for me (even when I was lighter climbing was difficult).

I will never be a good climber, and I know there will always be people who are faster than me no matter what I do. That doesn't bother me at all. But it doesn't mean that I can't ever get better by changing something about the bike.

[lph]

what they've all said - a lighter, stiffer bike is easier to move uphill, and light enough gearing makes it possible to keep your cadence down and not blow up going uphill, all of which will make it more fun and inspire you to try harder up hills... but fitness still trumps a lot of this. Experience does play a part too, knowing at what level to keep your effort. And some people are just better climbers than others, body weight is often important. I'm a reasonably good climber, but I'm pretty useless on the flats, it's a bit limited how much power I can produce.

But the line between keeping up and not keeping up is pretty fine, so just because they ride away from you on the hills doesn't mean you're a much slower rider unless you're continually barely able to keep up no matter what. On club rides it's pretty common to wait and regroup at the top of hills.

[radacrider]

Wow, I don't know that I would enjoy riding with someone less than supportive - takes the fun out of it for me.

There are many factors and these seem to come to light when going up hill.

Rider - some people are better at flats, some at hills, some at downhills. Much depends on what you enjoy, your physical characteristics. Back when, I was okay on flats and such, not necessarily fast relative to the regular friends I rode with. But once we started going uphill, I was in the upper group - I trained for hills and, I guess, my muscle group and weight were more suited to that.

Bike - Given your current state, you would see a difference with a lighter bike. Would it be enough to stay up with the group - can't really say. Many factors on a bike - state of tune (chain, bearings); gearing (are you running out of gears, are you spinning or mashing up hills); tires (I've seen night and day difference just in tires); do you like the bike (the more you like/love your bike, the faster one seems to go - at least for me).

Compare against yourself not others. We are all different, different styles, different strengths. I stopped comparing to others because of that. No matter how much I trained, I could not pull at the speeds some of my friends could, but I did track my own progress and I could see I had improved, say, from point A to point B in time.

On the heavy bike note - My road bike is a 20 pounder and is a race frame. Very fun to ride. My commuter is probably a 30 pounder AND is also fun to ride. I have had guys on light road frames blast by me on the start of my final climb home (about 100' in half mile) only to start slogging about half way up and I go by in my normal, steady RPM at my pace. They either failed to shift or just did not anticipate the effect of the variable pitch of the road and went at it too hard, too soon. I've also been totally left in the dust.

Good luck in your training and improvements - you will get stronger and faster. Find some supportive friends/groups to ride with, that makes so much difference.

[redrhodie]

Thanks everybody for the replies! I guess I just needed reaffirmation of what I already knew. We are about the same size & I tried suggesting we switch bikes for a day, but she made an excuse that it wouldn't make any difference! I didn't feel like arguing with her. I didn't know about changing my wheel set out though, thanks for the advice. When you have to struggle with your ego that much on a ride, sometimes it makes me not want to deal with it, but I also realize that's part of the zen that comes from riding & ironically that's exactly why I do it. I have nothing against pushing myself to become stronger, just sometimes it can be demoralizing & I start to question "is this fun?"

She sounds like a piece of work. I recommend riding alone at least some of the time. It is more Zen; easier to get and stay in your zone. As soon as you ask the question "is this fun" the answer is already "no", because when it is fun, you're not thinking about it. Riding your bike shouldn't be demoralizing, because every ride, you're getting more fit, stronger, faster, healthier. That should be great for your morale! So, it seems the problem is not the bike, or the rider, it's the partner, IMO.

[Reesha]

She sounds like a piece of work. I recommend riding alone at least some of the time. It is more Zen; easier to get and stay in your zone. As soon as you ask the question "is this fun" the answer is already "no", because when it is fun, you're not thinking about it. Riding your bike shouldn't be demoralizing, because every ride, you're getting more fit, stronger, faster, healthier. That should be great for your morale! So, it seems the problem is not the bike, or the rider, it's the partner, IMO.

Definitely agree with this! I say take a break from riding with her and see how different it feels to ride with someone more supportive!

[Catrin]

Definitely agree with this! I say take a break from riding with her and see how different it feels to ride with someone more supportive!

Yes, this! I enjoy riding by myself, and do ride solo most of the time. There are a few people I do enjoy riding with when our schedules work out, and occasionally I participate in club rides but I find myself riding solo then as well I am not all that fast, and that is fine.

Good words that I heard from a 9 year old yesterday

You do NOT have to be fast, but you DO have to have fun

[Tri Girl]

Good words that I heard from a 9 year old yesterday

You do NOT have to be fast, but you DO have to have fun

And 9 year olds know how to have fun- it's all playing to them! Love it!!!

[Owlie]

I agree--try riding by yourself at least some of the time. You can find your own pace and you don't have to compare yourself to others. I find I much prefer riding by myself (at least, on my rail-trail), because I'm a little competitive and self-critical and I keep finding faults with myself because I see what other people do. Riding needs to be fun.

I'll echo what everyone else has said--sometimes it's you, sometimes it's the bike. I don't climb well. Why? My bike doesn't quite fit me and is kind of heavy...and I'm not in the best of shape, or particularly light.

[Susan]

I'd say it's a little bit of both.

I had very good cyclists pass me uphills on their heavy 7-speed downhill bikes. Obviously if you are in very very good shape, you can still do great on a crappy bike.

On the other hand, there are hills that I could not climb on my commuter bike because it's too heavy and the geometry just isn't right that I have no problem with on my MTB. A friend of mine once switched his tires for ones that where more suited for downhill trails - he just couldn't get up the hills we used to ride because they where so heavy. So a the bike setup/a good bike does make a difference.

When riding with less experienced riders it usually helps if the slower rider has the better bike. I always ask my riding partners if they want to swap bikes if they are slower than me (most of the times however I am the one that rides the lightest "best" bike so that I can keep up with my male cycling friends). Or I try to stay behind them. Or at least I wait for them every now and then and tell them that they do a great job with such a heavy bike.

What your friend does is not nice and I understand that this isn't fun for you. I am not sure if the bike makes you feel bad or your friend.
If you think that you would enjoy cycling more with a new bike - get one it will be fun
If it is more you friend that makes you feel bad, maybe just ride by yourself or with someone else

[sarahkonamojo]

Hmm... She didn't want you to ride her bike. She has to be aware that she has a nicer bike. Or maybe just a more expensive one. But seems like letting you try her bike will either confirm that the extra $4,800 is worth it or she really can kick ***. Seems like a no brainer because she wins either way. And you get to try a nice bike.
I'd ask again...
S

[emily_in_nc]

Hmm... She didn't want you to ride her bike. She has to be aware that she has a nicer bike. Or maybe just a more expensive one. But seems like letting you try her bike will either confirm that the extra $4,800 is worth it or she really can kick ***. Seems like a no brainer because she wins either way. And you get to try a nice bike.
I'd ask again...
S

But only if it is the right size!

I'd happily change bikes with my friend who's riding a mountain bike and way slower than me, but she's about 4" taller than me. My munchkin road bike just wouldn't work AT ALL for her.