Weight Weenies

Hey guys.

I'm doing the La Marmotte in the alps this summer. Done that before and the stelvio, mortirolo and some others.

Now i'm on 12 speed shimano.

The others years i was on sram red etap and campagnolo. 50/34 11-28 and 11-29 in the alps and 50/34 11-32 on mortirolo.

My question is this year my bike is mounted with 52/36 - 11/30.

Would you rather have 50/34 - 11-30 or 52/36 11-34?

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Personally I'd go the 50/34 route in the alps because I wouldn't be using the energy to pedal hard on the descents. But at home in a generally hilly area I'd prefer the 52/36. But it probably doesn't make a major difference unless you're quite cadence sensitive.

What is your W/kg? if you're above 4.2-4.5W/kg 52/36 - 11/30 is more than enought. if it's below 4w/kg than I would ty to go with easier gear.

52/36 11-34 is very similar to the 50/34 11-32 you had before in the low range (steep grades) and will give you a bit more speed descending.

Nickldn wrote: ↑

Fri May 19, 2023 6:59 pm

52/36 11-34 is very similar to the 50/34 11-32 you had before in the low range (steep grades) and will give you a bit more speed descending.

That's my thought as well.. And i'm best going down.. haha..

My w/kg is just under 4..

I had the same dilemma regarding gearing for long course Maratona which includes Giau (10km, 9.3% avg). I'm using Campa 11-29 and was tinkering whether I should use 50/34 or 52/36. In the end I ordered 52/36 + 34 and will try if 52/34 will work fine. I'd prefer a bit higher cadence for steeper grades (Giau and Sella in some parts), otherwise I am doing quite ok with 52/36.

My vote goes for lower low gear, so 52/36 + 11-34. In mountains I'd prefer having some "emergency" gears in case you run into trouble over high gear for bombing down descents.

Hey again guys..

Is 52/36 11-30 that same as 50/34 11-28? In the lowest gear?

I am doing the Alps this year (and have done 6 times previously), I am similar at round 4W/Kg also, on my 12 speed Shimano I run 50/34 and 11/30, I only went into the lowest gear once (the first steep bit of ADH), but definitely needed it, I wouldn't change to a higher gear, as the bail out was super useful, mentally and physically! I do tend to spin at 95rpm regardless of gear. Downhills its all about cornering and cojones over being able to pedal a big top gear

Nejmann wrote: ↑

Fri May 26, 2023 11:14 am

Hey again guys..

Is 52/36 11-30 that same as 50/34 11-28? In the lowest gear?

1.2 vs 1.214. So 34 / 28 is about 1% harder.

Karvalo wrote: ↑

Fri May 26, 2023 1:29 pm

Nejmann wrote: ↑

Fri May 26, 2023 11:14 am

Hey again guys..

Is 52/36 11-30 that same as 50/34 11-28? In the lowest gear?

1.2 vs 1.214. So 34 / 28 is about 1% harder.

You're the man!

Nejmann wrote:

Karvalo wrote: ↑

Fri May 26, 2023 1:29 pm

Nejmann wrote: ↑

Fri May 26, 2023 11:14 am

Hey again guys..

Is 52/36 11-30 that same as 50/34 11-28? In the lowest gear?

1.2 vs 1.214. So 34 / 28 is about 1% harder.

You're the man!

Try using http://www.gear-calculator.com

You can compare different set ups side by side.


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Always have more than you think you need!

Flasher wrote: ↑

Fri May 26, 2023 5:19 pm

Always have more than you think you need!

Yeah I know.. But sometimes you just go slow because you end up in easy gear because it's there...

Use the gear calculator to figure it out. You will probably know what power you're climbing at, which you can use to calculate what speed you'll be riding at. Once you know speed (wheel speed), you know what RPM you want to ride at, so you can back-calculate what gear ratio (using gear calculator) you need to get that RPM at that speed. Also obviously depends on a little fudge-factor of how sensitive you are to cadence. Ex If you don't mind doing an hour at 85RPM versus you spin at 95RPM 99.9% of the time and you'd really hate doing 85RPM for an hour.

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CasualRider wrote: ↑

Fri May 19, 2023 6:51 pm

What is your W/kg? if you're above 4.2-4.5W/kg 52/36 - 11/30 is more than enought. if it's below 4w/kg than I would ty to go with easier gear.

Shouldn't that be 'what cadence are you comfortable in at whatever watts/kilo you'll be riding?' Then you do the math and figure out the gears. I'm comfortable in a cadence of 60 at threshold.