Track Cycling - is this a bad idea?

i'm very new to track racing, and have only been to one training session. during this session, we did a few exercises where i felt i was spinning out of my gear (i.e. flying 200, one lap scratch). i am running 51-17. it was suggested that a 15 tooth cog would do me better.

my flip flop hub is fixed/free. is it a bad idea to rotafix a 15 to my free side, sans lockring, solely for track use? the 17 cog with lockring would get me to and from the track.

i am ultimately planning on building a new rear with a 15-17 flop, and getting ahold of an extra chainring or two. since my bike budget is nil for the next month, and i my first race night is a week away, i'd like to bump up the gear asap. i can afford a cog.

or should i just learn to spin in the meantime?

going down two teeth is a big jump. Try a 16 first, and no, it's not a horrible idea. you could add a BB lockring for extra security. just make sure you don't get serious with the backpressure, and doublecheck your track's rules.

are you talking about racing at kissena?

yes, at kissena. i won't be at the races tomorrow, but saturday and next wed. are go.

will any bb lockring fit? something i could find laying around on say, a frame laying around the house? i'll give a 16 a shot, track only, no real backpressure, illusion of safety. thanks.

Wow, you're spinning out at 15-17... are you sure? I mean, that's not exactly a small gear. And 51-15 is huge... in fact, I know that's the biggest gear that Chris Hoy uses for sprint events.

51-17 is just a 3 to 1 ratio... same as 48x16, which most people say is a little small except for juniors and early season...

yes, at kissena. i won't be at the races tomorrow, but saturday and next wed. are go.

will any bb lockring fit? something i could find laying around on say, a frame laying around the house? i'll give a 16 a shot, track only, no real backpressure, illusion of safety. thanks.

cool. yeah, any bb lockring will fit - same threads as hubthreading. honestly, i've known people who've ridden streets brakeless like that (not recommended, of course). it's not an illusion of safety at the track - rather, it's a nonissue. just make sure it's on there tight.

you know there are sprint compitetions at Kissena this sunday? http://kissena.info/track/SuperSprintSunday.pdf - Match Sprints. Should be fun.

See you next wednesday, though. Say hi. I ride a TK2 and race in the 5s (for now...).

sprint sunday sounds fun. i'll meet you in the 5s. name's wes, and i'm on a white kilo with red grips.

51-15 does sound massive when i think about it. the second part of the 15 cog plan was to have a 49 and 50 tooth chainring on hand besides the 51.

51-17 is just a 3 to 1 ratio... same as 48x16, which most people say is a little small except for juniors and early season...Yeah, I suppose you're right, it's really not that big. I'm just always skeptical when beginners say they're spinning out easily...

sprint sunday sounds fun. i'll meet you in the 5s. name's wes, and i'm on a white kilo with red grips.

51-15 does sound massive when i think about it. the second part of the 15 cog plan was to have a 49 and 50 tooth chainring on hand besides the 51.

ah word.

gear is obviously a very personal thing but many people ride 49x15. 51x16 would be close to that - a hair under. spinning to improve fitness is a great way to get faster, so... yeah.

i ride 49x15. miche cogs so i just put a 17 on there for the ride to and from.

my name's mattio. see you sunday, but i might be pooped from riding out to montauk the day before - not sure if i'll race. also, possible thunderstorms.

51x17 is a pretty small gear for racing-- there are juniors who are restricted to that, but you probably won't find anybody in unrestricted gears racing a gear that small.

51x15 (91.8") is a pretty common gear in Cat 1/2 endurance events, and I know people who race on bigger gears than that regularly. I race slightly larger gears fairly often, but only if I think it's likely to start fast and stay fast. If there are going to be a lot of slow bits and accelerations (common for lower cats and small fields in upper cats) I'll go smaller. I'd bet that Hoy is using quite a bit larger gear than that for sprint events and if I weren't lazy could probably even find documentation of that-- the trend for sprinters lately is very big gears driven by very big legs.

As for gear choices on a budget-- if you have a 15 and a few chainrings you can do a lot-- 49x15 is a good all around racing gear for beginners, and a 51x17 is a good warmup gear. As a relative beginner a 51x15 is probably your upper limit-- it might be hard to accelerate and won't help you develop the leg speed you'll want later.

Not all lockrings are the same-- Mavic are quite different than the common Campy and Shimano ones. If you have the cog on tight it shouldn't be a problem to race without a lockring-- if you're backpedaling hard enough to free the cog you're probably already on the deck anyway. I carry lockrings in my bag, but can't remember the last time I used one on the track. (edit- doh. I didn't realize you meant a bb lockring on the free side to lock the cog. I wouldn't bother- just torque the cog on good with a chainwhip or keirin tool.)

For what it's worth . . .

I race in weekly events at San Diego. The "C" group (which is guys who are Cat 5s and fair Cat 4s -- the best Cat 4s are up in the "B" group) are mostly riding 50x15.

Frankly, and while I haven't looked, I'd be surprised if many of the "B" and "A" group riders were riding much different of a gear -- they're just turning it much faster. Duck would probably know.

Frankly, and while I haven't looked, I'd be surprised if many of the "B" and "A" group riders were riding much different of a gear -- they're just turning it much faster. Duck would probably know.

I haven't done much racing in SD lately, but I'd bet most people are in gears between 88 (49x15) and and 92.6" (48x14). For outdoor races with variable wind and variable speed a 90 (50x15) will be pretty common. I rarely go bigger than 48x14 for local racing and do pretty well when I'm in shape. For small fields and outdoors (Encino, SD) I'll do a lot of racing in a 50x15.

I always get a chuckle when I overhear new Cat 5's talking seriously about going up to 94 or 96 because they were struggling in a 92-- they'll struggle even more in that because they'll come out the back with the first acceleration.

For outdoor races with variable wind and variable speed a 90 (50x15) will be pretty common.

Kissena is outdoor, windy, and bumpy... so 49x15 is pretty common.

Kissena is outdoor, windy, and bumpy... so 49x15 is pretty common.

Yeah, a lot like encino (though the winds are probably different).

yeah... i don't know encino, but the wind at kissena usually hits you coming around turn two, but really gets in your face around turn 3, coming from the southwest (turn 3 is the nw corner). doesn't help you on the homestretch. all it can do is slow down other people if you get a good jump on them in turn 2.

How old are you? older than a junior? well if thats the case 51x17 is quite light, is not enough because everybody at your age for sure are using 50/49 x 15.

What i would do maybe is to swap for a 52x16 that is almost the same than 50x15, but easier to move. U'll notice the differences when u get more experienced.

Thanks.

thanks for all the replies.

i'm not a junior.
sorry to miss you sunday, mattio, i had a friend from s.f. in town, plus some relatives, you know.
after work tomorrow, i'll pick up a 16 and try it out on the wednesday night races. you all will hear how it goes. first races!

for resolution- i picked up a 16 and it felt really good. first race night felt really good.
now i really need some clipless pedals.