Track Cycling: Velodrome Racing and Training Area - track bikes

so, why are track bikes fixed gear? is this a rule in track racing? if so, would track racing benefit from the introduction of multiple gear bikes(hypothetically)? would speeds increase and times go down? if not(a rule), it must be advantagous to use a fixed gear b/c that's what track racers use. anyone know why?

as a sidenote, are there any good resources on the internet for either history of track racing or theory and strategy? thanks.

dan

Well when riding in a velodrome on a track bike, you do not have varying terrain to deal with like on the road. So no real reason to switch gears, so more gears would just add weight and maintenance to the bike.

Weight is a factor too; gears and derailers add a lot of weight, and so do brakes. Fixed gear eliminates these, and thus the extra weight. Plus it's cool :)

Efficiency

Track bikes are more efficient in a controled environment like a velodrome.

all this makes good sense. but, would it maybe be more effective to have 2 gears? i high and low, a bigger one for 90% of the race and then a little one to sprint w/? does this make sense?

dan

You have a huge range of speeds on a fixed gear.

It all depends on your RPM's. You pick an initial gear range that optimizes whatever event you are doing.

to prevent as many wuss, gear-twitchers off a perfectly good, fixed gear course

the problem with having 2 gears on a FIXED GEAR bike is that it would defeat the PURPOSE of the bike being FIXED GEAR. with two gears, (i assume you mean two chainrings up front) you'd need a front derailuer, and a rear derailuer-like device in the back to take up the extra chain slack, (slack in the chain on a fixed gear bike is..well...not a good thing) plus all the other crap that goes along with shifting. and eventually, "track bikes" would evolve into road bikes. then everything would be the same again.

and why would you want to shift to an easier gear for a sprint? why not just get up out of the saddle and PEDAL HARD!

meh, fixed geared track bikes have been around a lot longer than road bikes with gears...they used to use them for all the major races, even the TdF...back when men were men, and they smoked and drank and had fun and pissed together on the roadside, and congratulated each other on a job well done.

i'm inclined to believe that a track bike is more efficient than a road bike anywhere. i mean, if you're on a road bike, and your shifter cables snap, where are you? stuck the hardest possible gearing. meanwhile, on a track bike you just keeep oooon truckin'. also, and this is the big one, the pedals move for you, so it's easier to maintain a higher cadence, and from what i've noticed, easier to climb hills (as long as you're not runing like, 52/13, of course, then you could probably just build up enough speed to carry you up the hill ;) ).

One gear in front.
One gear in back.
No coasting.
What don't you understand?

fixedgearhead

Like the others said, a track bike because of no gears and extra stuff it is more efficient. People are always looking for the best hub to get instant engagement, but nothing beats a fixed gear you talk instant! :) As soon as you add gears.. you are adding inefficiency to the bike, so where it might help for about 30 seconds in a velodrome it will be less efficient the rest of the race so there is more drawbacks then benefits.

you guys: i understand what some of the advantages of a fixed gear bicycle are: efficiency, less weight, simplicity, etc. and for the record i think they are great machines. i'm just kind of thinking out loud here if it's possible bikes w/ multiple gears could have advantages in a track situation. like might it be helpful on time trials to have 2 different cadences to pedal at?

sheesh. i'm just kind of questioning the standard, not implying that one way is either better or more correct than another.

so no one can think of any advantages to having a geared bicycle on the track? or you just think whatever advantages there are are outweighted by the disadvantages? thats fine. i'm just curious.

I think it is simpley the disadvantages outweigh the advantages.. because of the reasons me and the others have stated. You are racing on a track with no hills, only reason for even having a second gear would be in the begining, but what does that take 30 seconds.. so then dealing with the inneficiency and added power loss the rest of the race. So not really beneficial in the long run.

I think it is simpley the disadvantages outweigh the advantages.. because of the reasons me and the others have stated. You are racing on a track with no hills, only reason for even having a second gear would be in the begining, but what does that take 30 seconds.. so then dealing with the inneficiency and added power loss the rest of the race. So not really beneficial in the long run.


thanks. that makes good sense. i just wasn't sure. having never raced on a track before and all. thanks again.

dan

Just wondering...this discussion is completely about track bikes/track riding. Why not post it in the track forum? Let's get some posts over there for once. There are so many floating around here that are all about track!

Just wondering...this discussion is completely about track bikes/track riding. Why not post it in the track forum? Let's get some posts over there for once. There are so many floating around here that are all about track!

good point. i probably should have posted in there. sorry

No problem. I just want to make sure people know it's there!

Ok, I'm moving this to track forum.

Marty

would a geared bike be more "efficient"? yeah, sure. but then it's not track racing. simple as that. yes, the rules specifically state "fixed gear single speed".

for those of you saying that it's because fixed gear is more mechanically efficient, that's not it. yes, they ARE indeed more mechanically efficient, but you put a geared bike in most track races and it would really cause some trouble. a chariot race, for instance. 1 lap. lessee, lemme start in a low gear and by the backstretch I'm way up and screaming. or the pursuit, where you could start easier and then end up in your 55x11. part of what makes certain track events interesting is how high a gear you can handle, and try to even get it moving in the beginning (how many of us started our first chariot race in our normal gearing and were dropped before turn2??).

All of that is beside the point though. Fixed gears are an integral part of track. It's part of the magic. You just won't understand till your elbow to elbow coming out of turn 4 during a point race with NO BRAKES.

in order to have multiple speeds on a bike you need a freewheel;
if you have a freewheel you need a brake to slow down;
if a group of people are riding on a track in close effecient fashon as they should and someone pulls a break lever...

they all crash.
multi speed bikes are too dangerous for velodrome. case closed.

Mechanical efficiency is kind of a loaded term. Maybe it's also about fairness - having an even playing field in a dead sprint. Using a freewheel or gears on the track might be like doing the hundred meter dash wearing roller blades. It's just a different race.

you guys: i understand what some of the advantages of a fixed gear bicycle are: efficiency, less weight, simplicity, etc. and for the record i think they are great machines. i'm just kind of thinking out loud here if it's possible bikes w/ multiple gears could have advantages in a track situation. like might it be helpful on time trials to have 2 different cadences to pedal at?

sheesh. i'm just kind of questioning the standard, not implying that one way is either better or more correct than another.

so no one can think of any advantages to having a geared bicycle on the track? or you just think whatever advantages there are are outweighted by the disadvantages? thats fine. i'm just curious.
The advantages are that with everyone on a fixed gear you can race in tighter and closer, mainly because you dont have to anticipate the rider in front of you touching the brakes or stopping his pedalling action.

Without gears you also have to start to understand the bike and yourself more and adjust accordingly as a meet goes on, a more precise form of cycling than just getting out on the road or trail and bashing the pedals and you don't have to worry about your gear being out of date next year.

in order to have multiple speeds on a bike you need a freewheel;
if you have a freewheel you need a brake to slow down;
if a group of people are riding on a track in close effecient fashon as they should and someone pulls a break lever...

they all crash.
multi speed bikes are too dangerous for velodrome. case closed.

Ah ah, sturmey archer made a three speed fixed hub that gives one all the efficiency of a fixed wheel bicycle, and the benefit of different ratios. These ASC hubs as they were known are probably the most rare bicycle part in existence, but there is a bike shop that is converting SA 3 speed hubs into 2 speed fixed hubs. Even though this wouldn't be legal for track racing, the applications for street use are immense, especially with the popularity of track bike riding on the streets.

When Bicycles first came out there were no gears, then a few people decided that fixed wheeled bike were too hard for them so came the multi gear sysytem.


S/F,
CEYA!

This interests me,
I just bought a used track bike and am beginning to learn to ride in this style. There is a local velodrome but I want to train more so I don't make a fool of myself.
I live near hills so I could add a lower gear to some training wheels.
What bike shop is this that sells the trick hubs?
Thanks...

I forget the name of the shop, but it is in Oregon. Just do a search for two speed fixed gear or track hub, and you should find it. I believe there's an article on sheldon brown's website as well.

so, why are track bikes fixed gear? is this a rule in track racing? if so, would track racing benefit from the introduction of multiple gear bikes(hypothetically)? would speeds increase and times go down? if not(a rule), it must be advantagous to use a fixed gear b/c that's what track racers use. anyone know why?

as a sidenote, are there any good resources on the internet for either history of track racing or theory and strategy? thanks.

dan

There are two reasons that bikes use a fixed gear on the track. The first one is tradition. Organized track racing has been around much longer than the types of road races we are accustomed to today. The second reason, and this one goes way back as well, is safety. It is much easier to keep a consistent speed with a fixed gear. You don't have the ability to stop and slow down as quickly as you do with a bike equipped with brakes. If you were to allow multiple gear bikes with a freewheel, then racers would sit up as soon as they've finished they're effort, and guys would be plowing into each other as the guys at the front of the pack stopped pedaling. With the racing on a track being so tight, this would create too many problems in mass start races. You'd be best off to swerve around a pileup, and if you can't, then you wouldn't be able to stop in time anyways.

My own opinion as well, seeing as this whole not stopping in time would only be good for mas start races, is that a fixed gear handles a standing start much better. My experiences with doing standing starts on road bikes are horrible. The chain line is never straight due to the multiple gears, and this causes problems with derrailment and broken chains when in a big gear. With a perfect chain line (if you have it set up that way), you never have any of these problems on a track bike.

taras

once you have a rear derailluier with springs and pulleys, less power is going into the wheel. if you shift on the track under full power, will the chain fly off? do you let up on the power to shift when you are elbow to elbow with the guy next to you? do you let up on your grip to shift? fixed gear is mano a mano. gears...you don't need no stinking gears.

Veloshop in beautiful portland oregon. they've got the nicest track hubs on the block.
SW park just off burnside.

Bronxbull is right. freewheels, brakes and velodromes don't mix. Imagine coming around the pack three wide doing 65 kmh in the last 200m on a big, flat Aussie track and have someone sit up and start freewheeling in front of you!!! Be sure to have the brown skinsuit on.

Didn't the Canandian Joc Lovell ride the kilo at the Worlds in the early 80's with a dual drive bike? If I remember it had chainrings on both sides, and a cog on each side of the hub. He started in a smaller gear, the other cog wound on while he was speeding up, then took over when the cog had taken up all the thread on the rear hub. The small gear was a freewheel which then clutched for the remainder of the race. Jens Glulitch or Maic Malchow then probably won the kilo by 3 seconds instead of 3.000001 seconds.

in order to have multiple speeds on a bike you need a freewheel;
if you have a freewheel you need a brake to slow down;
if a group of people are riding on a track in close effecient fashon as they should and someone pulls a break lever...

they all crash.
multi speed bikes are too dangerous for velodrome. case closed.


:beer: :beer:

I read a post in the other forum that said that geared bikes do not enjoy the "flywheel effect" of the rotating cranks. This is really true and you can feel it, maybe you didn't think about in that way but...
The rotating cranks/flywheel are stored energy! That is a big difference between geared and fixed.
Where is that damned brake lever...

"One gear in front.
One gear in back.
No coasting.
What don't you understand?"
fixedgearhead

WORD!

Perhaps we can start a David Letterman style top ten reasons track bikes don't have brakes, only one gear and can't coast.

I'll start. Let's see, hmmm...okay

Track bikes don't have brakes because:

1. You can't get hit by a reckless cabbie or a soccer mom in her SUV on the velodrome.
2. you'll never hear "get off the velodrome" by the rednek in the pickup truck.
3. There are no stop signs or traffic lights in the velodrome so you don't have to wait for the little old lady to cross the 'drome. You also can't get a traffic ticket for blowing stop signs/lights on the velodrome.

Track bikes can't coast because:

1. You don't have to get out of your pedals to kick the loose dog that's chasing you on the 'drome (they also don't have water bottle cage bolts on the frame because you'll never have to squirt the dog with water on the velodrome).

Ok, that's all I can think of for now. I know, they sound dumb. Anybody got any better ones?

[QUOTE=OneTinSloth](as long as you're not runing like, 52/13, of course, then you could probably just build up enough speed to carry you up the hill ;) ).[/QUOT

It's quite odd that you picked that ratio. I'm on my way to fixed right now, currently in my ss stage. I set up my road bike with a straight chanline and went on my way. After riding with my buddy, who's been riding ss for a while, asked me what gear I was running since I wasn't spinning it to quickly. I said I don't know and sat down to count teeth. Long story short, 52-13.

/Sorry for the boring post.