stapfam

Out on a ride this morning and I found myself taking a different route down for a coffee. In the middle of Eastbourne-which is mainly flat as its by the sea- but it is also at the Foot of the Chalk hills. There are a few short hills about 3/4 mile long but nothing significent- Except for the one I found myself at the bottom of. Heard a few riders talking about how steep it is so what the heck- Find the small ring on the compact and go for it. I don't think I have even driven up this one in the car so I was surprised at how easy this "Steep" hill is. Only about 400 yards and probably about a 12%. Then it flattened out for about 1/4 mile to an 8% and then round a curve and I can now see what they are talking about. Sit down- Get the brain in gear and turn. Cadence got slow so out of the saddle and get up this nasty bit. Looked at the Hedge on the right of me and I was going up a steep bit. Got to the top and a set of Traffic lights- Thankfully at red so stop get the bottle out and take a sip. Then recover. While sitting there waiting for the lights- I looked at the Road sign- I had just done my first 20% slope on the Boreas.

I have been putting off the 15%er's till I get used to the 12's so I reckon I have no excuse now- Yes I have because I still haven't got the 34 ring fitted yet, and I Need that to do the hills.

maddmaxx 

I think that by the time you get the 34 you will have become a complete convert to the Compact double. When the new SRAM 11/28 10sp rear set becomes generally available that might be the best sports gearing available.

rck

Iff'n you don't mind, I'll stick with my 48-36-28 and 12-34 cassette. Except that my new crankset will be a 48-36-26. My knees really like that set-up.

Sandwarrior

Wow, that sounds like a real accomplishment. Would love to see some pictures of that if you ever drive that way again. Have a pint on me Mate

cyclinfool

Max - I am glad you posted this, did not know that an 11-28 is around the corner. I am spec'ing out a new bike and the chorus compact is on the list. I do not want to give up the granny gear on my triple so I was looking at an 11-25. With the 28 I would actually have a little lower gear. I really want to get out of a triple as I don't want the extra weight and chain cross over. I have one steep ridge I climb, about a 3 mile climb. Don't know what the grade is but it is long and steep enough for me. A good training ride and the only place I use the low chain ring. On rolling terrain - If I can see the top of the hill I usually focus on hammering it so I don't loose momentum, if I can't see the top I drop down and spin. Riding over 20 lbs of steel - you need to keep the bike moving...

BluesDawg

WTG!. Sounds to me like your biggest hurdle to get over for climbing on your new bike is located between your ears.

maddmaxx 

Remember, the SRAM cassette is SRAM/Shimano compatable, not Campy.

At the present time I use a 12/26....34/50 on the road bike and a 12/26.....26/36/48 on the MTB. To gain the advantages of the 11/28 I would have to change over to 10 speed rears and I'm not sure that I want to do that yet.

stapfam

My other option- other than a triple- is to get a "Special" cassette that is 11/34 and use that.Now if I was 9 speed- then I could use the MTB cassette that is standard at 11/32 but I am 10 speed.

Now if I was 8 speed- Then it is possible to get an 11/28 as a standard MTB cassette but there are 30t cassettes around. 9 speed as I have said is covered by the MTB 11/32 or 12/34. It is on the 10 speed that is lacking in that I have an 11/27 cassette and will be getting a 34t for the crankset. Still leaves me a little high on the gearing for the mountains though. Still, plenty of time to decide if I need a lower gear- Once I have got the brain into trying a few more steep slopes.