Originally Posted by
chasm54
Sorry, not convinced. The "peak force duration" is by definition merely a function of your cadence, not of the weight of your bike. If I pedal at 100 rpm on a road bike my "peak force duration" is exactly the same as if I pedal at 100 rpm on my tourer with 50lbs of gear.
Your argument holds water only if you are reducing your cadence in response to the weight of the bike and thus turning the ride into more of a strength workout than an aerobic workout. This is quite likely, but you could achieve the same effect by simply moving up a few gears on the road bike.
As I said, I pedal the same cadence (75-95 depending on terrain) on the tandem that I use on my single. You might give it a try - bring your tourer's weight up to about 120 lbs., ride with your group and report back. The tourists that we've ridden with seldom really go.
Think about this: so you're on the flat hanging on the back of your paceline on your 120 lb. tourer at 22 mph, riding your normal 95 cadence. Your paceline goes up a little incline, and because you're already pretty stressed from holding 22 on your tourer, you go a little off the back. So you have to get back on, except that you're accelerating 100 lbs. more than you are used to. The sensation of pedaling is completely different. F=MA, right? If we push M way up, and only cut A a little, F has to increase. Except F can't increase because you're already hammering on the pedals, so the only thing to increase is the dwell time of F. Does that make sense? So maybe it's 28 mph for you, but the idea is the same. That's the sensation, anyway.
It's the same on hills. Every little change in incline and I'm foxed by the acceleration problem. Steady-state sitting is about the same, but standing is way different, because on a racing single it leaps forward every pedal downstroke, but not so much on the 120 lb. bike. If this were not true, there wouldn't be special light climbing wheels.