Originally Posted by
lhbernhardt
Yeah, but they don't make Di2 for triples (yet). Otherwise I'd be tempted to get it for my tandem.
What I found on my last double century (Knoxville), though, is that I bog down completely on a 15-18% grade at 5 kmh on my 44x17 fixed gear. So when I get off the bike and start walking, I find I'm doing 4 to 5 kmh anyway. Always wondered why anyone would use a triple to ride at slower than walking speed; I guess you can spin up the tiny gear and still maintain a reasonable (faster than walking) speed on the steepest climbs.
Luis
Agree completely on the super low gears, but on our tandem my wife's power to weight is much lower than mine so when we hit 12%+ we're slogging in a 24-36. I can actually walk the tandem uphill that fast, but my wife hates to walk. I made the mistake of muttering under my breath once that we should consider walking - bad move. Riding the tandem has made me much stronger (good news), but because of my body type, even considering my age, I've got a lot of muscle in my legs. That's why I still weight near 200; that's my story and I'm sticking to it.