Originally Posted by
rpenmanparker
I'm not talking about climbing speed. I'm talking about climbing endurance. It is not like a sprint. People don't climb slowly because they can't turn the pedals faster under the load they are experiencing. They climb slowly, because they overtax their CV systems. They blow up because they deplete their reservoirs of nutrients. They overload their muscles with lactic acid. At least that is my experience.
All you're saying is that people are expending more energy than they can afford for the duration of time necessary to complete the climb. They can expend less energy by carrying less weight. Alternatively, they can train to generate more power over the same time and complete the climb before running out of energy. Or they can do both. Conclusion: Climbing performance is dominated by power to weight ratio.
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