Originally Posted by
KBentley57
Christ, internet tough guys getting their panties in a bunch. Let me explain it for you thoroughly.To jaycb74 - I never meant you weren't fit, good looking, manly, or strong.To everyone with their bunched panties - The spirit of my post was "If you keep riding, you will notice that you are getting stronger. The stronger you get, the less you will need higher gearing." Eluding to the famous quotes "It never gets easier, you just get faster" and "Don't buy upgrades, ride up grades", ect...Jeez./thread
And the fact is, you are ignorant about both the Hicks climb the OP was describing, and apparently also the OP's level of conditioning - given that he is already capable of the Hicks climb - something that most recreational riders are not capable of. The fact is, no matter what your level of conditioning is, for a large-framed 44 year old guy, his knees will ALWAYS benefit from lower gearing when riding up a significant 14% average grade that hits over 20% in some places. You are apparently unfamiliar with the aging process if you believe that one's knees will get better from harder work at age 44. One's cardio might get better, but on the climb in question, cardio is not the OPs issue - 44 year old knees and his overall above average size are, and for those things, easier gearing certainly helps, more than hard work on his knees ever would.