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Old 05-24-18 | 07:20 AM
  #779  
Bandera
~>~
 
Joined: Mar 2013
Posts: 5,929
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From: TX Hill Country
Originally Posted by thehammerdog
Any tips hills were hard enjoyed it but took alot out of me 9 miles with hills
Riding a FG machine on the road for any distance when it is other than pan-flat takes considerable adaptation to both the fixed gear's relentless demanding nature and to pedaling technique(s).
Set-up for a gear ratio that you can roll along at a reasonable cadance, climb w/o undue stress and descend within your comfortable top cadance. Use a brake(s) to moderate hamster-in-wheel spin on descents.
That "climb w/o undue stress" will require being able to put out considerable grunt at a lower than "normal" cadance and standing effectively to get up and over.
The reality of FG riding is that one is rarely in the "right" gear and only a wide effective range of cadance with good pedaling technique, serious power and old school hard-man attitude is how it's been done for the last century by club cyclists.
A useful drill to develop the technique and power to stand on demand with a relaxed and powerful style is to select the up side of a modest grade into a head wind and do a series of intervals standing for X time on and X time off.
Being over-geared for this drill will be a "bad thing" and under-geared a bit of a waste, find the right terrain and/or use your road bike as well in "big" gears.
You should be able to pass the bike smoothly back and forth with hands of the hoods (you do have two hoods fitted even if one is a "dummy') w/o herky-jerky monkey motion when technique adaptation and specific muscle strength are developed. You are cycling not weight-lifting, pulling on the bars is bad form unless there is no choice, which does happen in FG world.
The transition from sit to strand and back takes a smooth hitch-free motion to avoid the danger of a "dead spot" which on a FG will instantly and forcefully be a "very bad thing" with serious negative consequences.
Staying off of terrain that is simply too steep for your conditioning and gearing is wise. The low gear on my light road bike is 36 GI to get up and over the local terrain, I stay off those routes on my 70" FG.
Use common sense, have a good ride.

-Bandera

Last edited by Bandera; 05-24-18 at 07:25 AM.
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