Cassette Size for Racing
 

Just wondering what size cassette you are using if you are doing road races?

Totally depends on the terrain, your chainring sizes and most importantly your personal preference.

Perhaps you could post some more info regading these...

I run 53/39 and 11-23...works fine. If I lived in the mountains I'd go to 12-27. I used a 12-25 for a race in the mountains this year while running a compact (50/34) crank, and had sufficent gearing.

I do a 12/25 for road. Sometimes I could use the 11 on downhills, but unless I'm on a break, I don't need to be pedaling that hard. The 25 will get me up the hills around here. I would like to use the 11/23, but at 200#, we have a few hills that I may use the bailout of the 25. Haven't needed it yet, but chances are I'd rather have the 25 than the 11. I could be wrong though. I run a 53/39 setup.

In crits, I use a straight 11/21.

crits i use an 11-21.
relatively flat road races i'd use a 11-23
hillier races a 12-25
i guess for mountainous races a 12-27 (if shimano), 12-26 (campy) 13-29 (but i'd have to get a mid cage derailluer)

50/36 and 11-23 tight gearing, yet wide for downhill and uphill.
lets not start a compact suck/ausome thread please.

11x23 & 13x27

53/39x11-23. Mostly flat races but will get me up Snake Alley just fine.

Nice, that's on my list of races to do in the next couple years. 275 linear, 60 vertical feet of pain.

I would recommend signing up via mail as soon as race registration opens. Seriously. They call you up based on order of registration. Rows of 10 guys at a time, and they know because they give you your race number based on registration. First row is numbers X01-X10 (x being a random number), second is X11-X20, and so on. They DQ anyone who tries to move up a row.

In the lower categories, if you're in good shape, if you aren't in the front two rows, your race will be an individual time trial because you'll be passing people pretty much the entire race. Or get caught behind them up the Snake, either at the start when someone (plural) inevitably falls over the first time up the Snake because its so damn crowded, or later on, when you're lapping a fatty. What makes it even worse is that the guys who registered early AND are in great shape (always a few) end up working together and usually lap a good portion of the field.

I raced with 50-34, 11-23 this season.
I plan to switch to 50-36, 11-26 SRAM for next year.

I used to race on a 39/50 and a 15-23, but that's because around here they think a 6 mile loop with 4 right hand turns and 90 feet of climbing is a "road race". As mentioned above, it depends on the terrain.

Junior races?
Real men race 55/42 11/21. Everyone knows that! I am not there yet. For flat, short climb crits/circuit races I used 50/34 11/23. For road races 50/34 12/27.

If I was 6' tall I would rock a 54t with some 175mms...oh man... might as well dream. :(

53/39 with 12-25 unless it is hilly (11-25) or a flat TT 11-23

I have a 12-27 and 11-23. Racing around here is pretty hilly; however, I've yet to need the 12-27 except at Race the Ridge last year. Brutally steep wall, rain sheeting down. Everyone's rear tires slipping out. Good times.

I'm 6'1" and sometimes I run a 55/42 with a 12/25 and 175 arms on my TT bike. Of course my cadence is like 18, but it's fun to do occasionally.

50/34 with 11-23 cassette here for most applications. A hilly RR might get the 12-25. But now that I've switched to Campy, there's an 11-25 option...

when is that race? i know alot of people on my team have taken part in that race in the past. this is my first time on the team though so i dont know anything about when races are and such.

horses for courses.

being the beast on a bike that you seem to be, you might want to match the sram with a DA cassette. I have the OG Sram cassette and it is "notched" for smoother transitions(which looks more like a missing tooth) and if you shift at the time it comes around you get this lurch like it is skipping. For a weakling like me only able to power a light bulb this is no problem but others may have issues.

Hrm...you know I run all SRAM parts on my MTB, and have noticed that sort of skip. It's not normally annoying, but on a granny-ring climb, it can suck...although the lesson there is to shift BEFORE I'm maxing myself out on a climb.

Sorry, yeah I forgot to mention it was junior gearing. 50/15 was the max allowed. But the important part was that we didn't need anything easier than a 39/23.

53x39 and 12-25. I am toying with the idea of switching to an 11x23.

I'd rather like an 11-25... but these seem fairly hard to come by...

I rock an 11-34 on my MTB :D You can get just about anything you'd like if you look around a bit.