Originally Posted by timmhaan
that's a good point. the "climbs" i train on are about what you mentioned above. 6-7% for less than 1/2 mile. I should have probably used the term hill.
i think you're right about the larger grade climbs, that would be much harder on a fixed gear.
Out here in Austin Tx we have hill but no mountains. There are some tough short climbs that are more like sprinting than climbing. Having spent most of my life in SoCal and done some climbs that take hours not minutes there truely is a difference.
The thing that really frosts my arse is that so many people get worked up about this. Especailly the "I passed some guy on a 8k bike on my POS so I'm better than him" sh#t. So f'n what you ride a $600.00 Fuji and someone else rides a $8k Colnago. Maybe you were born with a better Vo2max or a naturally higher LT. Maybe this guy has always dreamed of owning a Colnago and had finally been able to afford one. So what if he bought the matching kit and can't ride as fast as you in your ratty shorts and t-shirt. Just remember that there is some guy on that same Colnago in the same kit who's a Pro/Cat1 that's gonna come along and big ring right past you on that same climb.