and on a 50 x 12, sometimes wishing for more.

Almost never use it. All my riding is uphill.

If you have a cheapo magnetic trainer like I do, you will burn out your 11/12 pretty quickly due to use in the winter time.

53x12 in a 40 mph sprint.. otherwise its only used for descending

I use my 52/12 on descents and continue on the flats as long as I can maintain it. I usually find myself in 52/16 on a flat without a descent leading up to it.

+1

I miss 53-11alltheway

I use 53X11 almost every ride. Mostly downhill or with a tailwind. 127 cadence gave me 47.9 downhill with a tailwind monday. I hit over 40 most rides and any less and I would just spin out. I have big smooth downhills every direction from my house. I live on the corner at the bottom of a 10 percent grade and an 11 percent grade.

Hell, I don't even use my biggest chainring, much less my biggest gear. I don't like to go much over 35 going downhill (I have witnessed too many downhill crashes), and unless it is a very shallow grade, I can build the momentum easy just by letting my weight drag me down the hill. On the flats, I can get to 23 mph on my 42 just fine, and I can't really sustain that, so the 50 remains untouched, for now.

I use the 52/12 combo on every ride. The fitter I get, the more time I spend there. I actually surprised myself the other day by pushing that gear for several miles on a flat - no more cogs for the downhill section that followed.:)

???

Obvious mistake in the coherent writing department!

Low-gear -> low speeds, high-gear -> high speeds (at similar cadence). Just like a car.

My experience was the opposite. The fitter I got, the more comfortable I felt at higher cadences, and the less time I spend in the small cog. Now, it's never unless I'm sprinting.

I'll use the 50/12 on sprints, and I use the term loosely.

hardy ever

used it more when I was a kid, not much anymore and sometimes when I do I surprise myself. nothing like almost getting killed to fill your system with adrenaline making it quite easy to use the highest gear for extended periods even while climbing!

Two weeks ago in the Tuesday Night Training race we were strung out single file, when the usual suspects were attempting to make a break, and I was at 106 cadence in my 53/12 looking for more gear.

That puts you at 38 mph. In that circumstance you're probably better off anyway at a cadence of 100-110, than going to a higher gear.

Just touched 40 once going north on 177 down hill, and strongest tailwind I have ever had. I'm not doing it again, the pavement was lousy on the hill.

Had a tailwind yesterday, so yes. As a general rule, I almost never hit high gear for flats, though.

I'm in the 50x11 as I type.

I use my 54/11 quite a bit on my TT bike on the slight downhill. I find that as I crest a hill onto a downhill section I can keep my power up by loading up my legs with a lower cadence on the initial downhill. Once my speed is up, i adjust the gearing to reach the cadence and power targets I want. Generally, I am burning a match on the climb so mentally I would like a break after the crest. By shifting into a big gear, I effectively extend the climb and limit my recovery to threshold power. I use the same technique on my road bike when I am doing z4 or z5 intervals on rolling terrain.

Yes, I find it very useful for that too.

+1.

My small chainring and two smallest cogs are disgustingly shiny. It's flat here.

Thanks for crushing my soul. Here I was thinking my finish sprint was reflected in the 38 mph max my computer showed.:lol:

I used my 50x11 last night a lot. I can't wait to get a double down the road.

Tuesday Fast ride with club