Single speed to geared
 

Hey guys! I am interested in knowing how your performance on a single speed bike translates to a geared bike. I only have ever ridden a single speed road bike, but plan on buying a geared one soon and am curious to know what to expect in terms of pace. For those with both single and geared bikes, how do your stats on a single speed compare to that on a geared? I was reading some article a guy wrote in this same vein of thought, but his article was specifically aimed at how the two compare in hill climbs, not overall or on slat or on descents.

Just for reference, my normal 22 mile ride contains 2400 feet of gain. On that ride I average a pace of 16 mph, and generally ride at about 24 mph on the on flat section of the ride. My last century had 4000 feet of gain and I averaged 18 mph. My bike has a 46x18 gearing.

If you're new to geared bikes, there's going to be a learning curve that will need to be taken into account before you can do a fair comparison.

I'm definitely faster on a geared bike vs. a ss or fixed, certainly in a hilly environment.

Never even thought about that, but you're right. My only experience with a geared bike is my mountain bike which I presume is a different beast than a road bike.

My hope is that a geared bike will allow me to keep my high cadence up hills which hopefully will translate into a more consistent pace instead of these huge changes going between 20-25 on flats, 18-22 on rollers, 7-12 on climbs. Obviously going down hill will still have a large cadence difference because I hit 50+ on a regular basis.

Gears only permit faster times for me through the city (leaving stops) and on BIG climbs, and easier maneuvering through tight, rooty trails. Also gears afford me more time to tinker around in the garage cleaning, lubing, adjusting and occasionally rebuilding little bits :/

Idk why but I'm slower on my geared bike on my daily commute.

Either your route is very flat or you're doing it wrong.

A great part about riding geared is the ability to keep a consistent cadence. I like to ride at a pretty high cadence, nearly 100rpm.

Your speeds won't change that dramatically, but they will a little. It's not like you will suddenly be able to produce more power, and you certainly aren't any more aero or light with a geared bike, so those speed ranges you posted above still apply.

What you'll learn is that there is a (small) variation in power over a given time period, with respect to cadence. The ability to hit those sweet spot cadences, and hold them, is what will make a difference over the long haul.

It's pretty flat for the most part nothing that would require major gear changing.

Yup. My speed is no different except on the longer steeper climbs and I'm less fatigued over long distances.

Same here about the same speed thing over a 1 hour flat commute when comparing gears vs my ss. Gears make me lazy.

That sounds like a personal problem :thumb:

Going from geared to fixed is what usually throws me for the loop. That moment when you go to coast while looking for traffic over your shoulder and the crank bucks you and the bike.

FG makes me lazy. Hey, the bike pedals itself!

I am really enjoying commuting and generally riding my ss Fuji track.

at buysell in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada - photo by riverroad1728 - Pinkbike

So much that I sold my Scott foil and am down to one carbon bike (Scott Addict).

Can't wait for my inexpensive wheelset to be built this Friday to give fixed mode another try with proper pedals this time

Kinlin xr200+formula rear hub+bhs front road hub

I learned how to spin right. I started on geared. Went single for awhile. Now bounce between the two and I'vennoticed I'm faster on the geared bike than I used to be.

On a geared bike*, I'm much faster due to the additional 9 or 10 speeds and can go for significantly longer distances as I can coast and change between my additional 9/ 10 speeds for whatever optimal cadence is for my fatigue and land elevation levels.