One lesson learned riding a tandem is that there are different ways to ride out of the saddle. Specifically, you don't HAVE to flop the bike back and forth, and if you've got another rider back there, flop it one way and it doesn't come back easily! So vary technique accordingly.

I find, riding my single bike, a lot of times I stand on hills rather than downshifting, and a part of that is because I'm riding with other people going slower, so I don't have to get top performance. Otherwise, sit and spin or whatever gets you up the hill fastest, then stand as needed for a butt break, not just for increased effort.

I had always believed the reason climbing out of the saddle on a loaded bike wasn't recommended was due to the stress it puts on the spokes. No idea where I first heard that, I just thought it was accepted wisdom. No?

I had a brand new shiny bike made with 4130 tubes and a Tubus Fly rack with 2 Ortlieb Sport/Front Roller panniers! It was flexing a lot out of the saddle. Using road gears was tough for those long rides.

Front or rear rack? Rear rack with weight and steel frame adds up to flex that you have to control with your wrists if you climb out of the saddle. Put those same panniers on LowRIders and you wll find climbing out of the saddle is only harder because you are carrying more weight. Now, the frame itself may simply be flexing because that is what steel frames do (depending on tube thickness, your weight and riding style (and to a lesser extent, the frame geometry and details),

Ben

I've never heard that, and it doesn't make a lot of sense.

Good deal. I suspect it may have been one of these things that someone told me years back and it just stuck in my head as something that 'must be true' because they were older than me. Or something.

That's the best suggestion, given that the OP is probably unlikely to ditch his present bike and seek out an aluminum bike. Putting most of the weight in front panniers, with the weight located as low as possible, will go a long way to mitigating the wallowing tendencies of any steel touring frame.

I'm not sure how much bike frame affects climbing off-saddle on a loaded bike. Stiffer frame helps a bit but one still needs to concentrate on pedaling smoothly vs on light unloaded road bike where it's OK to let bike rock side to side.