It’s no secret that I’m prone to riding in the big ring as much as possible, mostly on account of my not being a giant sissy. In accordance with the ISO Non-Sissy Standard, I also never read instruction manuals or ask for directions when lost. I make sure to only rarely ask my VMH to turn up the radio when Adele comes on, usually followed quickly by an ernest explanation of how I thought it was Metallica, and how Rolling in the Deep ripped off the opening to Enter Sandman. The record does show, however, that I occasionally fly into hysterics when surprised by an insect or amphibian – but that’s just good common sense.
Pantani’s in-the-drops climbing style has always impressed me, but he’s only one of the riders who won races going down in the drops looking for more power on the climbs; Jan Ullrich was often climbing in the drops as well as our mate Johan Museeuw – not to mention Richard Virenque and so did Frank Vandenbroucke. Looking at that list, I wonder if the UCI should explore adjusting the test for EPO to examine time spent climbing in the drops.
Riding the route of Liege-Bastogne-Liege with Johan last Keepers Tour, I noticed a pattern in his riding style. Whenever the gradient increased on a climb, instead of changing gear he just moved his hands to the drops and rose out of the saddle to casually push the same gear over the steep. It looked so easy, it was impossible to resist trying it myself. At first, there is a strange sort of sensation, like you’re dipping your nose into the tarmac. But then when you switch to the hoods, you notice an immediate loss of leverage. After practicing it, it becomes second nature.
Someone once told me that the key to going fast is to try to break your handlebars, and that’s just what I’ve been trying to do lately although I hope I’m ultimately unsuccessful. Since gleaning this trick from Johan’s riding style, I’ve been staying in the big ring longer and climbing out of the saddle in the drops, pulling hard on bars and feeling them flex. Its not always faster than spinning a low gear but it has the benefit of taking the load off your cardiovascular system and putting it on your muscular system – a handy thing if your form is missing something or you’ve got massive guns (which I don’t).
This has brought another notion to light: the lower the hand position, the better able you are to find the leverage you need to turn the pedals. This is one of the principle issues with the sit up and beg epidemic, apart from it looking crap and being less stable. But hand height seems to impact power; I’ve noticed that when I’m climbing on the tops, I can breath easily and I’m able to maintain a speed well, but acceleration is difficult. To accelerate or hold a pace up a steep gradient (which is almost the same as accelerating), I’m better served riding on the hoods where my position is a bit lower. But when I really need power, I go looking for it in the drops.
All this brings into question the current trend towards compact bars and flat hand positions between the tops and hoods, with the drops only a bit lower. Compare that to the deep drops ridden in the past, in the style of Eddy Merckx and Roger de Vlaeminck where the hoods were halfway between the tops and the drops. The modern bar shape and hood position seems to reduce the riding positions to as few as possible, while in the past, they were designed to provide as many as possible.
In any case, big sweeping drops look the business and I’m pretty sure they are in complete compliance with the ISO Non-Sissy Standard.
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I think the advice about trying to break your handlebars if you want to go faster is true - I seem to get a bit more speed when I'm trying to pull those damn handlebars in to a crazy new shape*. I try not to over-do it, partly because of rule #23, but also because it gives me back problems, especially if I'm in the drops too long on a climb (though it could be because I'm usually wearing a backpack on my commute).
* I'm actually half hoping that one day I do bend the OE 'Bontrager-approved' bars out of shape so I can justifiably replace them with something better and lighter. I appreciate that's unlikely to happen unless I crash. Also, the drop on my bars is way too shallow for my hands - the old style of low hoods and deep drops definitely has a lot of appeal.
I see what you did there, Frank. Very subtle, but probably the best pseudo mis-use of 'principle'. Though you may have been referring to the primary issue with the Sit up and Beg epidemic, the avoidance of such a position is certainly a matter of principle too. After all, looking fantastic is a fundamental principle to being a Velominatus.
I have two particular hellingen where I must try this. You can set a pretty good rhythm and pace for the first 90%, but that last 10% the angle changes and it is always a struggle to maintain my V. If I can now maintain my gear and cadence all the way, then surely I can shed a few sacrificial lambs at the back of the gruppetto
In fact, there is perhaps even a third that the tarmac is so otherwise battered, charred, pitted, and pocked by mother nature that with this approach it will become passable again...
Just imagined track and field sprinters trying to start from a position with their hands on their knees -- not much to leverage fast-twitch muscles. Starting as low as possible (lower center of gravity) allows position and power to get the body up to speed. Fortunately for us (Velominati) a frameset allows this position and power to continue with speed -- floating.
Great article. I will have to try this. I have tried it before after hearing you praise this style in the past but it never seemed to work for me AT ALL.
But, at the risk of being totally outside of the V popular opinion, no one has accelerated more beautifully and gracefully on a climb in the last 10 years like Bertie Clenbuterol. He truly looks like he is performing ballet as he floats (or floated--back in the day of steak for dinner) away form everyone else.
I've got 3T Ergonova on at the moment with the hoods set very flat. There isn't alot of choice of position; tops, hoods, forward in the drops for breaking and shifting and right on the cuff links. I've got some Rotundo waiting to go on with the next cable/tape refresh to see how they work. Reach to the levers might be a bit of an issue, I've got fairly small hands.
@Steve-o
Where do you live, Lo Sceriffo is coming to talk to about using that word?
Riding the single speed 48/15 has been teaching me to HTFU on the hills. The pista bars also only have 1 real hand position, which is way in the drops. I'm interested in seeing how it affects my road bike climbing.
O Great One , scared of insects and frogs ?
Love my Cinelli 66-44's on the old Columbus MAX.
Haleakala ascent on the drops?
Fabulous article in which every word is true. I know this because even though I suck mightily as a Cyclist, I have always sucked a little less when I've ridden as described above.
One of my most treasured sensations of any minute gain in fitness is any increase in my ability to climb in the drops. Because climbing in the drops is badass, and it works.