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.
I know as well as any of you that I've been checked out lately, kind…
Peter Sagan has undergone quite the transformation over the years; starting as a brash and…
The Women's road race has to be my favorite one-day road race after Paris-Roubaix and…
Holy fuckballs. I've never been this late ever on a VSP. I mean, I've missed…
This week we are currently in is the most boring week of the year. After…
I have memories of my life before Cycling, but as the years wear slowly on…
View Comments
@scaler911
If by "extended period," you mean longer than tirty seconds, I'd say you're on the side of the angels, sure.
@frank
You think there is at least, and I would have agreed with you until I read this: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24550843
@frank Yeah, I have a 58 cm and the VMH has a 56. We're both tall, but she definitely has a more sit up and beg position -- lower saddle, higher bars. Of course, she rarely comes out of the big ring and her dad taught her how to throw a punch at an early age so in turn I rarely say anything about it. On standard bars her shift levers seem to do fine, but I agree if she changes over to compact bars shorter levers would 1) look better and 2) probably function better.
Hmm. The few times I've tried climbing in the drops it feels less stable (which makes no sense - as your centre of gravity is lower it should be more stable) with no more appreciable power. But a badass italian climber can't be wrong, so I'll give it another go.
@Endurimil
There is a major trend towards finding "neutral" positions, and I think there is a lot of merit in having one on the bike - a place where you can ride where there is no muscle tension etc: ultra comfortable.
But that should be one position, and the other positions should create a tension which results in leverage and therefore power. For me, I like my neutral position to be on the tops and from there I look for more tension in the other more aggressive positions. Not so much it causes pain or anything - I can ride in them all for hours on end, but the hoods and drops give the kind of pressure that allows me to find more power.
@freddy
@TommyTubs really blew my mind about the 17deg stems being a cm longer than advertized, but he's right - I measured mine and the 14cm I've got on the Graveur is actually 15cm. Which is why the bike fits.
On a 73deg head tube (which the Cervelo's have), its not negative, by the way; 73+17 = 90.
@The Grande Fondue
I think I'm in love with this guy while at the same time I feel irrationally and unjustifiably inadequate.
@PeakInTwoYears
Oh, excellent work!
@Daccordi Rider
Excellent. Top marks, aside from the EPMS and ISO Non-Sissy Standard-violation helmet cover. But the KOM's are most likely due to the badass climbing style.
@scaler911
Those are such awesome pictures. Definitely whatever works for you, but are you on the tops when you accelerate? I'm genuinely curious - doesn't work for me for shit.
To your other point, I'm not suggesting you ride l'Alpe out of the saddle in the drops - I'm suggesting you try to hit them when you need a bit of extra power.
Nice play on the last photo.
@Puffy
Did it hurt when they removed your sense of humor?
@sthilzy
YES! I have the Merckx ttt bend on the steel, similar in most ways to your Cinelli's. Great fucking bars.
@Buck Rogers
Ah, crap. There goes my EPO test theory.
@Der Hammer
Um...why did you specify FROGS? I feel like I should put a strip of tape over my webcam.