Gear Ratios Explained For Triathlon | Choosing The Right Cassette, Chainrings & Shifters
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- Опубліковано 26 сер 2024
- The gearing you have on your bike is such an important factor when it comes to improving your performance and your enjoyment, yet it’s possibly one of the most commonly forgotten things. So, let’s take a look at the gearing you should choose for a triathlon?
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Gears really do have a huge impact on our riding. Gears that are too low, or too easy, may leave you spinning out, wishing you had a couple of harder gears. Whilst, gears that are too high, may bring you to a grinding halt on a steep climb.
Firstly you have the chainset. Simply put the lower the number of teeth on the chainrings the easier the gear. So, there are a few common options with these. There is the standard, with a 53t outer ring, and a 39t inner ring. You also have the semi-compact, that has slightly easier gears, with a 52t outer ring, and a 36t inner ring. Then you have the compact, that is even easier again, with a 50t outer ring, and 34t inner ring.
The other area you can customise your gear ratios is with your cassette. It sort of allows you to fine tune and optimise your gear selection and you’re not short of options either. Shimano cassettes come in a number of ratios including 11-25T, 11-28T, 11-30T, 11-32T, 12-25T, 14-28T! Whereas a larger number on the chainset means harder gears, on the cassette a larger number actually means easier gears. So, for example, I have quite a nice range on my bike as it goes from 11 teeth on the smallest sprocket, up to 30 teeth on the largest. So, it’s very well suited to a hilly terrain because I have a range up to 30 teeth.
There are so many options when it comes to gear ratios but we hope this video helped you to understand what is available. If you found it useful, don't forget to give it a thumbs up and share with your triathlon and cycling friends 👍
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What always helps my friends who aren't into bikes understand gear ratios is when I explain that we're actually talking about a ratio. For example, on a compact, 36-tooth chainring, 18-tooth cassette cog means you'll spin your legs once, while the wheel spins twice. On a superhuman 55-tooth chainring, and an 11-tooth cog, you spin your legs once, while the wheel spins 5 times. Bring cadence into it and it all makes sense as to how it translates into speed. That's just my gear ratio 101 way of explaining things to bike newbies (not that I'm not a tri newbie myself).
Tiberius Paul Savu that's really clear 😊... And I'm not a newb either 👍
I need to confess: I use a triple chainring on all my bikes. With a 30teeth chainring I don't need to worry about any climb even if I bonk, with a 53 chainring I can go faster while descending. I chuckle when people talk about 1x drivetrains, as if having a 1x would save you 50W... Electronic gears may be nice but they are massively overpriced. 1 SRAM Red eTap or Dura-ace DI2 groupset costs as much as all my bikes combined, and I'm not even talking about Campy EPS groupsets. Just the bar-end shifters cost you an arm...
When discussing cassette and chainring sizes, you snuck in an important point: “provided they are compatible”. It might take another full video to explain what derailleurs (and chains) are compatible with the various options. Or just go to your trusty compatriots on GCN. 😀
53/39 with 11-34, best of both worlds
Installation was quick and easy. It doesn't make a whole lot of noise, and it's worth every cent.
Love watching these clips - good memories of Lanzarote.
Where is your favourite spot out there?
Maybe it would be worth highlighting that a compact crankset would not be compatible with more teeth and that it is important to look for the bolt circle diameter (BCD) to ensure you got the right fit.
Been seeing some road bikes lately with clip on aero bars and Sram Red blips on them. Seems like a good idea for people who don't (or can't) get a full on tri bike.
Yeah, I guess if you've already got an eTap roadie, that makes a bunch of sense. If you take price out of the factor, that's always been a big complaint about roadies with aerobars. It felt like such a terrible compromise to always have to get out of aero to shift. That was one of my big complaints when I used aerobars.
Aero bars on my road bike feel good for everything except sprinting
I have a 39 50 with a 40 cassette with a road link have all the gears i need easy downhill easy on the flat
Thanks for explaining the chainrings and gear ratios, it always been something I have never quite taken the time to fully understand and it is not that complicated is it! It is a shame the pricing of Di2 tends to add 1k to the price of a bike, I just could not justify it when I bought my TT bike. I hired a road bike in Lanzarote last year which had Di2 and I loved it.
explained so well ... thank you.
Better explanation than GCN! Many thanks
In the 2014 Tour de France, Tony Martin used a 58 chainring to win the 54 km TT by 1:49; mind you, you've got to be able to turn a 58 chainring. Easier said than done.
John Bicycle you can turn it, but good luck doing so on anything above a 20 on the cassette 😁
i use a 56t. its not hard. with the right gear in the back its....just normal. but it's quite challenging even on small inclines
i dont think he ever went to 58*11, its more that he can keep the chain in the middle of cassette because of efficiency
thats also the reason why i changed to such a big chainring. Chain is right in the middle of the cassette since im quite a weak rider and like to spin
Nice bike and pleased overall
53T - 11.25
Maybe swartzenager might push a 55 crank and a 11 cog but who wants to be swartzenager
When switching chainrings and/or cassettes, do you have to be thinking about he length of your chain needing to be adjusted as well?
not really, as long as the teeth diffrence isn't all that long. like maybe 50 to 56t chainring where ya might think about adding 2-3 link
It depends on the change in ratio. You'll normally need to change the chain length a little. The other bit to check is the b-limit screw when you're changing your cassette
Very helpful. Thank you!
Need help which is the best choice for my bike i used 53/39 chainring, 11-34 or 11-28t sprocket?
All depends on your use. If you live somewhere flat go 28, more hills/mountains go for the 34
Super well impressed 👌💯
Compact crank with a 11-28 on the back is fine for 90% of age groupers.
So how would a 48/32t chainring fair out on the road in comparison to these bigger chainrings?
Thank you, that was very interesting !
Are you driving by a lawnmower at 4:50 mate?
What is your Opinion on 1x gearing for road bikes? IS it the future? I personally could see it sweeping through Draft legal Triathlon within the next few years. Im considering going 1x on my road bike.
I watche yt channel Path Less Pedaled on down side of 1X's. My punny analogy : It is like having to flip through all the songs on the old tape cassettes instead of being able to lift the needle to a different track on vinyl record.
How about a Otillo show or two? I know a rookie looking to do one this year.
Stay tuned :) I've got loads coming
I want change my mountain bike chainring for more speed, what should I do?
Hey buddy loving the videos, need you help though on cassette's and teeth, currently have Dura Ace 10 speed rear cassette CS7800 11-23 (chain and cassette are brand new), I have recently bought some training wheels which needs a cassette. Ideally I want to keep the same chain and change out my wheels when racing and climbing/ short distances. So I will get a 10 speed cassette but should the same amount of teeth be the same as my current cassette 11-23? I know more teeth make it easier to climb but don't want to change the chain and chain length and mess about when all I want to do is swap out the wheels., any help would be much appreciated.
where can i buy a 54 chainrig?
heard this same speech before.. how many triathletes switch chainsets or cassettes depending on the race? honestly i'm not in that category..
Is it ok to use 53/39 to 11-36t casette?
Awesome & Thanks :)
Might have been good to point out that with cassettes with 30+ teeth sprockets you will need a medium cage rear mech to cope with their size (as opposed to the short cage which most bikes seem to come with).
don't think so. my entry level roadbike came with a short cage Sora 9spd rear mech and a 11-25t cassette. Slapped on a 1,8mm spacer and my old 11-32t cassette from my MTB. Worked just fine, without adjusting B-Tensions or anything at all. 25% gradients are now so mch easier
As you say, a spacer works too. I was just pointing out that there was a bit more to it.
uhm, i don't think that the spacer would make a diffrence compared to the cage. I use it simply because MTB cassettes normally don't work with road mechs except you use 11spd ones(afaik). You would have to use the spacer anyways if you wanted to use MTB cassettes no matter which cage length
Ah, think we are talking at cross purposes. I thought you meant a rear mech hanger extension that would allow you to use a larger cassette.
oh, you mean that one. Never thought about that, but would surely be cost efficicent compared to a whole new mech. I actually saw one guy literally use a long cage from the parts bin and put it on his current mech. Worked just fine
Does short cage derailleur will fit on 52/36 and 11/30 cassette? Thanks
yes it does
@@muhammadathallahadriansyah6773 this 52/36 with 11-30t is it good for climbing?
@@muhammadathallahadriansyah6773 I hope you notice and responce my question
Thanks alot.
What is all this improvement do for the non professional rider?
Non-professional riders may need all in one wide range transmission with narrow steps like half-step gearing if the chainring is restricted.
i use 39 alot.. its almoast all i need.. for now.. 39 11 thats prity strong
Question for you guys ...
does the number of tooth change the length of my chain. Let's say I've got right now a cassette 10 speeds and 11-28 and I wanna change for a 10 speed but 11-25. Will my chain need to be change too ?
not unless it is a very big difference. I just put a 13-34 freewheel on the back instead of the 14-28 and it worked. Had to adjust the "b" screw on the derailleur though.
1x for triathlon??
i use it. 56t oval with a 12-23t 11spd cassette. gives me the smallest jumps i will need on a flat course
Dont you need to change chain?
Yes, normally you'll need to change. It does depend on how large the ratio change is
sorry, even from 11-28 to 11-25?
No need if in a same speed
I'm trying to switch from a triple setup on my current bike, would I need to change the cassette also along with the chainrings and front derailer? Is there a way to know which parts are compatible to one another? Or is it that all different rear and front setups can sync with one another with proper tuning?
Is it Shimano? If so they have compatibility charts on their website. Pretty handy. You may get away with mixing and matching certain parts, but it could be messy. Any more details on your current groupset?
@@shanetrimble1458 thanks for the response, ended up selling that setup at record speed and went with an r8000 build, so problem solved 🙏
@@sesarman Brilliant! You won't look back, R8000 is amazing.
Good stuff, thanks ;) For the cassette 11-30 you use SS (short cage) or SG (mid cage) swap?
For flat land... 11-25T is best
Always go large teeth in the front and large teeth in the back. Don't go compact in the front.
Chapeau
having a 46 in the front is not that bad for hills
Everything that is being said here is just hogwash with the aim of selling more gears. If someone explained the business in clear terms of English-inch system, it would become quite obvious that the larger gear, whether 53, 52, or 50, is just not used in climbing. The whole conversation here is not about that one. What is used by this rider is only the second smaller chainring. A 39-tooth chainring used with a 25-tooth back gear gives you a 42-inch ratio. A 34 chainring used with a 32 gear gives you 29 inch. Thirty inch is like walking beside your bike. 70-inch is the standard ratio of simple one-speed bikes, perfect to go to the corner store for milk and bread in the basket. 100-inch is too high for level road; anything above 100-inch (100-130) is for downhill speed. 44-inch is then stiffer than 29-inch, indeed, in climbing hills, but that may be good for you and not for your friend. What will determine what you really need is your level of fitness and experience. No good biker will need a granny ratios in the 30-inch range in any hill, but an unexperienced or unfit biker will be very glad to have one in a steep incline. Any explanation of gear fit without the very simple English inch system is usually muddled and confused, as here, and not very helpful. (It can be done with centimeter, but the 75-250-cm scale does not have the elegance and simplicity of the English 30-100-inch scale). The formula is simple: diameter of wheel in inches multipled by ratio of chainring over gear. Example: 27inch X 34/32= 28.8 inch. Keeping a handy little table of all the gear-inch combination that your bike can give you will reveal clearly what your gearing can and cannot do for you. You can learn it by heart. It will also make it easier to identify where the bridge comes to change chainring and gear simultaneously (one up-two down, or one down-three-up). With a bit of experience with this beautiful system, your own gears will become very familiar and you will know them all by their own name. 107 is Charlotte and she means business! 55 is Marty and he sweats a lot. Cheers!
so which set which the best for speed and climbs ?
My overlly competetive friend doesnt understand gear ratios,he was using a bigger gear at the cassete and the smallest chainring on my 3x7 mtb with 20t or less teeth and is fuming mad at me after losing at a kid using a bmx
Eventually they'll sell automatic gears... +motor +airbags +side seat + roof for the rain + doors for privacy and we'll end up driving cars...
Absolute rubbish. "Spinning out"? You'd have to be going 65+km/h in a 50 tooth at 90 rpm. It only matters going down a hill. Tye length of your cranks are also important.
I am reading this as I look for a second bike. 64 year old woman with thunder thighs and decades of commuting. I spin out on a 3x9 old dura ace touring bike with rear panniers on flat road. It's cassette is 11-32 and biggest ring is only 48. I only want chromoly upright to have my second bike work differently. Looking at a 2x8 with 11-32 cassette standard with 48/34. The shop agreed to same price with a 50/39 to accomodate me, but I am all jittery that I am courting chain falling off getting stuck or not being able to get up some hills, but not using in mountains. Any crowd sourcing opinions appreciated. The bike is on sale 15% off through Thursday, so I am studying you tube. ( It is a pre-order, so I cannot test ride. The frame is retro styled chromoly with a rake on the fork I love.)
Cyclist sounds English but he is definately no where near England 🤣...Espania?
I am reading to find out where he is with palm trees too!