What's the best technique to use?
For mtb uphill roads? For off road stuff?
What's the physics involved? will I damage myself if I stick to only one technique?
What's best for fitness? Up-and-downhill stuff but shorter mileage or longer but flatter rides?
cheers from the CheeZe!
Uphill roads? Tarmac you mean or fire road or off road trails?
It's hard to be sat on the saddle when pushing up a climb
In the saddle mostly. Unless there is loads of traction and I am tired!
fastest is neither-it's having done lots of hard climbing or training.
out the saddle when you get tired...
there is a section on my local route that is too steep to ride seated, even if I move my weight to the nose of the saddle, the front wheel still tries to lift. By getting out of the saddle, I can get my weight further forward.
When I started riding, I had rigid forks and honking up a climb was the norm, its only since suspension forks and rear suspension came about that its changed so that seated climbing is more efficient.
Sit down, high cadence for long up hill slogs.
Stand up, lower cadence for short climbs.
technical climbs seated
If traction is OK, then seated. Get out of the seat now and again on steeper pitches just to mix it up.
If traction is not OK ie front lifting up or just otherwise v difficult climb you need to do whatever it takes - usually will involve getting off the seat.
Really steep pitches on a HT can require a sort of crouched position where you're not sat the seat, as you'll lose the front, and you're not all the way forward with your weight on the bars, as you'll lose the back.
Depends how my knees feel and how many gears i have left.
there is no correct way of climbing. The answer is whatever gets you to the top of the climb. There are technical climb i do seated, some out of the saddle, depends on what the obstacles and gradient are. To say always climb on the road in the saddle doesn't always work. You can deliver more power out of the saddle and sometimes it is nice to stretch your legs and back.
Thanks all for your replies, seems like there's a good variety of techniques to use.
I've been mostly trying to stay in my saddle for most of the climbing I do but I do get out when I need to give my thighs a breakfrom a long slog!
I had to use the 'crouching' technique at haldon, where theres a big gravelly low grip climb, just after the ' black' section.
I assumed there was a right and wrong way to climb, as there are in so many other aspects of biking.
Got any other tips..apart from adding one of those motor things ? 🙂
Both. Seated climbing at higher cadence is efficient and decent rear suspension helps loads with staying seated up rough climbs. But sometimes, only standing and attacking a section will do, esp on a HT. On low traction climbs, the hover/crouch is cramped and tiring but effective.
Riding a SS taught me some things about standing climbing I had not realized: It's way less tiring if you stand taller with straighter arms; leaning the bike and levering the bars against the pedals for power, bouncing/pumping with the pedal strokes can increase traction enough to maintain grip when it's loose. It's knackering tho.
Seated and using your gears, that's really why you carry 27 of them around with you. Plus climbing out of the saddle with no lock out is horrid
Singlespeed and rigid are a bit different.
seated is faster. Standing for techie bits like riding up a step or two. If I'm going to switch from seated to standing I usually go up a gear at the same time.
Kev