Had my PlanetX Evo for a week now and loving the riding I’ve done so far. About 120 miles in total thanks to foggy/icy conditions but noticed one worrying thing. On the flat it is a delight compared with my SS hybrid but up the shorter hills the singlespeed is faster.
I’m assuming because in SS mindset you know you have to hit the hill at speed and then be out of the saddle early. Maybe I’ll work our what gear equates to my 55:22 gearing and try that. A great bike for long grinds into the stronger winds though, and much better over any real distance for me, I just need to be more aggressive and a rider not a passenger.

I have similar difficulties with gears these days, most of my bikes are SS. Changing up and down all the time seems a terrible faff if I’m just on a general not-mega-steep-or extra-long sort of ride. I’m out of gear changing practice.

There’s definitely a tendency to shift into an easier gear and not put the power down as hard if you have an option.

Applies to steepish climbs on bikes with a wider gear range vs old school 39×21 bottom gear cos you’re a hardman.

For short bursts, give it some welly and you’ll be just as fast.

Yup, I’m pretty aware it is user error.

It’s nice to have the option of not having to give it some beans by switching to easier gears and spinning up short inclines, but you don’t have that option on SS, or dual-speed (one sprocket, two chainrings) in my longstanding current comedy case if you don’t want to be forced to walk up it!

I’ve gone up https://www.strava.com/segments/949918 something like 31 times, but I did my 4th best time up there stuck in 16T sprocket last Sept (7th best by power).

At least with gears you have the option of how you want to tackle uphill stretches.

Ha, I remember having exactly the same issue going to an 8kg road bike after a 10kg singlespeed, just had to stop over-reacting to hills at the shifters, keep the momentum going.

Changing up and down all the time seems a terrible faff if

Yep. I had a geared bike for first time in over 10 years last spring. The novelty was nice at the start, especially being able to pedal at higher speeds and get up very steep stuff but after 2 months the novelty wore off and I sold it and went back to my fixed gear.

Ride the Planet X in 50×20 and see how it goes.

That’s the game plan. Great bike, just need to make myself adjust to it. It does weigh over 1lb heavier than the SS. How will I cope?🤔

I just need to be more aggressive and a rider not a passenger

There’s more than one way to ride. Smashing up stuff agressively is a particular style, but spinning in the right gear is also valid. You use your muscles differently and it’s probably more efficient to spin in the right gear.

I got used to spinning having ridden FS bikes for so long, so I rode my rigid MTB the same way. Then when I realised that I could get out of the saddle and smash the pedals it was a great pleasure, and something I’d forgotten all about. I have no issue though with picking a gear on my geared bike and doing it 🙂 I can smash up stuff if I want, or spin, and I can also go fast on the flat and winch up steep stuff. Aren’t gears great? 🙂

I’ll get Back to you on that.
Like I said it’s a mind game. What’s bad is I can’t replicate my SS gears without a dodgy chainline. Time to man up. Or man down.

Me too.

If it’s steep, I find that using gears doesn’t get me much further up the hill before I have to bail.

There’s a certain amount of user error – possibly because I leave it too late or go too soon and lose momentum, and also because I am reluctant to put too much force down while changing.

I’m just starting on my SingleSpeed journey so coming at it from a different angle. My first impressions are that I need to pick uphill lines more carefully so as to maintain momentum. On a geared bike I can be less picky and rely on lower gearing to get/keep me going.

Well as I (and everyone else) predicted it was user error, a bit more aggression and I’m picking up PBs on many climbs and everything on the flat. Not a surprise really seeing as I’m on my first proper road bike since restarting cycling 7 years ago…
Dumbass 🙄

There’s definitely a tendency to shift into an easier gear and not put the power down as hard if you have an option.

adding a singlespeed had the opposite effect on my geared bike riding. I tended to leave it too late to shift and then change down under too much load. Being a tall, fairly heavy rider its an excellent recipe for snapping chains and mangling front mechs a long way from home.

Like I said it’s a mind game. What’s bad is I can’t replicate my SS gears without a dodgy chainline. Time to man up. Or man down.

I think you’re overthinking the chainline. Gears result in a non-perfect chainline, but that’s OK (well, going big/big or little/little is a bit ugly but still OK if you have an excuse).

Well three months in the geared bike is now the go to but I still love the SS on some days when having gears just doesn’t quite cut it.
What amazes me is that I’ll do a ride like yesterday, feel slow, yet check the Garmin and find I easily beat last years times uphill on the SS when I was 12lb lighter at 9stone and a lot fitter.
Still slow against the fast lads but having immense fun.

However much progress you think you’re making on the road you always find an older bloke in their 60-70’s comes past you up a hill I find…..

I’m more into mountain bikes but trying to get a bit fitter / faster on the road – but without going as far as putting a training plan in place / power meters etc as it is just for fun and fitness for me.

However much progress you think you’re making on the road you always find an older bloke in their 60-70’s comes past you up a hill I find…..

Yay! Thats me then. 🙂

Yay! Thats me then. 🙂

The old bloke in his 70s?

When I got a road bike to do ride London, I got a triple as I was a 90kg lardy. Was so easy to rely on that for the hills.

Been out on the road bike a lot in lockdown and have managed to wean myself off it.

Still loose a lot of speed on some climbs, I can just plod up them happily but can’t seem to get any faster progress.

The other day coming out of Bath up to the top of Lansdown I was just plugging away in a nice rhythm enjoying the sunshine and a guy in his 60’s slowly overtook me. Made me think actually I was plugging away but I wasn’t actually pushing myself that hard. If I want to get fitter quicker I need to get into the mindset of pushing harder on certain rides more of the time. I think that’s a proper road thing – if you’re not training to get to certain objectives you’re not going to make lots of progress after the initial uptick in fitness from doing more road cycling.

What I’ve done so far has helped my mtb though – by getting in some longer or hillier road rides it’s carried over nicely to mtb. Went to FOD yesterday and just whipped round the red (with extension part) and blue routes and found it easier than I ever have done before. PBS all over the place, up and some down bits. Bike is better than my last one for covering miles but it’s still 32lbs and on the burly end of short travel bikes (140f/130r travel – but Lyriks / 30mm rims / Codes etc).

The old bloke in his 70s?

Cheeky git! 67 thank you.