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This super aero triathlon bike
is built for speed on the flat.
But at some point,
you will have to climb on it during a race.
Now, the geometry is very different on a bike like this
compared to a road bike, with position further forward
with our weight over the front end.
Plus, their bikes are generally a little bit heavier,
so it can make climbing quite hard work.
So how can we make climbing on a triathlon bike
a little bit easier?
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Firstly, let's take a look at
the main differences on a triathlon bike.
Most triathlon bikes will have a cockpit
with a flat based bar like these.
Now these often be a lot lower
than your road bike kind of bars.
And then of course we've got
the size of the frame and wheels,
which makes the bike heavier,
but also makes it harder to manoeuvre,
especially when you're getting up out of the saddle.
(music with a beat)
So on to the climbing and to be honest,
not a whole deal should change.
You're still riding a bike up a climb,
so a lot of it just comes down to confidence
and being comfortable on the bike itself.
Now my positions a lot further forward on this bike,
so as I'm climbing, I'm just pushing myself back
into the saddle a little bit more.
And the common mistake is to tense up
in your arms and shoulders, due to the base bar being
that little bit lower, but it's really important
to stay relaxed, to conserve energy, and
so that you can freely move the bike underneath you.
(music with a beat)
Whether you ride in or out of the saddle
is really up to you and at times,
the terrain will make that decision for you.
Riding out of the saddle will allow you to apply
more force to the peddles by using your body weight.
Now it does use a little more energy,
but it may be necessary to get you over the climb.
Just before you get out of the saddle,
you may want to consider changing up one gear
so that you're not spinning out.
Now when you're out of the saddle,
there's a lot of torque going through the chain.
So if you do need to change gear again,
you may want to sit back down momentarily
so that you can softly shift through the gears.
When you get out of the saddle,
there's nothing wrong with
swaying the bike from side to side.
In fact, I do this quite a lot.
It actually allows you to use your body weight more
by almost stepping in to the pedals.
And don't forget that you want to pace your effort
on the climbs.
It can be very easy to ride a little too hard
due to the increased weight of the bike.
And remember whatever goes up, must come down.
And when you get onto the flat with a bike like this,
that's when they really come into their own.
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When you're looking to book a race,
you should always check out the course before
to see if your bike is set up for the course ahead.
Now, there's a number of lumps and tails on route.
You may want to take a look at your gearing,
do you have enough?
Today, there's a lot of gear choices and
cassettes on the market.
For instance, I'm riding an 11-28 cassette
to make things a little thing easier on the climbs.
(music with a beat)
The more time you can spend on a
triathlon bike the better and being able to
climb well on one isn't something that happens overnight.
So give it a go and let us know how you get on
in the comments below.
And to see more videos like this,
you can subscribe to Global Triathlon Network
by clicking on the globe.
And to see our road versus tt bike
on the climb video,
just click down here.
And to see our essential suit workout video to go faster,
just click down here.