Mike, sigh, you're saying what I suspected but didn't want to hear: it's just harder to push those big wheels up a hill. I'm already thinking about trying 2.3" tires, though it does seem silly to buy a bike that takes 3" wheels and then not use them. In any case, I'm going to replace the heavy tubes with lighter tubes and see what difference that makes. Half a pound per wheel isn't nothing.
Rather than sliding forward, which seems to put my body at the wrong attitude toward the pedals, I've been trying leaning forward. I haven't yet become comfortable standing on the steep climbs, but that's the next skill I need to pick up. On Fri, Apr 25, 2014 at 10:50 PM, Mike Schiller <mikeybi...@rocketmail.com>wrote: > One thing most people experience when going from 26" wheeled MTB's to 29" > MTB is that they can't climb as well. I've learned that you need to use an > even lower gear to be able to turn the larger circumference wheels. I have > yet to try a 29+ bike but I can guess it will need an even lower gear. On > my 29er I run a 20-34 low combination. I'd probably go to a 20-36 on a 29+ > bike. Maybe you can try a smaller chainring up front for your Rohloff > equipped bike? > Of course it takes more power to push the wider and heavier tire, > especially uphill on dirt.. I climb much faster on the same trails on my > cross bike with 35mm tires. Downhill is another story. > > One trick you may not know is to slide forward on your seat a bit on steep > sections. That will take some weight off your rear wheel and allow you to > climb easier. The WTB saddles even have a little drop on the nose for that > purpose. > > Another option is to try some 2.3" tires. They will be easier to climb > with then your 3" Knards. You'll lose some downhill traction but maybe > gain a better overall ride. > > Good Luck > > ~mike > Carlsbad Ca. > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > -- -- Anne Paulson It isn't a contest. Enjoy the ride. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
