Are you a honker?

[ChrisEyles]

Depends which bike I'm riding!

My ten speed won't let me spin up steep hills, so I have to alternate honking with seated grinding. Usually make it up quicker and easier than I expect, but there's definitely a limit to how many hills like that I can manage on one ride.

All my other bikes have sensible low gearing (even changed the crank on my tourer to a MTB one for super low gears), so I sit and spin. I'm a bit guilty of being lazy and dropping to a lower gear than I strictly need and twiddling my way to the top very slowly... but this can be useful on longer hilly rides and for this reason I'd pick the tourer over the racer for a long ride on Exmoor.

Off-road I prefer a slightly higher gear for seated climbing so I'm not having to watch my pedals on rocks and other obstacles so much. Can't stand climbing out of the saddle off-road though.

 

[deptfordmarmoset]

By the time it occurs to me to honk I'm already too tired to lift myself out of the saddle.

 

[C R]

A bit of both, but probably more spinning, with short bursts of standing.

 

[anothersam]

WTF is honking?

I trust the context has given it away by now.

It’s an undignified term, but surely you’ve come across the usage…? If not, consider it your slang word for the day.

Depends which bike I'm riding!

This is probably why I honk (only on a bike – never in a car): my stable is exclusively singlespeed. Given the hills on my regular route, there's no other choice.

Honking is great if you are doing a short rides with a big climb or two and your legs change to generate strength.

That, and I think (without looking into the evidence) it gives me a better workout. At the very least, it feels good to move around.

The Grim Reaper still lurks by the junction with Church Lane.

I remember him well.

 

[Deleted member 26715]

I trust the context has given it away by now.
It’s an undignified term, but surely you’ve come across the usage…? If not, consider it your slang word for the day.

Not exactly, is it just getting out of the saddle, or getting out to the point where you have to stop as you cannot go any further, not one I have ever come across, is it colloquial to your area?

 

[MichaelW2]

Mostly I sit back and spin but on v steep bits eg hairpin corners I get up.

 

[vickster]

Dodgy knees, told long ago to avoid riding out of the saddle on hills especially by medic, so I don't!
I probably do grind more than I should on hills only because I'm too heavy and crap at getting up them! (I do have silly muscly legs though which gets me up the admittedly feeble hills around here)

 

[matticus]

​

It's a very widely-used term.

https://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/latest-news/helms-a-tribute-64689

 

[anothersam]

Not exactly, is it just getting out of the saddle, or getting out to the point where you have to stop as you cannot go any further, not one I have ever come across, is it colloquial to your area?

It's colloquial to most cycling forums I've been on, but fair enough if you've just not come across it. I consider honking to be getting out of the saddle whilst continuing to turn the cranks, though I don't know if doing it on the level technically qualifies.

 

[Deleted member 26715]

It's colloquial to most cycling forums I've been on, but fair enough if you've just not come across it. I consider honking to be getting out of the saddle whilst continuing to turn the cranks, though I don't know if doing it on the level technically qualifies.

Always known it as dancing, but as you say new slang word of the day, Thank you

 

[Dogtrousers]

Always known it as dancing, but as you say new slang word of the day, Thank you

Dancing = effortlessly done by lithe skinny professionals. Honking = done by big lumps.

Caveat: I just made that subtle differentiation up. It may not be valid outside my head.

 

[ChrisEyles]

I'd say to truly "honk" your eyes need to be bulging a little bit from the effort as well as being out the saddle

 

[Sharky]

View attachment 516776
It's a very widely-used term.

https://www.cyclingweekly.com/news/latest-news/helms-a-tribute-64689

Johnny Helms - a great cartoonist and have a couple of his books.

 

[Ming the Merciless]

On a recumbent you don’t have a saddle and don’t stand up. You spin because if your leg muscles get over fatigued you are stuffed as you can’t stand up on hills to compensate. I might spin at up to 130 rpm on my recumbent to keep the speed up.

On my Brompton I honk as it just has a 3 speed hub. I’ve ridden it up alpine passes and standing on the pedals a long time and honking became the norm in many cases. I’ve managed to get it up 20% hills, haven’t tried anything steeper.

 

[Edwardoka]

For me, the correct answer is "mostly spin, with out of the saddle efforts on a gear two clicks higher to to raise the pace, break up long climbs and give your slow-twitch fibres a respite"

In reality it's more complicated, I'm in pretty poor shape and grinding 40/50rpm on the lowest gear is often the only option available. I'm certainly not in a position to maintain honking for more than 30 seconds.