Riding with people with long legs

[Dusty Bin]

The gear isn't the same though as the legs are longer so although fitness / stamina may be the same the gear ratio is not the same if you include legs .

Fitness is a function of your aerobic capacity, or cardiovascular capability, or muscular endurance, or sustainable power output, the amount of force you can generate, or even maximum power output - there are lots of definitions. But if two people have the same fitness (by the same definition), then their physical shape is not relevant.

Assuming they are both pushing the same gear (as dictated by their 'fitness') then 'leg length' is not relevant. What is relevant is the amount of force they can apply to the pedals, and for how long. And if they both have the same power output (which they will have, if they have the same fitness) then there will be no difference.

 

[BigonaBianchi]

I have long legs and am tall. My view is that short people have an advantage on a bike as they.have less wind resistance and weight..Assuming equal fitness the shorter rider would go faster I reckon.

 

[ColinJ]

I have long legs and am tall. My view is that short people have an advantage on a bike as they.have less wind resistance and weight..Assuming equal fitness the shorter rider would go faster I reckon.

It depends on how you measure fitness!

If you use power-to-weight ratio, then bigger riders have an advantage because wind-resistance-producing frontal area increases less quickly with 'size' than weight does. I.e. a good 'big un' will beat a good 'little un'!

The reason that smaller riders tend to make better climbers is that wind resistance is less significant on tough climbs. A good climber might be (say) 2/3 of the weight but have 3/4 of the power of a big bugger who kills them in flat TTs. Downhill, big riders have a definite advantage.

 

[Crankarm]

Cav is only 1.75m (5'9") and 69kg but is or was the best sprinter in the world, ever, .......... until Andre Greipel started beating him who is 1.84m (6'0) and 75kg.

But it is my belief leg length is irrelevant unless you are sprinting against Usain Bolt who is 1.95m (6'5") and 93kg.

 

[avalon]

I hate cycling up hills with short people but I do enjoy watching them pedal like mad to keep up with me while I freewheel down the other side.

 

[BigonaBianchi]

Soab has a certain ring to it.

 

[TheJDog]

Cycling is a body weight exercise (when climbing or getting up to speed), tall people are generally slightly disadvantaged at those. On the flat there is probably less of a disadvantage, but height still creates drag. My riding buddy is 6 inches shorter than me and is much much faster up hills, and better on the flat. He's also 10 years younger, and probably got 10% less body fat, too. Those probably account for some of the difference.

 

[RWright]

Chris Froome is 6' 1". He climbs pretty good. Don't know how long his legs are.

 

[boydj]

Chris Froome is also built like a stick insect.

 

[buggi]

no, the crank is the same length and we turn it at the same rate.

 

[Cycleops]

no, the crank is the same length and we turn it at the same rate.

At last you have hit the nail on the head.