To waggle or not to waggle?

[piedwagtail91]

i I almost always ride fixed so for me it's out of the saddle most of the time, 3.5 miles once from ribblehead to newby head. never had a headwind like it. i couldn't even sit down and keep the pedals turning on the slight downhills

 

[iZaP]

waggle waggle waggle, everyday waggle!

 

[Mad at urage]

so how do you waggle with a front sus then, I tried this on the way home (alternating honking and spinning) and found that all I did was push up and down the sus, I tried leaning forward to stop it bouncing up but that made everything shockingly unstable.

Should I leave honking to the road bike then?

It was honking with front sus that taught me to do it properly. The FS (if not locked out) will of course bounce if you are putting any 'up and down' motion into your arms. If you can (as I could once I learned) honk with the 'bike moving forward, the bars moving in an arc with the tyre contact point at the centre*, no bouncing of the bars = no wasted energy.


*To me, what you are doing when honking is using your weight over the pedal downstroke and the arc of the bars to assist that downstroke. Unless wobbling to deter overtakes (better to pull over if possible) or 'tacking' across the road to lessen the steepness (please not when there is possibility of traffic), the 'bike should move directly forward and not waggle (I wish I was that perfect when I honk up the last hill home!).

 

[coffeejo]

As my muscles become more accustomed to the hills, I find that I'm honking less and less but since this thread started, I've become really aware of the difference it makes to your legs and their stamina to be able to give them a brief rest by honking. I was doing it before - it really was the only way I could make it up the hills! - but now that I can "apply" this knowledge, it's making my rides smoother and faster - and much more fun!

 

[david1701]

you guys are legends, I'll try it on the ride home

 

[Jonathing]

Honking always seems like a waste of energy moving the bike from side to side when I actually want it to go forwards (and up). I get out of the saddle for steep climbs and for sections of long climbs to give my quads a rest. But even when I'm standing I try to keep the bike straight and almost drop my weight on to the pedals to provide momentum.
Most of the time I'm riding fixed at the moment so I acknowledge I'm in the wrong gear, it's not wrong what they say about fixed teaching you discipline.

 

[david1701]

I've been trying this and it seems to be getting easier and working better

 

[davehann]

HILLS
start low gear (high cadence) and progressivly move up through the gears as you get near the top.

standing up at the end of the accent will use different muscles (and raise your heartrate much more)
but a stand up stomp to get over last blast to the top and over is best for a fast climb

 

[ComedyPilot]

I find that a good fart whilst honking gets you up the hill in half the time.

 

[coffeejo]

ETA See the porridge thread!

 

[BentMikey]

Ah Somerset. Country people.

 

[coffeejo]

The trick is to make sure there aren't any unsuspecting ramblers / dog walkers in the vicinity

 

[cyberknight]

Ah Somerset. Country people.

soft southerners come ooop north for some real hills that we use our hovis bike to carry the coal home from tut pit !

 

[BentMikey]

I'm a bit more southern than that.

 

[cyberknight]

I'm a bit more southern than that.

You need the workout then even more , does a bent fall over backwards when it gets too steep?