gears

camju · Jul 26, 2010

the discusion of gears and HP I think if you take a person on a bike and give him up to 18 speeds then maybe they could see what gears do as a persons Hp doesn't change but with the higher gear he can get to 25 Mph.

old · Jul 26, 2010

A person on the right bike on flat ground can get up well over 55mph. I know that is true because way back when my brother got a ticket for speeding on a bike and he was doing around 55 in a 30 MPH zone and he was on one of those old 10 speed bikes you could get from sear's back in the 60s. Oh by the way if you check it out land speed record for a person on a bike is over 100mph

Anonymous-0 · Jul 26, 2010

Old have to disagree. I raced bicycles for several years and about 45 mph is all one can manage in an all out sprint if not helped by the wind. So it would require special gearing, probably a 54 or 56 tooth chain ring and 11 tooth sprocket and a good 35 to 50 mph rear wind to do 55 mph on flat ground

Anonymous-0 · Jul 26, 2010

A very good bicyclist can manage 25 mph for an extended time on flat ground if he doesn't have a significant head wind. About 150 rpm is the maximum speed most can spin the cranks and many are more likely to top out around 130 rpm, and that isn't for very long. Therefore although you might have unlimited gearing options, the body can only utilize a select range.

Owen Aaland · Jul 26, 2010

The speed record is over 100 MPH but that is with a little help with breaking the wind. The first record like that was done behind a train.

old · Jul 26, 2010

Well as to the true speed I can only go by what the radar gun said and what the ticket he got said. I do know the bike he had was one that was extra light weight and very small tires and was made for racing. One that you are almost laying down on as you rode. And for that matter he could well have had a tail wind but I can not go back in time to find out LOL

Oh yeah · Jul 26, 2010

I could help with breaking the wind.

MarkB_MI · Jul 27, 2010

The extra gears on a multi-speed bicycle aren't there so much for speed as they are for hill climbing. Bicycles used for velodrome racing have only one gearing and no brakes! These guys are going 40-50 mph.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Velodrome

Anonymous-0 · Jul 27, 2010

I never raced track but did ride in the Indianapolis Major Taylor velodrome a couple of times. They don't require brakes because it is direct drive, no "slip clutch". Never really managed to do a track stand, which is to be mounted on the bike and be completely stationary. Some can do it on flat ground which is a lot tougher than in a banked velodrome. A necessary accomplishment if you intend to track race.

gears

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