Gear ratios are not all as important as they are cracked up to be
- The first important question when choosing the right Gear is, what is the track like is it fast, is it down hill, has it got long straights or short straights.
- The second important question is what am I trying to achieve. That should be a simple answer to get to the first berm first so you can dictate the race from the front.
- Gear ratios differ from person to person. But once you find the right gear you should stick with it. So many times I see Kids at the track either pushing gears to hard or I see the opposite and the kid is peddling his Butt off and going no where. So when you find the right gear stick with it.
- Gears don’t make the race it is in the mind that counts I once raced on a very tight track and everybody was dropping gears and going light cause they thought it would help along the smaller straights but my mate and I we just stuck to our normal gears only because we were to dam lazy to change them and we still came out first and second respectively, so what the moral of that little story was to show that you don’t necessarily have to change your gear all the time once you have found the sweet spot that’s the only gear you will need on any track.
- As for changing the gear in-between races it really amuses me how can you expect your child to perform better by changing one gear I don’t believe in it, but still I see parents do it (Don’t worry parents even my father did it to me when I was a kid, I think it’s the parents sheer desire to win at all costs never minding what is comfortable to the child, but still I just find it hilarious)
- Gear ratios are made out to be so important in a race when they really are not it is all about going out there having the time of your life and riding as fast as you can and for those 30 to 40 seconds being free.
And remember always ride it like you stole it.
the-rone