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Why is my hybrid faster than my road bike?

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  • July 7, 2017 at 11:31 am #27331
    davecas48

    I need some advice on a rather odd problem. I have a Hoy SA Calobra with Shimano Di2 gears. I have been riding it for about 18 months now. I’ve had a formal bike fit, and it all feels great!! 

     

    A couple of weeks or so ago I had some technical issues with the bike, and I had to ride my old bike, a Trek 7.3 hybrid. To my utter confusion, I am about a mile an hour faster on the hybrid than on the road bike. I rode exactly the same course as I usually do, and compared the graphs from the gpx files side by side. All the way through the ride, but especially on ascents, I am significantly faster!! 

     

    Does this make make any sense to any of you out there? Have I made a big mistake spending all this money on a posh road bike, when I seem to be far better on my old hybrid??

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  • July 10, 2017 at 10:42 am #896903
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    fenix

    I think we need pics of your

    I think we need pics of your positions on both bikes. Maybe you’ve a good one on the hybrid and a not so good on the road bike ? 

    You should be a bit more aero on the road bike – that may not be important going uphill – but on the descents and the flat it will work for you. 

    July 8, 2017 at 4:16 pm #896901
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    davecas48

    Funnily enough, both bikes

    Funnily enough, both bikes have Conti 4000 on them. I particularly like that tyre…

    July 8, 2017 at 3:19 pm #896899
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    Anonymous

    What tyres do you have on

    What tyres do you have on each bike? I imagine those on the Hoy are what it came with – Mavic WTS I think. If you have a fast tyre on the hybrid, maybe a Conti GP4000 or the like, they will make a fair difference, as the Mavic tyres seem pretty draggy to me. Try swapping tyres across bikes and try your sample route again.

    July 7, 2017 at 9:10 pm #896897
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    madcarew

    “And yes, my hybrid is red!!!

    “And yes, my hybrid is red!!!!”

    Well there you go then!!

    The point people have been making about the ascents on your hybrid are likely to be less about breathing and cadence, and more about leg angles. The more open your hip angle is the greater power available (a factor of leverage). I haven’t read through all the comments, but if your average speed is around 12 mph / 20 kph then your aerodynamic efficiency is likely to be outweighed by comfort / muscular efficiency. This isn’t to say that your road bike won’t be faster, but if you’ve ridden your hybrid for a long time, and only just started riding a road bike there iwll be quite a period (months) of your muscles adapting to the new position and improving their efficiency. 

    As you say, If you enjoy it, that’s the main thing. As for being in a classic racing bike fit position, if your abdomen is gettingin the way of your legs, or your breathing is being constricted, then yes, you will be generally slower. I’ve helped a lot of generously proportioned middle age ladies to complete a century ride (Taupo Challenge) here in NZ. I do a bike fit for them at the start of the 26 weeks, and then again with about 8 weeks to go. Initially it’s for comfort, and we slowly introduce what aero gains we can. They inevitably end up faster over that time, but always it’s about comfort rather than speed, as typically these ladies take 7-8 hours to do the century. 

    So, if you want to be faster, set your road bike up to largely mimic the set up on your hybrid, and then gradually move that toward a more aero position. 

    Good luck 🙂

    July 7, 2017 at 8:38 pm #896895
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    davecas48

    Thank you, all of you, for

    Thank you, all of you, for your helpful comments. I certainly wasn’t expecting so much information, and so much to think about!! I think that it’s mainly about the position – my rather large abdomen gets in the way. I will get my tape measure out and do some comparisons, see if I can tweak the position somewhat  

     

    And, Hawkinspeter, you are right: I do enjoy my Hoy, so it wasn’t a waste of money!

    July 7, 2017 at 7:42 pm #896893
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    hawkinspeter

    Also, if you enjoy riding the

    Also, if you enjoy riding the newer bike, then you haven’t wasted your money at all.

    July 7, 2017 at 7:06 pm #896891
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    ktache

    Think how much faster you

    Think how much faster you will be on a wide bar fat bike!

    July 7, 2017 at 7:05 pm #896889
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    hawkinspeter

    My money is on it being your

    My money is on it being your position on the bikes. Get a tape measure and take some basic bike fit measurements (e.g. saddle height and reach) and compare the two. Maybe then try tweaking what you can on the road bike to see if you can get it closer to your position on the hybrid and see if that improves your speed?

    Alternately, your tyres can make a big difference, especially with different pressures. Too much tyre pressure can slow you down, although I’d be surprised if it makes that much difference going uphill.

    July 7, 2017 at 6:35 pm #896887
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    BBB

    Speed (engine aside) is

    Speed (engine aside) is determined by tyre setup, rider’s position and up to certain extent weight,  not by what the bike is called.

     

    July 7, 2017 at 3:23 pm #896885
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    Carton

    Following in the same vein as

    Following in the same vein as previous commenters, on the steeper hills I’m faster on my XC bike than my road bike because of the gearing. Even 34-32 isn’t enough to “comfortably” lug my 220lb frame up a 15% grade. On anything between 5-15% it’s mostly weight (unless you can truly acquit yourself uphill) that does the trick. Road bike vs hybrid will be mostly down to the scales. So I wouldn’t be surprised on similar times on a fairly hilly course, or even faster times on a particularly punchy affair.

    Outside of that, I also agree that repeatably faster is a bit weird. And on the flat the road bike should be noticeably faster than the more upright commuter, unless you’re commuting into Roubaix. Comfort, crank length, tyres are all worth looking at, but that should really all be marginal. Anything bad enough on bike fit and position to have that kind of an impact should really be felt or, especially, seen by a bike fitter.

    So I’d guess a combination of fitness and mechanical issues. Maybe you’ve gotten fitter and the mechanical issues on your bike have masked it. I did a couple of shockingly slow times up a climb early in the year, some of which was lack of fitness, but most of which was tyre rub due to a faulty skewer.

    July 7, 2017 at 2:46 pm #896883
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    davel

    “All the way through the ride

    “All the way through the ride, but especially on ascents, I am significantly faster!!”

    Do you have cadence sensors on both? What chainrings and sprockets do you have on both bikes? How many miles have you done on the Hoy in 18 months?

    I’d echo much of what has already been said, but because you’re particularly quicker on ascents on your hybrid, I’m wondering whether you’re a spinner (more comfortable spinning a faster cadence/smaller gear) and your hybrid lets you do that more easily 1) because of its gearing and 2) because of your position on it.

    In other words, as mungecrundle: its range of gears allows you to spin at your favoured cadence in a position that’s more naturally suited to you. Also as dottigirl: not everyone is designed to be tipped forward into a ‘roadie’ tuck. Alternatively, you just might need a bit more ‘training’ to develop muscles further on the roadie, if you haven’t done much mileage on it.

    (It could be a bit from column a and a bit from column b (and columns c, d, e…) so good luck with the search)

    At any rate, there’s more info needed in order to attempt to diagnose over the Web.

    July 7, 2017 at 1:54 pm #896881
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    CXR94Di2

    Riding on the hoods or top
    Riding on the hoods or top bar should be like riding your hybrid. If it’s not then geometry is way off. Only other thing is tyres, and surface sometimes a bigger tyre will roll better over a poor surface.

    July 7, 2017 at 12:55 pm #896879
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    davecas48

    Thank you for all your

    Thank you for all your responses so far – very useful stuff!!

     

    This wasn’t just one ride – it’s very repeatable, with the results always showing about 1mph faster on ascents. 

     

    I’ve been tweaking my road bike since I got it, but it certainly hasn’t got anything heavy on it. 

     

    I certainly feel feel very comfortable on the hybrid, so maybe I’m someone whose shape doesn’t lend itself to a road position. I chose the Hoy deliberately because it has a very relaxed position, but clearly not as upright as the Trek. 

     

    And yes, my hybrid is red!!!!

    July 7, 2017 at 12:44 pm #896877
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    dottigirl

    There was a trend a few years

    There was a trend a few years ago for TT riders to ride the most aero shape possible, despite discomfort. And there was confusion when the numbers didn’t improve.

    That is, even if you’re not in pain, if you’re stressing your muscles, your performance will suffer. Therefore, I’d look at your position on a bike: are you really comfortable? Do you have pain anywhere after a longer (over 40-60 miles) ride? That’s when the weaknesses in a bike fit usually tend to start showing. 

    Secondly, do you really feel you’re able to put the power in? If you stand, pedal a bit and sit, does your rear land where it should on the saddle? Do you feel you’re recruiting your largest muscles?

    Are you as upright on your road bike as on your hybrid? Some hybrids do have quite aggressive positions, so transferring to a road bike may not show the normal benefits of of being bent lower.

    I’d look at your setup too. Tyre width, pressure, etc. If you’re riding too hard a tyre on the road bike, you could feel you’re going faster than you are. For ascents, those with a bigger sprocket often spin away from the churners, so if your hybrid has a wider range, that would make sense.

    Having said that, some hybrids are a lot faster than you realise. 

    July 7, 2017 at 12:38 pm #896875
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    Swiss

    Maybe your position is better
    Maybe your position is better for your breathing on the hybrid. Try sitting more upright on the climbs on the road bike. You often see people fold themselves up over the bars when battering uphill, crushing their torsos unable to breathe properly. Maybe your hybrid is stopping you from doing that.

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