Why does my bike seem to work against me?

[tjdixon911]

Latley I have been struggling to maintain any kind of speed on my bike, I get the feeling that it is constantly fighting against me, I can occassionally get a bit of speed then as soon as I loose any rythem/make a mistake I can't get going again!

My possible thoughts;

Suspension Buggered? How do you check suspension? It has Dart 2's which I know aren't the best but they are ok.

Crap Tyres? I have recently changed tyres and run a Specialised 2.1 on the front and a Pathfinder (I think) 2.1 on the rear (same as supplied on my mates Merlin) so must be fairly decent. Previously had the std Scott 2.0's

Poor tyre pressures - I just pump the tyres up with a had pump till they feel hard, keep changing pressures but no real change.

Useless unfit person in the saddle?

The bike is a Scott Reflex 30, owned since Sept 07 and un-serviced (apart from a free one after a month)

Appreciate peoples thoughts!

[exe888]

probably the bit about the unfit person in the saddle.
high winds as experienced recently make a huge difference to speed.
tyres and their pressures make little in comparison

[JPJ]

Are your brakes rubbing at all? Might be shaving a few mph off your cruising speed and making it feel hard work.

[mk1fan]

Could be a lot of things dragging. If the bike is un-serviced then it could be brakes binding or the hubs seizing. Again it could be tyres. Very simply put (on-road) the harder you run them the faster they should be.

Then again it could just be the engine needs a tune?

[RobDickinson]

More lubrication for the engine, usually the higher alcohol content the better.

[spenny_b]

I changed the tyres on my full sus MTB the other night from some Schwalbe Marathon city tyres (fitted for the family holiday) back to my usual Panaracer knobblies, then went for a ride with my brother - I couldnt believe how much harder it was to maintain any kind of speed, never mind getting there in the first place!....they simply dump any sort of momentum overboard at the first opportunity! (having said that, along some of the dry/dusty tracks we were on loate, they felt sooo planted). I was really puffing after only a couple of miles, but on hols a 10-12 mile cycle was barely noticeable.

The difference to me seemed more marked going from city>knobblies than when I first swapped them over last month.

If you're doing road riding, throughly reccommend getting some semi-slicks.

[lingus75]

I can vouch for tyres and tyre pressure making a hug difference. I have a slicked Orange and a Felt RXC Pro setup for off-road. When I am out on a weekend jaunt with my other half on the Orange I am struggling to go slow enough for her to keep up. When on the Felt I think I must have someone else's legs as its a real struggle.

Get some good slicks, take of any excess and put loads of psi in the tyres.

[P-Jay]

I'd say tyres too. They make a surpising amount of difference. The only thing I change from my summer set up to my winter is I change the front 2.3 Highroller from a maxpro to a supertacky and the extra drag is very noticable. If you add exra grip you really have to make it work for you my carrying more speed through the bends.

[beanbag]

You could also check the bearings on your axles are running smoothly, as is your crank.

Try also lubing up the chain and make sure it's clean of any grease or debris. All this adds to resistance.

Also....being fit is a criteria. Stamina and strength are two totally different things so perhaps you need to work on that too.

[Dift]

P-Jay said:

I'd say tyres too. They make a surpising amount of difference. The only thing I change from my summer set up to my winter is I change the front 2.3 Highroller from a maxpro to a supertacky and the extra drag is very noticable. If you add exra grip you really have to make it work for you my carrying more speed through the bends.

Agree... Years back I went from the IRC Kujos to the Super tacky Highrollers (2.3) and it made a huge difference!

[mat205125]

How many miles have you covered without a service? Has it ever had a new chain, or been properly cleaned and lubed? Does it make any poorly creaking or rattles? If you hold the rear off the ground and pedal with your hand, does everything spin nicely, and continue to do so after you stop turning?

[exe888]

never mind how many miles since bike was serviced.
more like how many miles have you done in the last year.

as said, tyre pressures make relatively little difference to your speed. 130 miles per week (every week) makes a much bigger difference