Categories: Awesome Belgian GuysBelgian AffirmationsFolkloreLook ProNostalgiaThe HardmenTradition

Look Pro: The Flemish Compact

Everyone knows that the quality of one’s character is measured by the size gear they can push, particularly when going uphill. It is also a well-established fact that no self-respecting Flemish Pro would ever ride a Compact, no matter what condition their knees are in or how ferocious the gradient. Which, by extension, means that Compacts are for sissies. In fact, a true Flandrian would rather lose their national race than ride a Sissy Gear.

The first time we rode with Johan Museeuw, we were shocked to find him aboard one of his carbon/flax race machines – and a compact chainset. Not wanting to offend an Apostle by suggesting he’s riding his son’s bike, I asked him what he thought of it. “I don’t like it. The big ring isn’t big enough for climbing.”

The standard Flemish chainset is – and has been for as long as the Ancients have tracked these details in their sacred scrolls – either a 53T or 52T outer ring paired to a 42T inner ring. On the occasions when the parcours will see them scaling the Koppenberg or Kapelmuur, the Belgians make a concession and dust off their trusty 41T inner ring in order to shorten the gear by a whopping single tooth. In the mountains or over in Wallonia (the land of savages) where they are far from the prying eyes of their proud public, the Flemish hardman may allow his mechanic to bolt on a lowly 39T ring, so long as no one brings it up at the dinner table. (It is worth noting that in Cyclocross it is standard practice to ride a 38T inner ring.)

Museeuw has never been a grimpeur, not when he was a Pro and not now. On Keepers Tour 2013, we had the opportunity to do several more rides with him, one of which was over the roads of Liege-Bastogne-Liege. It was customary for him to suggest alternate routes that avoided the steep hills, and so it was that he tried to talk us out of riding the Stockeu. We rode up side-by-side, taking our time. As we alternated between pedaling and doing track stands, he asked if I was riding a compact. I feigned a combination of exasperation and insult at such a question and told him it was a Flemish Compact.

“Oh, a 39? Goed.”

[dmalbum path=”/velominati.com/content/Photo Galleries/frank@velominati.com/Belgian Compact/”/]

frank

The founder of Velominati and curator of The Rules, Frank was born in the Dutch colonies of Minnesota. His boundless physical talents are carefully canceled out by his equally boundless enthusiasm for drinking. Coffee, beer, wine, if it’s in a container, he will enjoy it, a lot of it. He currently lives in Seattle. He loves riding in the rain and scheduling visits with the Man with the Hammer just to be reminded of the privilege it is to feel completely depleted. He holds down a technology job the description of which no-one really understands and his interests outside of Cycling and drinking are Cycling and drinking. As devoted aesthete, the only thing more important to him than riding a bike well is looking good doing it. Frank is co-author along with the other Keepers of the Cog of the popular book, The Rules, The Way of the Cycling Disciple and also writes a monthly column for the magazine, Cyclist. He is also currently working on the first follow-up to The Rules, tentatively entitled The Hardmen. Email him directly at rouleur@velominati.com.

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View Comments

eightzero says:

Aug 12 2013 at 9:00 pm

@mouse

@Mikael Liddy

@eightzero

It doesn't matter what chainring size I could afford to put on my bike. I would still suck.

That's funny, I thought you were in the camp of 'if you've got money, it's easy to be good'?

Boom!

AH, you make one of the classic blunders, the other of which is never get involved in a land war in asia....

now where was I? Oh yes...

You have clearly confused the specific with the general. As @frank pointed out, no matter what *I* do, I would still suck. I feel great shame in this. However, others, upon amassing mucho dinero in the First National Bank of Stevens, find it *much easier to compete* against those not born with a silver gel shot in their mouth.

Wait until I get going.
Daccordi Rider says:

Aug 12 2013 at 9:06 pm

Comitted compact rider here, with a 25/11 on the back there aint nothing you can't do. My spindly little legs can't munch a big gear but I get a lot of enjoyment of spinning past dudes trying to ride Flemish compact up hills when they really need mountain bike type gearing.

As others have said on undulating race courses I can just leave it in the 50 whilst others are dropping their chain etc and Eddy knows I will never spin out an 11 in a sprint.
Marcus says:

Aug 12 2013 at 9:11 pm

@mouse

Unless Frank is Museeuw's landlord I think you mean tenet. At least I think you do for all intensive purposes.
ChrisO says:

Aug 12 2013 at 9:53 pm

If the argument is based on gearing then most people with standard chainsets will run a 12-25, and my Compact 50-11 is bigger than a Standard 53-12.

At the other end (having run through a straight block up to 19 on 11-23 I have a smaller gear in 34-23 than a Standard rider in 39-25, so if I need it I have more options on the hills.

It doesn't really matter what size the chainset is - gearing is a product of ratios between front and rear.

Unless you're climbing in 53-11 there's really very little difference.
Fausto says:

Aug 12 2013 at 10:11 pm

@ChrisO

If the argument is based on gearing then most people with standard chainsets will run a 12-25, and my Compact 50-11 is bigger than a Standard 53-12.

At the other end (having run through a straight block up to 19 on 11-23 I have a smaller gear in 34-23 than a Standard rider in 39-25, so if I need it I have more options on the hills.

It doesn't really matter what size the chainset is - gearing is a product of ratios between front and rear.

Unless you're climbing in 53-11 there's really very little difference.

This.

You beat me to it ChrisO, I run exactly the same setup and can't figure out why people running 53/39 and 12-28 are waxing lyrical over why everyone should run bigger rings. So let me get this right: your top gear is lower so I'll drop you on the quick bits and you'll be chewing on your bar tape when I've got a gear in hand on the hills? And you've spent how much on your bike to make it lightweight and then put on a heavier set of rings and a cassette - explain how this is good exactly?
frank says:

Aug 12 2013 at 10:15 pm

@DerHoggz

I like Contador's idea of using really wide range cassettes so he can stay in the big ring longer, he uses a 32 out back sometimes. Now if only something to eliminate cross chaining rub was available to the lower component levels ala auto trim and yaw.

I am convinced big-big is the most mechanically efficient ratio for climbing. I'm just waiting to invent the math that proves it, like Newton did.

I'm going to invest in three chain rings in the coming weeks: a 42 for the road (for climbing), 46 for Roubaix (just to look Pro), and a 44T outter for CX (also for climbing - I've yet to find a CX course that has required a 38T - or 39T for that matter, in the US).

@JohnB

I do get the gist of the article and my first road bike, a lovely steel Ciocc had a 52/42 and I did like it a lot...Go compact and just pedal faster. 50 x 12 at a decent cadence is plenty quick. Get yourself some track time and develop souplesse if you want to look really Pro.

Or do all that on a Standard. And go mo'fasta.

At the very least, your bike will look more manly sitting at the cafe while you whimper inside.

We've not all got the guns of a pro but we can pretend. Just saying.

You start off saying you get the gist, and then you close with this. One of us is confused. Take a guess which one.
frank says:

Aug 12 2013 at 10:19 pm

@trhoppe

I use a compact so I can just grind the 50 everywhere. 50-28 will climb anything. 1Ã—10.....

I've got a 50/39 on the CX Graveur Robber. It is a lovely gear to climb in. On 33mm tires. On gravel. We're talking about the same thing, right?
frank says:

Aug 12 2013 at 10:21 pm

@Marcus

There is always someone running a tougher crankset than you. A mate of mine (in fact a dirty triathlete - who has managed a 4:35 ironman bike leg - ie. averaging 39.25kmh) runs a 56 on his TT bike. I would like to think it is just the chainset which allows him to drop me like a bad habit.

I hate to get serious here, even for a second, but they're doing that to get a straighter chain line in the gears they're running.

He's still dropping you because he's faster; he's probably still riding the same gear as you. Martin rode that giant 58 or whatever in the ITT at the Tour just so he could ride a good gear (16 or 17) in a very straight chainline. Works.
frank says:

Aug 12 2013 at 10:23 pm

@harminator

You know you're hard when you have to fit your forks backwards to prevent the big ring from scraping the ground. (Pic 3!)

This. That photo is all man, all the time.

@Marcus

@mouse

Unless Frank is Museeuw's landlord I think you mean tenet. At least I think you do for all intensive purposes.

Its a shame his cheek-in-tongue misspelling was fundamentally wrong.
frank says:

Aug 12 2013 at 10:24 pm

@ChrisO

If the argument is based on gearing then most people with standard chainsets will run a 12-25, and my Compact 50-11 is bigger than a Standard 53-12.

No, the "argument" is that compacts are for sissies, 39's are borderline, 41Ts are strangely specific, and 42s are badass.

Unless you're climbing in 53-11 there's really very little difference.

Its funny you mention this because I think he spent 90%+ of his time in the 53x11. No shit.