I have been cycling for over 15
years. I am not a novice, but am far
from a professional rider. I am always
looking for ways to improve my performance outside of my normal training to get
stronger and faster. I came across an
advertisement for Osymetric
chainrings and was very intrigued. They
are not round like the chainrings on most bikes. Why would you want an chainring that isn’t
round though?
Let’s first start with what I used
before and what I am testing. I have a
2012 Giant Defy 2 Comp. It came with a
compact setup with 50-34 chainrings up front and an 11-32 cassette in the
back. I mostly ride in the flat Central
Valley of California now, so I changed my rear cassette to a 12-26 for cleaner
shifting and less of a gap between my gears (I was having a hard time keeping
up during sprints with my friends because of the gaps between my gears). Osymetric
sent me the 52
tooth large, 38
tooth inner ring, as well as an assembly kit.
What are Osymetric rings though? They are chain rings that are not round like
traditional chainrings. They are not
oval or elliptical either, but have a twin cam shaped design. The patented design from Osymetric USA reduces the gear and
effort needed to get through what they call the “dead spot” in your pedal
stroke. It is designed to take advantage
of the strongest part of your pedal stroke, between 1 and 5 o’clock where you are
pushing your pedal down.
Some of the claims from Osymetric USA are that their chainrings
can reduce your lactic acid buildup by 10% and increase your power by 10%
regardless of how experienced you are with riding. One unique aspect of the rings as that the
closer you are to your anabolic threshold, the more beneficial the Osymetric rings are.
If you are curious about detailed
data analysis of round versus Osymetric
rings, here are a few links.
Jean-Louis Talo is a mechanical
engineer from Menton, France who produced the prototype Osymetric ring and has spent over 20 years trying to convince the
cycling world that it works.
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| * picture courtesy of Bike24 |
“You can alter the design so that you
give the leg muscles work to do where they are at their strongest and less work
to do where they are weak. A round chainring gives you work to do where you are
weak and takes power away from you where your legs are strongest,” says Talo.
“A bicycle chainring is round because at one time that’s all factories knew how
to produce.” (1)
There are people who also think that
the gains aren’t that great.
Tim Kerrison, the
performance director at Team Sky who oversees the training of the team said,
“I’d say that, performance-wise, there is very little in it either way… A few
riders have a preference for the Osymetric
rings, but many of our riders have tried them. Only a few continue to use
them.” He also said, “…both Wiggins and Froome used them in
the 2012 Tour, so they are unlikely to be significantly detrimental to
performance.” (1)
You will need the large (starting at
$129.99) and small (starting at $129.99) Osymetric
chainrings as well as an assembly kit
(which costs $24.99). The assembly kit
is a bolt on chain deflector. The
purpose is to make sure that the chain does not overjump the small ring when
downshifting. There are a variety of
small and large chainrings designed for standard, compact, and off road bikes and
various group brands (i.e. SRAM, Shimano, etc).
I have tested the Osymetric chainrings for over a month
and a half now. What I can say is that
you won’t notice a night and day difference, or at least I didn’t. What I did notice though was I did have more
power and was able to maintain a faster speed on a regular basis. I was also able to ride longer than with my
traditional compact chainrings before my legs started to fatigue. I not only felt the benefit in the flats
where I do a majority of my training, but I found the most benefit on some
fairly steep hills. I was riding up some
10-12% grade hills that I wouldn’t have been able to make it up with my other
chainrings. I even was able to save a
few gears in back in case my legs started to fatigue, but they held out. I was utterly surprised. I have asked a few friends about their
experiences with Osymetric rings and
they said that it made a difference in their races. They are true believers just like I am.
The only negative thing that I have
found is that it can be easier to drop your chain than with a standard oval
ring. While I found that to be true, I
only dropped my chain twice and it was due to bad shift timing on both
occasions. For me it is not a big deal
and wouldn’t deter me from highly recommending the Osymetric chainrings.
Pros:
Multiple options for different crank
arms
Standard, compact, and off-road
versions
Increases power by 7-10%
Reduce fatigue by 10%
Is used by top pro’s during races (it
must be good)
Great Price (my kit would cost under
$300 total)
Cons:
Small increased risk of dropping
chain
Osymetric’s Social Media Link:
Conclusion
If you are looking on making
improvements to your bike that will yield more power and faster riding, Osymetric chainrings are a great option
to look into. They are used by some of
the top cyclist in the world and they wouldn’t risk their career on technology
that wasn’t scientifically backed. Not
only are they using Osymetric rings,
but they are winning with them. I was a
little skeptical at first, but once I tested them for a few rides, I was a
believer. The increased power and
reduced fatigue is well worth the price in my opinion. The small and large rings start at $129.99
each but Osymetric USA is currently
having a great sale where you can get each ring for under $100. Get them before the sale is over. You can buy yours at the Osymetric USA website.
Note: I received this product
in exchange for a review. The review is my personal opinion of the
product and I was not required to give a particular opinion of it. I am not a doctor, so please use all of the
products that I review at your own risk.
References:
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