Seated Or Out Of The Saddle Climbing | Which Is Better For Mountain Biking?

Most MTB riders have a preference when riding uphill, either standing up or sitting down, sometimes mixing the two depending on the climb. Rich takes a look at the two techniques on a series of different climbs to find out the advantages and disadvantages of both. Which do you think will come out on top?

How do you prefer to climb on your mountain bike?

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[pakdolan]

Standing when you want to sprint ahead. Seated when you want to maintain a steady and sustained pace.

[chrisridesbicycles]

Thanks for the effort Rich. Climbing with clipless pedals vs. flat pedals would be a nice followup.

[daviddembrow]

Until Nov 18th 2020, I was riding a GT Karakomam 29er hardtail. Never kept up with my distance. Then I transitioned to a Giant Stance. My first full sus. Still learning what to do with it. I've put on about 890 km already. BUT, the confidence that it's given me, like what you were talking about, is really awesome. Going up rocky trails, and down steep drops. So much fun. New level. BTW, I'm 72yy!

[tedyshor]

Sooo... Best way is mixing them both as always... Yeyyy

[mickpowell]

I get better traction on longer climbs being seated, standing you will or should always be quicker, depending on fitness, but on a wet climb it's seated for me.

[willelder]

Anything that makes the climbs a little less torturous is greatly appreciated, cheers rich

[senanryan]

Louie on the camera 😂😂 he thinks he’s Sam pilgrim

[beingoutsideisbetter]

The important numbers, by test:
1. Standing generated 15.9% more power to go 9.1% faster
2. Standing generated 7.4% more power to go 4% faster
3. Standing generated 2.8% more power to go 5.9% *slower*.
Stand for more (short-term) power, sit for more efficiency

[jeffwertz]

This was a GREAT idea for a video and also very well executed with the data analysis. Confirmed what I thought. I generally prefer to climb seated when I can but yeah there are just some times you need to put max power down and/or get out of the saddle to move your weight around to deal with the terrain. Good stuff!!!

[charlieine]

I’ve found that an a steady climb, standing to gain momentum and then sitting the majority is best. Even allowing for a little extra push standing to make the crest.

[scottlstone]

Richard “if you like” Payne.... Great show as always

[ricc]

I love these kind of videos from Rich. Always good food for thought. This one was cool for me because I encounter tons of climbing.

[Jersey-Kenn]

I have problems standing, a bit too much pain ... so seated is my only choice 😉

[mpk]

Should've done it on a hardtail mate...the ultimate climbers.

[pakdolan]

Drooling over the bike. Noice steed, Rich!

[its_nygl]

Imagine watching a person climb and you watching behind a screen😔

[richardpeet]

To tell a road biker from a mtb just look at their upper body muscles because mtb uses them a lot more. The difference between fs and hard tail is that the hard tail riders prefer to stand up and dance.

[micheletassino]

Standing doesn't necessarily mean redlining and sprinting 100% all out, like Rich does in the video.
You can also stand and pedal at a slower pace, maintaining a steady and sustainable heart rate for a long time.

[bayarearob]

I love climbing. That's why I ride trails. Downhills are cool when it's time to relax and catch your breath

[xXRunDeathXx]

You guys dont get the hughe view numbers because it is a very niche topic but i got to say,
DAMN your production quality is constantly at a high standart, keeping it professional, great shots, valuable informations and a whole buch of likable hosts.
I've been watching you guys for years and will continue to do so.
keep it up!