Bicyclists!

[not2late]

Okay, I finally decided that I had enough money saved to buy my big mini-reward: a bicycle. After doing alot of reading and asking bikers questions, I bought a mountain bike two weeks ago. Anyhow, I've spent the last 14 days re-learning how to ride a bike (no scratches, bumps or broken bones so 'YAY me!')

I have a few questions....

1. Gears: What the heck do I do with them. The last time I rode a bike I was 12 years old and that bike didn't have gears. Yeah, I've read about shifting down to go uphill and shifting up if you can easily pedal, but it doesn't make sense to me.

What does low gear or high gear do?

For example, I'm on relatively level ground, what gear should I use? Keep in mind, I'm not biking for speed/racing. I'm just biking to get from point A to point B (like my house to the park).

Are the gears related to speed at all? If so, do the higher gears mean I go slower and the lower gears mean I go faster?

2. Brakes: I've more or less (by heart pounding trial and error) figured out how to use them, but are there any times when you can use only the rear brakes, or do you need to use them together?

3. Tire gauges: I used an automobile tire gauge to check the air pressure in my tires. Is that okay or is there a special bicycle tire gauge?

4. Tire air pressure: My tires specify that the air pressure is 40-65 psi. For some bizarre reason, I can't seem to get them higher than 45 psi (I brought them to the gas station and filled them with the air pump there). 45 is within the normal tire pressure range, but will that harm my tires?

I have more questions, but I can't think of them at this point.....

[MotherOfGizmo]

Re: Bicyclists!

I'm no help.

But congrats on your new bike!

I can never get the gear thing either. Especially now that they put 18 of them on there! Geez, I like the old fashioned bikes, no speeds or the max of 3!

[Richt]

Re: Bicyclists!

i have 21 gears on my bike.

Ok, I cant explain them as I am still confused about trying to explain our Royal Family. Gears are basically there to help you cycle over harder terrain. The higher the gear the harder it is to pedal but the quicker you will go.

The lower the gear the quicker the pedals go roung, but you dont move so fast. Especially aimed at going up hill or cycling into the wind.

I may have made a hash at explaining all that. Good luck in translating it.

Rich

[not2late]

Re: Bicyclists!

The higher the gear the harder it is to pedal but the quicker you will go.

Have I told you lately that I love you Rich? That's what I wanted to know!

Any input about the tires?

[Richt]

Re: Bicyclists!

The only input I can tell you about tyres is that its generally unsafe to blow them up (inflate) them via a pump meant for car tyres.

I cant be more specific I am afraid.

[Richt]

Re: Bicyclists!

Have I told you lately that I love you Rich? That's what I wanted to know!

Any input about the tires?

oh, and you spell them TYRES (well you do in this county anyway)

[2big4mysize]

Re: Bicyclists!

to tell which gear is which count the teeth on the cogs you will be surprized as some teeth combos of big front wheel small rear wheel will actually be a lower gear then small front grear bigger rear wheel. your gears are based on the total number of teeth wraped in a combination of the 2 gears being used. you should never use the big rear with the big front and the small rear with the small front was the old saying but with the new derailers and new materials for making the parts you should be able to do it so a 10 speed is really a 10 speed.
Some times you willhave to double shift if you want the correct order of your gear based on the example above. you want to always move to the next closest total teeth number. Hopefully your cogs are set up correctly so you don't have to double shift changing front and rear cogs.

to decide what gear to be in you need to set your cadance say at 90 revolutions per minute so your legs don't cramp up maybe slower to start and then you shift gears to keep your cadance the same as you go up and down hills or get tired. you will need to experiment to see what you need. When a hill overpowers your muscles you can stand and peddle in a lower gear. Most experiances bikers move the bike side to side doing this so they don't bang there butt on the down stroke.

Tire pressure is a matter of comfort and speed. higher pressure less tire on road less friction and higher speed but worse handling. lower pressure more tire on road better handling softer ride but more friction so more work for same speed. Also the weight of the rider will effect the amount the tires should be inflated as long as your rims are not cutting your side walls you are okay at the lower range.

You can use a normal car tire gauge for your pressure checks but you shouldn't use the ones at the gas station on the air hoses as those are not very accurate.

Brakes you should use the front and the rear as you will stop sooner. Never use the front alone and when you are using the front and rear and you feel yourself lifting off the rear ground immediately release the front brakes or you will be going over the front handlebars with the bike rear tire following you. you can just use the rear but that is a waste of having front ones too and wears out your pads sooner.

Also if you are riding and it is wet use your brakes to create a slight drag for a min or two when you are peddling every few minutes as this will help dry off the rims and pads for better stopping in an emergency should a car or kid jump out in front of you.

wear a helmet too!!!!!

[not2late]

Re: Bicyclists!

Thanks everyone! Yeah, I have a helmet.....

Okay so I can use a car tire gauge to check the air pressure. Whew! I thought there was some special tire gauge specificially for bike tires. (Yeah Rich---tires!) When I filled them, I was checking them with the tire gauge because I don't trust the tire thingys at the gas station. Anyhow, they are in the normal range, but like I said, they are in the lower part.

[MotherOfGizmo]

Re: Bicyclists!

LOL Rich, you'll recover eventually from explaining the Royal Family! We call them tires in this country btw.

[idoru99]

Re: Bicyclists!

Congrats on the new bike.

I'm a little of a bicyclist, not much of one, but I love to ride. I'll try to answer your questions. If someone out there knows more than me and I screw something up, please correct me. Thanks.

1. The gears should be used to make it easier for you to ride at a specified speed. Higher gears allow you to pedal slower (but using more force) to travel the same speed over ground. You should try to keep a 90 pedal rpm for the speed you wish to travel over ground.

2. Brakes are used the same way that motorcycle brakes are. Use them both. Most situations you should use both the front and the rear. You will end up in situations (slow speed) where you can use one or the other. But stopping power is increased and therefore stopping distance is decreased when you use both.

3. A tire gauge is a tire gauge, no special is needed, until you get into different stems on road racing bikes.

4. 45 psi will not harm the tires as long as it is within normal operating range, which from what you said it is. However...if you normally are riding on the road, keeping the pressure at the higher end of normal range will decrease the friction on the road, making it easier to pedal. The lower end of the normal range is better for off road riding (up and down hills, in sandier areas, etc.). Getting the pressure up there is sometimes difficult, but you should be able to.

I hope this helps you out. If you have any other questions, I'd be glad to try to help you out.

Good luck with it, I hope it gives you many many miles of fun.

[ttdriver]

Re: Bicyclists!

WHERE IS OUR BIKE KING, BRIAN???


Betty

[Richt]

Re: Bicyclists!

WHERE IS OUR BIKE KING, BRIAN???


Betty

He is on holiday........ (vacation)

[ImCommitted]

Re: Bicyclists!

Thanks for starting this thread Not2Late! I just got a new bike last week too. Mine has 27 speeds?!?! (I may use 3 or 4 of them at most ) I went out on a ten mile ride this a.m. It felt really great. I am going to shoot for the 10 mile ride daily in addition to my daily walks.

All the information that has been posted here has been most helpful. Thanks again!

[not2late]

Re: Bicyclists!

No problem ImCommitted. I guess you're not as rusty on a bike as I am. It's true when they say you don't forget how to ride a bike. The last time I rode a bike was about 20 years ago. So I was thrilled when I was able to ride it that first day. However, I still have the "white knuckle syndrome"---I'm gripping the handles so tightly out of sheer fear and panic that my knuckles are white!

Also, I didn't realize how complicated bikes were, or at least adult bikes. The bike I rode when I was a kid didn't have handle brakes nor gears. You got on it and peddled. If you stopped peddling, the bike would slow down. If you wanted the bike to go faster, you peddled it faster. It didn't take me long to realize that the bike I have now is completely different. I spent the first week adjusting and readjusting the seat and handlebars and I think I finally got the right fit (and they say buying a pair of jeans is tough!)

And I never realized how much of upper body and core strength you need to ride a bike. I guess when I was a kid, I didn't notice these things, but I surely notice it now!

But I figure if I keep practicing on it, in time, I'll develop more confidence and more skill.

[ImCommitted]

Re: Bicyclists!

Megs,

It's been awhile since I've been riding too. I rode alot as a kid, and like you, just did it, not thinking about everything involved.

Bikes are way more complicated than they used to be. And I too was surprised how much upper body strength/muscle was involved in riding. My arms have been slightly sore since I started (that's probably a good thing though).

I don't know if you have any bike trails near you, but if you do, they are definitely much more rider friendly than roads. I ride both, but the trails are free of stop signs and other obsticles (like cars ). The only thing I don't like about trails is the safety factor. It depends on the time of day, but I worry that if I got hurt it could be awhile before anyone knew. Also, as our trails are wooded on both sides, it concerns me to be a female out there alone. Lord only knows who could be lurking.

Anyway, I really think the more you ride, the less "white-knuckled" you will be. Have fun with it! I got an odometer for my bike which lets me keep track of mileage, rpms, mph, time, distance, etc. Seeing that I've ridden even three miles makes me feel like I've accomplished something. Also, the saddle (seat) on your bike makes a huge difference in comfort. I know I had the shop change mine out before I even left the store. The first one must have been designed by some lunatic who enjoyed seeing people in pain !

Keep me posted on how your coming along with your new bike!