Bicycle Gears?
Find a Conversation
Bicycle Gears?
| Mon, 05-12-2003 - 11:22am |
Judie, anyone who bikes? I went biking yesterday and, for the first time, went on a dirt path w/ a lot of hills. I have a 15 gear bicycle and just stay at 13 or 14 for the most part because I'm going flat. I have never figured out how to shift gears consecutively as you get lower. I have three large and five small ones. So, I can get down to 11, using the largest big gear and smallest little gear (sorry, I don't know any technical terms), but how do I get to 10? If I shift the large gear to the lower level, I end up on 6. Do I do that and quickly shift up or do I go up to 15 to shift to 10? I can't do that while going uphill. Does this make sense?
Latest from the board
- What you really look like exercising 2
- Dancing on the treadmill 3
- 3 missing women found alive after 10 years 6
- The CrossFit Craze 4
- iVillage Get Beach Ready Community Challenge! 14
- Do you skip exercise class if you have gas? 2
- Comfortable sports bra? 3
- The fake AP tweet that caused stocks to plunge 5
- My First Post 2
- I need some beginner workout tips (without the risk of popping my rib out) 5
Memeber Support
Visit our Member Support area or browse the iVillage Help forum
| Q: | Where can I change my password? |
| A: | Log in, go to Edit My Preferences, and click the Account tab. Make and save your changes. |
If I do find out, I'll let you know, otherwise we'll have to wait for another cyclist to come by!
Judie
The higher the gear (and on my bike, the larger the number), the fewer the teeth (on the back). I tried to read up on shifting, and all I could come up with is that it's mechanically more challenging to move the chain over a larger distance, so it seems you might want to be somewhere in the middle on the rear cassette before changing gears in the front. If you're trying to change gears under too much pressure (from pedaling too hard uphill), you can get your chain off the sprocket, so when you're changing, especially in the front, you want to make sure you're pedaling more slow than fast and on easier terrain to make it easier on your parts and pieces. My chain noise that I was talking about may be something that needs adjusting, it's not supposed to chatter in different gears (and my accident may have worsened it), so I'm going to have to take it to a bike shop to have it worked on.
Another thing I'm supposed to work on is finding out my best gear. My dad thinks I'm riding in too high a gear (pedaling too slow for the speed I'm going), which is going to make it feel like I'm pedaling uphill for 40 miles! So that's my challenge, find a gear in which I can maintain 80 rpm (I can do 100 pretty easily at the gym). I won't be able to go as fast (mph), but I'll not get as tired as fast. I had no idea it was this complicated! But if he's right, I should be able to do the mileage better with less fatigue.
Hope that helps at least with your curiosity!
Judie
I didn't know the rpms were important. I like keeping to the high gears because I feel like I'm doing more work. Hmmm, it's something to think about the next time I go out. Thanks for all the info. I've really been enjoying biking lately. I'm thinking of taking a mountain bike clinic as soon as my wrists heal.
Your highest/hardest (like 5th gear in your car) is when you're on the biggest gear in the front and the smallest gear on the back--the chain will be as far from the centerline of your bike as it can be. Your easiest/lowest (granny gear in a pickup truck/1st in your car) is when the chain is in the smallest in the front and the biggest in the back--the chain is as close to the centerline of your bike as it can be. All of the options in between will be easier or harder depending on the differences between the gear sizes in the front and the back.
Jen, you might try standing with your bike like I did, pedaling with one hand and shifting (you can shift when the crank isn't moving), and compare the numbers on your shifters (if you've got index shifting) with what the chain is doing, it should make more sense when you see it!
And as far as my chain noise goes, both of my derailleurs need to be adjusted. :( When I'm in high gear in the back, only the largest gear in the front is quiet, the other two make the chain clink against the derailleur (will cause wear in the long run). If I stay out of the highest gear (8), it's quiet in the front. Unfortunately, the two highest gears in the back (7 and 8) are noisy on the rear derailleur, so it looks like I may have damaged it in that accident. And Jean, about noise when shifting, to get into the largest gear in the front, it can take a couple turns for the chain to get all the way up there, and it is noisy! If I were to do this while I was riding, I'd be somewhere in the middle (4-5) before doing it.
It makes more sense to me after spending 10 minutes bent over next to my bike, hopefully it will make more sense to you guys too!
Judie