# New Rider wants to know how to ride.



## jcf3027 (Apr 16, 2012)

I want to know, what are all the gears on a road bike for? Are they there to upshift or down shift to climb a hill or how do you use them? Do I find a comfortable gear and leave it there. I guess I need info about basically riding a road bike and getting the most out of my bike and me. I don't want to be a racer I just want to be able to keep up with the group when riding.


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## Rob (Mar 3, 2004)

Might want to post this in the Beginner's Corner here: 

http://forums.roadbikereview.com/beginners-corner/


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## Oxtox (Aug 16, 2006)

using gearing allows a rider to turn the cranks at an effective rpm for varying conditions (climbs, flats, descents).


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## zac (Aug 5, 2005)

Try and get your cadence (which is the RPM of your pedal strokes) to between 80 and 112 or so. Ideally, try to keep it in the 90s. Then use your gears to maintain this cadence based on the speed you are able to maintain. It becomes second nature after a while. But shift to an easier gear as you begin to tire, or bog down, or go uphill, or hit a head wind. 

You will find your natural cadence in due time, that is why I mentioned a range. But some folks start out way too low, so try to get it up above the 80s.

Good luck and don't be too hung up about shifting or maintaining a certain cadence. Just when you think about it. But try not to get really bogged down either (not the best for your knees). Also make sure you are properly adjusted for you bike too, as maintaining higher cadences than you are used to, with a saddle that is set improperly can also cause knee issues.

Good luck and have fun
zac


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## qwer (Jul 27, 2007)

jcf3027 said:


> I want to know, what are all the gears on a road bike for? Are they there to upshift or down shift to climb a hill or how do you use them? Do I find a comfortable gear and leave it there.


You are just pulling our leg, right?


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## jcf3027 (Apr 16, 2012)

No, I want to learn to ride the right way and if there is a way to use the gears on a ride to properly make the bike move. I know you're thinking, what idiot wouldn't know how to shift and ride, but if there is a reason for having so many gears and a proper way of using them then I want to learn.


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## rm -rf (Feb 27, 2006)

The newer road bikes with 10 cogs in the back are similar in speed ranges to the old road bikes with just 5 cogs back there. But with 10 cogs, the difference between each cog is smaller. This allows riders to stay within a smaller range of pedaling rpms (that's "cadence").

For instance, if I'm using a good effort to go as fast as possible for a long distance, I like my cadence to be around 90-100 rpm. I can shift up or down one cog on the back, and change my cadence by just 5% or so. The old 5 cog road bikes might change by 15% or more on each shift, so it's harder to find that 'just right' cadence.

If I'm just cruising along, I'm not so picky about cadence. It might be 75 rpm, or 90 rpm. For a burst of speed, I'll go 100-115 rpm for an all-out effort to keep up with some fast sprinting riders.

*To be effective on a road bike, most riders need to work on spinning at a faster cadence than they might use when they are new to road bikes.* Some bike computers use a magnet on one crank arm, and count revolutions to show cadence. But you can count one pedal rotation for 20 seconds and multiply by 3 to see your cadence. 

In general, don't push too hard on the pedals (unless it's a steep hill, where you will have to push hard). Instead, shift to an easier cog so you will pedal faster. If your cadence is in the low 80s or lower, keep trying to spin faster. It becomes the normal method after a while.

The only other shifting technique is to use the large chainring on flat or downhill roads, and use the small chainring on uphills or headwinds. Since it's more difficult to shift the front, I try to anticipate which chainring to use for the road ahead. The back cogs are easy to shift, so I'll often shift them just for a couple of pedal revolutions, then shift back as the road grade changes.


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## bikerjulio (Jan 19, 2010)

right


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## jcf3027 (Apr 16, 2012)

??????????????


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