getting more serious about biking

[laurenhat]

I've been biking to and from MIT more consistently since the summer (it used to be that I would bike one or two days a week and take the subway more often). It's about 8 miles round trip, which makes it great on days when I mean to get some other exercise but don't quite get around to it, and it's a bit faster than taking the subway, even with all

Comments

[laurenhat]

Yay, awesome!

[tenlegspider]

Aiiee, I used to ride around with the seat too high (because I inherited my bike from my mum and didn't bother to adjust it), and lowering it so that I can get most of one foot on the ground has made such a difference in the city. For me, slightly harder pedaling is worth it for the sake of not regularly falling off at red lights.

[laurenhat]

*nod* I'm finding that I can step up and down using a pedal and thus avoid falling.

[coffeebeanben]

Keep in mind that you can also slide your seat forward and backward a bit along the saddle rails. You can get a longer distance to the pedals if you shove your seat backward a bit, then compensate by lowering the seat back down a little.

Generally speaking, slide it forward if you're a "spinner" who pedals fast with little force, and backward of you're a "cranker" who uses high gears and lots of muscle power.

If you're looking for an awesome compendium of cycling knowledge, check out the repository of the late great Sheldon Brown, at http://sheldonbrown.com/. For instance, here's how to determine optimum chain length: http://sheldonbrown.com/derailer-adjustment.html#chain

If I lived closer I'd ride with you. You know this, yes?