Cycling 101: Answering Those “Beginner” Questions You Were Afraid To Ask

Q: When I ride with a group, they all get started differently. Some siton the bike and push off, others stand on the left pedal and swing theirright legs over the saddle.

I even saw one rider run along side his bikeand jump on like the Lone Ranger. What’s the correct way?

A: The smoothest and safest way to start is to straddle the bike with bothfeet on the ground. Clip in with one foot (you can do it with either foot,but for purposes of illustration we’ll clip in with I the right) and slipback on the saddle with the left foot on the ground. Simultaneously push offwith the left foot and push down on the pedal with the right to get some momentum.

Then clip in with the left foot. This works great at traffic signals too.It’s dangerous for novice riders to jump on the bike or swing a leg over thesaddle while coasting but some cyclocross racers prefer these techniques becausethey are used in their sport.

Q: I sometimes see riders brushing their road tires with their handsas they roll along. What’s that all about?

A: It’s a habit from the days when everyone rode tubular tires. They wererelatively puncture-prone so riders periodically used their fingers or theirgloved palm to wipe off debris—sharp flints, thorns, shards of glass— thatmight eventually work into the tread and pierce the casing. It’s rarely necessarywith the current generation of more rugged tires (both tubular and clincher)because many feature a highly puncture-resistant Kevlar layer under the tread.Brushing off the tire can be dangerous too. Some riders got their hands caughtbetween the whirling rear tire and the seat tube, leading to gruesome crashes.(If you do brush tires, always put your hand in front of the brake on thefront tire; on the rear tire, wrap your - thumb around the brake bridge soh your hand can’t get sucked toward the seat tube.)

Q: I use a sports drink but often splash it on my gloves—or the bottleleaks around the cap—and I hate getting sticky. Any solutions?

A: Here’s one approach: Put your bottle of sports drink in the seat tubebottle cage where it will sit relatively upright and so is less likely toleak when it’s full. Fill the other bottle, in the downtube cage, with plainwater. Then if you slop sticky stuff on your hand, jersey or bike, simplysquirt a little plain water on the offending goo to wash it away before youdraw flies or your hand gets cemented to the brake hoods. If you need morethan one bottle of sports drink for long rides, carry it in two bike-mountedbottles and fill a back- mounted hydration pack with plain water.

Next: Eating and Drinking advice for Bicyclists

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