With the urban spaces getting choked with the ever growing numbers of motor vehicles, cycling off late has become the mode of preferred transport to many. In fact, in many cities, like the one I live in, it is also some times the fastest mode of transport.
Cycling is one of the easiest skills to acquire, and with a little bit of effort, we can make the skill a healthy habit. Making a few wise choices, and tweaks to our gear, we can also make it more enjoyable.
The choice of a bike
The most critical part of the decision making in becoming a cyclist, irrespective of being a leisure rider or a pro. Choosing the right bike.
Spend some time to assess your goals as a biker and what kind of a road or path you would be riding? A nicely tarred road, a not so motor-able track or a mix of both. You would most often find a bike in the market that suits your need.
Although there are umpteen categories of bicycles. Bicycles can be very broadly classified into three types. MTBs, Road bikes and hybrids.
The mountain terrain bike (MTB), is ideal for mountainous terrain with really bad or even non-existent roads. These aspects calls for a heavy build for an MTB. A heavy bike that an MTB is is not a great choice for efficient and comfortable rides. Although I don’t mean to say you cannot ride MTBs well on good roads, the underlying design of the bike renders the ride a little clumsy.
A road bike on the other hand is designed and built for speed. Unlike the MTB, it is lighter and faster but cannot take heavy battering on bad roads. Carrying bags and backpacks also might not be very easy on a road bike. The posture on a road bike is aggressive compared to an MTB which makes it not very conducive to make it a bike of choice for commuting, especially with a backpack.
A hybrid has the benefits of both the worlds. It is also gaining popularity as a commuter. It can take on a little bit of bad roads and still ride decently fast on good roads. Most of them also allow you to fit a carrier and carry some load. In fact, it also is gaining popularity among the randonneurs.
Riding the right gear
If you decided to ride a single speed bike, you have spared yourself from a bit of trouble of constantly changing gears. The single speed bikes have a lot of fanfare and respect from its cult basically for its simplicity, ease of use and shedding the unnecessary weight. Multi-speed bikes have become more and more popular ever since they were introduced, since it makes going faster and climbing inclines all the more easier.
A good way to put to use the gears is to know what your ideal/comfortable cadence – read number of pedal rotation per minute – is. A usual ballpark number is about 90rpm. Keeping your cadence constant change gears through the inclines and declines. This surly doesn’t consider the traffic and road conditions.
Lubrication and servicing
I cannot emphasize enough on how your riding comfort is directly dependent on how well your bike is oiled. Periodically cleaning and oiling the chain, hub and the other parts of your transmission and drive train keeps your bike healthy and adds to the pleasure of riding. Keeping a thin film of oil on the parts also protects them from rust related wear.
However, do not throw too much oil on the chain, it can make your bike a dirt magnet and accumulate a lot of gunk, it can chew up the metal and hasten the wear out of the components.
Tyre pressure
What most beginners tend to ignore is the tyre pressure. That’s the difference between rolling easy and rolling clumsy.
The pressure that a tyre can take is usually embossed on its sidewalls as a range. It is usually a good idea to inflate the rear tyre to a couple of PSI lower than the upper limit and the front to a couple of PSI above the lower limit. Although a front tyre inflated to its maximum rolls better, a lower pressure means it would absorb the road buzz a bit and result in a much better ride experience. It is worth mentioning that the MTBs take a lower pressure as opposed to the road bikes.
Suspensions
The suspension becomes an integral part of your bike if your ride involves a lot of unpaved roads and trails with stones and roots. Otherwise it is of not much use. After owning an MTB with suspension for quiet some time. I now do believe that suspensions are an overkill for city commute. Suspensions make your bike bulky and the ride a bit inefficient. A rigid fork helps you ride more efficiently.
The right wear
Wearing the right apparel on the bike could also mean riding safe and comfortable. Avoid flowing clothes. Ride with bib shorts when possible, especially for long rides, it reduces the saddle sores to a great extent. Riding with trouser clips can save you from washing the grease off the pants every time you ride your bike. Wearing goggles, besides helping the dust away from your eyes, can help trick your brain into thinking that the weather is lot cooler than it actually is, and keep you going in the hot sun.
For pro riders or racers, correct riding gear can mean the difference between winning and loosing. Much of the racing gear is designed meticulously to reduce the drag on the rider. You can make use of these apparels during your long rides and conserve energy.
Drafting
Drafting again is a very pro technique that helps riders conserve energy. In simple terms it is the method of riding right behind a rider -wheel to wheel- such that the effect of head winds are reduced to the best extent possible. Drafting can be used in group leisure rides or in races where it is deemed legal. But, it should be done with riders whose style is well understood mutually. Drafting behind motor vehicles whose moves are not predictable can lead to some grave consequences.
santossuren 