Your best cycling tip

[bironi]

From the many years of cycling experience, here is #1:

Don't drink red wine when wearing your yellow wool jersey.

[saab2000]

Someone once asked Eddy Merckx for advice. "To go fast should I spin small gears, or push big gears?" Merckx answered him, "Neither. You should spin big gears."

Or something like that.

That is my tip of the day.

[Kevin]

Take a look at my signature, three pearls of wisdom.

Kevin

[Ginger]

Pedal.

[CNY rider]

From the many years of cycling experience, here is #1:

Don't drink red wine when wearing your yellow wool jersey.

Never, ever eat the yellow snow.

[dsimon]

Dont think just ride

[Larry]

1. Choose your routes carefully.
2. Know your limitations.

[PBWrench]

Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate.

[swoop]

if you see a small group of guys out riding together and you're out there alone... don't just glom onto the group. it's rude.

it's a bit like walking up to a table at dinner and sitting down and eating someone's food when you don't know them.

just do your ride.... and leave the group alone.

if it's a gruppetto of guys that are familiar... go to the front and ask if it's ok if you sit on. dont expect a yes... but know that you'll likely get a yes.

if you see a fit cyclist out spinning and you think you want to play stud to go sit on his wheel... please know that you are being terribly rude.

i don't know how many times i've had a rest day and am spinning on the bike path to see some idiot in full tuck on my wheel. just go ride your bike and leave people alone... or have the dignity to say, 'hey, can i join you" and be ok with, 'no, i'd just like to ride alone today"...

if you want to be in a group.. go show up for a group ride or start your own.

there is an ettiquite.... learn in it out of respect for others.
...

if you are new to a group.. stay on back until you learn what's going on. don't pull to the front if you don't know what's involved. if youre on front and see stuff in the road.... you have to lead the group around.. not flick through it. you have to catch stuff way before it happens.... i've never seen a group that wassn't supportive of someone that was curious and open.


when you are in a group.... ride in the path of the wheel in front of you unless its an echelon. keep it two up and tight. if you can't do that then go learn on your own time.

don't move up on the inside.

it's just all out of self respect. know your limitations, embrace them.. we've all got them. if you don't know yours and are riding with people.. you are endangering the folks around you.

don't be ashamed of what you don't know... just be curious and thoughtful.

*my other tip is to not make posts on message boards onthe first day of the year if you're mid break up with your girl! oy.

[TomP]

Keep the rubber side down

[PanTerra]

Remove cleat covers before engaging pedals.

[Xyzzy]

Have fun!

[Steelman]

The more expensive the bike, the faster and happier you will be.

[Kevan]

your chain. And often.

[Tom Kellogg]

1) Relax

2) When one of the pedals comes up, push it back down.

[AgilisMerlin]

get used to the metalic taste from a bug in your mouth. Life is Grand.



AmerliN

[ergott]

Get fit.

[stevep]

dont ask fat robert for training advice.
you might be forced to kill him to shut him up and then you will have to spend 30 years in jail. when you get out you wont be able to get new cassettes to fit your old wheels.
many troubles. many.

[toaster]

On long rides:

Bring enough food (bars, energy gels) and of course, bottles of drinking fluids and money. A bottle and a food item per hour, minimum.

Don't show up on rides without food and money and bum food off your buddies!

[chuckroast]

Ride even when you don't feel like it. Maybe especially then.

[Ti Designs]

if you see a small group of guys out riding together and you're out there alone... don't just glom onto the group. it's rude.

it's a bit like walking up to a table at dinner and sitting down and eating someone's food when you don't know them.

just do your ride.... and leave the group alone.

I don't know if I could disagree more. Perhaps it's because I know how to turn off my competitive side, but I love the social aspect of group rides and I've met some of my best friends this way.


if you see a fit cyclist out spinning and you think you want to play stud to go sit on his wheel... please know that you are being terribly rude.

i don't know how many times i've had a rest day and am spinning on the bike path to see some idiot in full tuck on my wheel. just go ride your bike and leave people alone...

That would depend on how they take it. If someone shows up on my wheel I'll ask where they're heading and what they're up for - that's how I learn new routes. If I'm taking a rest day and there's someone on my wheel in a full tuck, there's something very wrong (my rest days are scary slow).


if you are new to a group.. stay on back until you learn what's going on.

That way you can get lost and dropped and nobody will notice! Each September I get a huge crowd of new riders. The ones who are unsure of what they are doing put themselves on the back. Worse, they give themselves every disadvantage in the book. The group leaves from a stop, the new riders take twice as long to get started, and they're so over their heads that they never pay attention to where they are. When they do vanish off the back, nobody notices, often nobody knows who they were. That's a great way to grow a sport - maybe tennis, 'cause you know they're not gonna be cyclists after that.

My advice to new riders in the group is to move INTO the group any chance you get, and don't give away any advantages. At some point they'll figure out the group dynamics and learn when they can relax and when they need to be alert.

[swoop]

ti... this has nothing to do with being competitive.... not even in the ballpark.
i'm talking about small groups of five or seven or ten guys and not some huge lagrange ride, local ride, or practice crit.
i'm the first guy to help a newbie.... i'll even take a total stranger out and show them rides and make introductions for them to feel at home...


there is a wonderful local ride every friday that is just for that.. (bringing in newbies and showing them basic skills). and there are large groups of 70 plus training rides almost every day here... i'll draw anyone a map to them...

[terrytnt]

+ Assume pride of ownership... keep your bike clean, drive train lubricated and routinely check that all is in good working condition.

+ Ride no matter what, if the weather is bad, ride your trainer/ rollers

+ Don't take yourself too seriously, ride and smell the landscape

[shinomaster]

don't fall down, it hurts.

[Ti Designs]

ti... this has nothing to do with being competitive.... not even in the ballpark.

My bad - it's the most common thing I see. Get three guys together wearing lycra and you have yourself a bike race...

i'm talking about small groups of five or seven or ten guys and not some huge lagrange ride, local ride, or practice crit.
i'm the first guy to help a newbie.... i'll even take a total stranger out and show them rides and make introductions for them to feel at home...

So you'll bring a total stranger into an organized group ride, but not into a small group? There's something I'm not getting there.

I'll close off rides to others when it's a team ride and I need my riders working together on communication, but that's one case and it doesn't happen that often. It's more common that I'm riding with my women's team and some guy will show up and try to show how strong he is. I make it very clear that they are welcome to ride with us, but the team is racing in March and they have a set training schedule which isn't changing.

If you want to talk about rude, let's talk about the guys who show up on winter rides when everyone else is on their B bikes or fixed gears, and goes like nationals are just around the corner.


and there are large groups of 70 plus training rides almost every day here... i'll draw anyone a map to them...

Where? When?

A few years ago the Saturday morning ride was consistantly that large, and it was great. I feel it was the real reason the Harvard team won the ECCC's that year, the women's team learned how to control the pack going into the town line sprints against the men, and set up Julia to win many of them. But all good things must come to an end, smaller groups broke off from the larger group to do their own training. Oddly enough, these smaller groups sucked in races, probably because they didn't know what to do in a larger group. I always loved the excuses - a big group is dangerous... So on weekends you're going to enter races with 124 other racers - yeh, that makes a ton of sense.

[Spicoli]

Dude, I couldnt agree more on every point. Someone should write a book on how to be humble and force people to read it when they are not?

Peace from da Eas...............t brudda, Jeff :banana:

PS with regard to your other situation, THINK HOW MUCH MORE U CAN RIDE NOW!

[Ti Designs]

Someone should write a book on how to be humble

The sort of person who should write such a book probably feels they are unqualified. The person who will write that book wants millions for the movie rights.

[swoop]

ti.... i'm not looking for a conflict... you're making a lot of assumptions about me here and there's some hostility in your response.

when 8 or ten of my friends email each other to go spend a few hours spinning up the coast... it isn't an invitation for a total stranger to come sit in during the ride (which is easy to do if we're cruising along at 220 watts).

it's not that someone is always unwelcome. it's that there is a way of being polite.

when i'm riding alone.... i am riding alone, when i'm with a friend or two or 8, and you are a stranger.. is vulgar and rude to just glom a wheel.

there are good manners on a bike and social graces. my point is that so many folks seem oblivious to this.

i don't know why you are relating this to results in a race or the size if a field.... the two have no connection.

what i am saying is that some rides are distinctly social experiences and some are public. if you are playing tennis i don't just walk into your game because i have a racket.

if you don't get it.. you don't have to take offense or suggest i'm wrong.

that being said, if i roll back and ask you if you don't mind leaving us to ourselves today..... now....i'm sure you'll understand.


when i started riding the larger training rides here... i sat on back and or out of the way of the pointy end ... for months... learning the riders, respecting the ride, and understanding the dynamic. i could have easily sat on front but that would have been rude.

[manet]

more miles, more pastry.

smile once in awhile.

[Climb01742]

be willing to ride in the rain.

[1centaur]

To sum up Ti D and swoop and to add another one to this thread in one fell...well, you know:

Different strokes for different folks.

This applies not only to pedaling actions but to goals and personalities and days off and genetic gifts and seriousness vs. fun, inclusion and exclusion on group rides/training and loving/hating the pain and metal vs. carbon fiber and even, gulp, Campy vs. Shimano.

There are lots of ways to enjoy cycling, find yours and don't worry much about how others regard your way nor what they do differently unless it helps you enjoy your version more. Unless you are a racer of course; then you need to find all sorts of new ways to suffer and ignore that enjoyment thing.

[Fat Robert]

smack myself

[Lifelover]

Ride Fatter Tires!

[Ti Designs]

there are good manners on a bike and social graces. my point is that so many folks seem oblivious to this.

I'm not good with manners, could never remember which fork to use for what - I'm more of a fried chicken kinda guy. Color me oblivious!


if you don't get it.. you don't have to take offense or suggest i'm wrong.

No offense taken (there are advantages to being oblivious), and I said I don't agree, not that you're wrong. Ask anyone on this forum and they'll tell you I'm wrong 99.7% of the time. That means in disagreeing with you I'm probably confirming that you are spot on.

[manet]

... and few on this forum have a puppy named after them

[Steelhead]

wear a helmet. :)

wrap a $5 bill around a couple of quarters and stuff it in your seat bag. :)

use lights after dark and in the early am. :)

drop your insurance card and drivers lic, and a credit card in your jersey pocket. :)


when you meet a cyclist on the road and they wave at you, wave back. :)

Act like this: :banana: every once in awhile.

[Sandy]

To sum up Ti D and swoop and to add another one to this thread in one fell...well, you know:

Different strokes for different folks.

This applies not only to pedaling actions but to goals and personalities and days off and genetic gifts and seriousness vs. fun, inclusion and exclusion on group rides/training and loving/hating the pain and metal vs. carbon fiber and even, gulp, Campy vs. Shimano.

There are lots of ways to enjoy cycling, find yours and don't worry much about how others regard your way nor what they do differently unless it helps you enjoy your version more. Unless you are a racer of course; then you need to find all sorts of new ways to suffer and ignore that enjoyment thing.

Post of the thread. In fact, post of the year!


Sandy

[SoCalSteve]

To sum up Ti D and swoop and to add another one to this thread in one fell...well, you know:

Different strokes for different folks.

This applies not only to pedaling actions but to goals and personalities and days off and genetic gifts and seriousness vs. fun, inclusion and exclusion on group rides/training and loving/hating the pain and metal vs. carbon fiber and even, gulp, Campy vs. Shimano.

There are lots of ways to enjoy cycling, find yours and don't worry much about how others regard your way nor what they do differently unless it helps you enjoy your version more. Unless you are a racer of course; then you need to find all sorts of new ways to suffer and ignore that enjoyment thing.


Post of the year...(so far).

[Ti Designs]

... and few on this forum have a puppy named after them

That's right, Climb's dog and I share a name. Harvard has the Ed school. And who can forget Bob Dole's campaign to stomp out ED?

[Tom]

Ride straight and don't brake.

[Fat Robert]

don't eat chammy bacon

[old_school]

Ride with style and a smile.

[saab2000]

- Bring your own pump/tube/spare tubular stuff.
- Bring your own money
- Be punctual for rides with buddies
- Oil that effin' chain if it squeaks!!!
- Keep you bike somewhat clean and functional
- Don't be elitest.
- Obey traffic laws and use common sense around traffic. Don't block it if you don't have to.
- Don't wear lycra shorts which wore out 3 years ago. I don't want to see your crack. (unless you are the MIL* who rides the Fat Frogs rides in VA Beach!! :banana: )
- Don't pull out of the paceline three riders from the front
- Point out road hazards which are actual road hazards. Don't point out things which are not road hazards.
- If your clothes stink, wash them

[Fat Robert]

- If your clothes stink, wash them


that's the most important one...the shorts especially

[Elefantino]

Carry a zip tie or two.

Newspaper bags make great feet insulators.

Wax your bike regularly.

Pancake syrup is instant energy.

Lube. Often.

Wal-Mart sells the cheapest CO2

Ovaltine is better than Cytomax.

If you find a saddle you really like, buy four.

Pledge stops squeaky cleats.

Enjoy.

[saab2000]

More gems from me....

- If you are riding in the 39x12 or 39x11, for the sake of those behind you, shift into the big ring. It's not only for pros you know.

- If you use a full-size pump like an HPx or Zefal, install it on your frame, not in your jersey pocket. I did see this once.

- If you have better equipment than I have (doubtful... :D ), give it to me.

- Be careful when you launch those snot rockets. Believe it or not, riders behind don't like being sprayed.

[Kevan]

- Be careful when you launch those snot rockets. Believe it or not, riders behind don't like being sprayed.

'Tis that season, you know.

oh, and long rides deserve creme.

[OldDog]

practice all skills.
learn to ride a unicycle.
and juggle.
on a roller.

[Vancouverdave]

For mechanics, three things you can't have in too much variety: Pliers, screwdrivers, and files.

[Tom]

More gems from me....

- If you are riding in the 39x12 or 39x11, for the sake of those behind you, shift into the big ring. It's not only for pros you know.



I was in an organized century and some guy was doing that. It drove me crazy before I figured out what it was, I thought my bike was making that noise... it rose and fell as the guy moved around in the group and I kept thinking it came from this part and then that part depending on where he was. Finally I figured it out but shortly after that he departed the group. I can't imagine chains last long for that character. It was like he was trying to saw his front derailleur in two.

[SoCalSteve]

Carry a zip tie or two.

Newspaper bags make great feet insulators.

Wax your bike regularly.

Pancake syrup is instant energy.

Lube. Often.

Wal-Mart sells the cheapest CO2

Ovaltine is better than Cytomax.

If you find a saddle you really like, buy four.

Pledge stops squeaky cleats.

Enjoy.

Or six...

There is nothing like a saddle that you love.

Steve

[scrooge]

I just ran across these on Rivendell's website (http://www.rivbike.com/assorted_reading/tips_for_happy_riding ). I like almost all of them.

Learn right away that the front brake is the most effective one, and to never lock the front wheel in dirt.

Learn how far you can lean over without scraping a pedal.

Learn to keep the inside pedal UP when you corner, and learn to ride safely in all conditions. Signal your approach to pedestrians, especially if they’re old, and a bell is better than “On your left!” If no bell, try clacking your brake levers. If all you got is “On your left!” that’s fine.

At least one ride in 10, go without your sunglasses and gloves.

Sometime next month, put some double-sided cheap-style pedals on a good bike and ride in non-cycling garb.

Carry an extra tube you can donate to somebody with a flat tire and just a repair kit.

If you’re a guy, don’t try to be a mentor to every female cycler you meet.

Don’t ride in shoes you can’t walk through an antique shop in.

Don’t wear clothing that makes your sweat stink even more.

Don’t think you’ll go faster in a significant way if you and your bike become more aerodynamic.

Put a $20 bill inside your seat post or handlebar and hold it there, somehow.

Don’t ride until you’re confident you can fix a flat.

If you ride more than one bike, have a set of bring-along tools for each one.

Learn how to remove your rear wheel (put the chain onto the small cog, etc.).

If you ride in a group, bring food for you and somebody who forgot to.

Go for a one-hour ride underdressed sometime, because it’s good to be really cold on a bike every now and then.

Never blame your bike or your health or anything else if you’re the last one up the hill or in to the rest stop.

If your brake hoods are black, wrap your bars with a different color tape.

Never let your chain squeak.

If you pass another rider going up a hill, say more than “Hi,” but if it’s a woman and you aren’t, don’t assume she wants to chit-chat. If you’re a woman and it’s a guy, you can chit-chat all you like.

If you see another rider approaching you from the rear, trying to catch you, let it happen. Fun is more important than fast.

Don’t put any cycler up on a pedestal, except Lon and Freddie.

Sometimes, bring normal food on your ride.

Shoot photos on your rides and give them away.

Feel comfortable mixing high tech and low tech, old and new parts and technologies, and don’t apologize to anybody for it.

Compliment other people’s bikes, especially if they’re new.

Buy the cheapest helmet that fits well.

Try seersucker shirts for hot weather riding, and long-sleeved ones are best.

Don’t underestimate fig bars.

If you get a new widget and like it, don’t “swear by it.”

Don’t always shop by price and never ask for discounts at your local bike shop.

Every time you go into a bike shop, spend at least $2, and if you ask a question and get good advice, spend $5 (get a cable).

If you buy a rack, don’t ask for free installation.

Don’t assume your bike shop is making money.

Ride only when you feel like it.

If you know a fast new rider, don’t say, “You really ought to race…”

If you see a stocky woman rider, don’t suggest she race track.

Have at least one bike you feel comfortable riding in a downpour.

Ride in weather that keeps other cyclers indoors.

Never keep track of your pedaling cadence.

If you have a normal loop or ride, count the number of times you shift on it; then the next time you ride it, cut that in half and see if it makes any difference.

Learn to ride no-hands and to hop over obstacles, but not simultaneously.

Never hit a pedestrian.

In traffic, be visible and predictable.

If you have several bikes, set them up with different equipment…but always ride the saddle you like best.

Don’t try to keep up with faster descenders if you’re not comfortable descending.

Never apologize for buying something that’s not quite pro quality by saying, “I’m not going to race or anything.”

If you buy a stock bike, do something to it that makes it the only one exactly like it in the world.

Don’t think it’s important to match front and rear hubs or rims.

If you borrow somebody else’s bike, for a short test or a long ride, say something nice about it.

Always bring a pump.

Build at least one wheel.

Wear out something.

Don’t ever describe any bike, no matter how inexpensive or dilapidated, as “a piece of crap.”

If you get a fancy bike assembled by somebody else, allow them a scrape or two, especially if the bike is really expensive.

[chrisroph]

If you've got a bike or some equipment hanging around that you haven't ridden or used in a couple years, loan it to somebody who would appreciate and use it.

[saab2000]

If you've got a bike or some equipment hanging around that you haven't ridden or used in a couple years, loan it to somebody who would appreciate and use it.

I gave my Swiss ITCA to a friend. I am rid of it and he derives immense pleasure from owning it. This is what it is all about.

Christoph's advice is terrific.

The Riv things are for the most part good too.

[MarleyMon]

Sell the lifestyle.

[William]

Pedal in circles.

Keep the hands loose on the tops when climbing seated.

Use your gears to keep your momentum (don't yo-yo). AKA=Maintain speed.

Point out obstacles to those behind you.

Blow your snot when your on the back (that goes for spitting too).

Don't stand up in a paceline if you don't know how to do it properly.



William

[Kevan]

pee in MY front yard.

[William]

pee in MY front yard.

Hmmm, note to self:

Remove Kevan's front yard form my ride map....



William ;)

[AgilisMerlin]

always empty your seat tube after every rainy day ride.

i took my lumps on this one. Or was it my frame which developed them. :D


I WANT A WORLD FREE OF FRAME ACNE :banana:


AmerliN

NEVER EVER RIDE IN THE BIG BIG OR SMALL SMALL.

[soulspinner]

If your on the fence about whether to ride or not- go even for a short ride- you wont regret it.

[Steelhead]

I once heard this motto from a lifetime wrench:

"beer don't come in cans and weed don't have no seeds."
about what to take to your local wrench when he goes the extra mile for you.

:banana: