Cycling technique

Get to know your bike and how it works and you will enjoy cycling better as well as being more efficient.

The most common mistake made by new riders is to push hard on the pedals; when riding, you should spin your pedals at not less than 60rpm, changing gear when necessary; this avoids fatigue and strain on the knees.

When riding uphill, anticipate which gear you need. You will always need a little extra effort, but intelligent use of the gears should minimise this. Standing on the pedals while going uphill is called "honking", and can relieve the boredom of a long climb. The most important thing is to settle into a gear which will allow you to complete the hill, and keep up a rhythm and your concentration. You can also try counting pedal strokes as you go. It may also help to sit back on the saddle, bend your arms in line with your body, as if you were typing, and avoid gripping the handlebars. Some bikes will allow you to hold the centre of the bars rather than the outside, but take care when trying this for the first time.

Here in Colchester, you can practice on North Hill, East Hill, Mile End Road, and in the Dutch Quarter. Just remember, with modern bikes with ultra-low gears you use up more energy by getting off to walk than by sitting in the saddle in the lowest gear!

For more tips on how to ride, see Richard Ballantyne's "Richard's 21st Century Bicycle Book" or John Franklin's "Cyclecraft".

Gears

If you are puzzled by derailleur gears, hang your bike by the saddle on a noose in a shed, and spin the pedals while changing gear. Watch the gears change and it will help you to understand what is happening when you are back in the saddle. With derailleurs, you change gear by easing off the pressure on the pedals - but you do keep pedalling as you change.

Hub gears are more straightforward and CCC would recommend them to beginners - they are similar to the old Sturmey Archer gear and need less maintenance than derailleurs. Hub gears today are available in 4, 7 and 14 speeds, although they are not usually found on cheaper bikes. We reckon SRAM has the edge over Shimano hubs in seven-speed units. The 14-speed gears are made by Rohloff - expect to pay from £1,000 for a bike equipped with these.

With hubs, you stop pedalling as you change. You can also change whilst stopped, which you cannot do with derailleurs.

With either type of gear, NEVER change while pedalling hard.

:: Spinning the pedals on a weekend ride – keeping pedal spin high means you can eat the miles without getting too tired. Picture copyright Jason Patient