Originally Posted by
kmac27
I may have "abused it" I use to ride in hard gears to go as fast as possible during my commute. Mashing is what I usually hear it called. I don't know how to adjust the derailer, what adjustment are you talking about?
This is off topic, but to prevent you from doing to your knees what you may have done to the chain....you probably don't want to do that. Just like you wouldn't try to lug a car at 20mph in 5th gear, it's not good for you either when biking. Riding at relatively low speeds in higher gears probably slows you down, actually.
Best thing to do is to find a cadence (pedaling speed) that's comfortable to you, and use whatever gear you need to maintain that cadence given the terrain. Opinions vary widely, but most people seem to do something between 60 and 100 RPM, with newer riders usually on the lower end. So for the most part, if your pedals make a full revolution once a second or so, you're probably good. My guess is that if you're trying to stay in higher gear ratios all the time, you could be well below that.
Sorry for the unsolicited advice, but I used to do the same thing and quit when my joints started hurting.
