UK Yank

All,

I’ve been riding again for two weeks now after laying off most of a decade. My knees told me a few weeks ago, “You have a choice. Get back into cycling or get fat, because we %$#@ quit.”

Had two good rides the past two days on the Salisbury Plain. We rode from Netheravon across the plain up to the top of Sidbury Hill and back. Yesterday when all the tracks were frozen hard, it was “exhilarating.” I rode out alone between two snowstorms. Fantastic views! Today was a lot warmer. What was frozen solid yesterday was a slog today! I got the better ride yesterday, but the better workout today. So it goes. I did learn that a 40 year old in trainers and what we Yanks call sweat pants (go ahead and laugh hard….) on a nackered, cheap Huffy (waiting on the Pleistocene ’88 Connondale to get out of the shop) breathing hard after an uphill climb through mud is no small source of amusement to a 12 year old on a BMX bike. Apparently….

Anyway, in the past two weeks I’ve done a lot of reading and web surfing and a lot of basic riding across the plain. In so doing, I’ve generated a few questions with which I’m going to bore you. So in no particular order:

- Riding posture. Do you spend most of your time “up on the pedals” or “on the saddle? One site I visited said most of the time riding XC should be spent off the saddle. Curious to see what you all find best.

- Uphill. Odd question and hard to verbalize, but as a runner, I HATE to see folks swing their arms in any plane except back and forth. Any cross motion (and mostly I see women do this cross-body arms thing when I see it) is a waste of energy. In that vein, when you all are slogging up a steep hill, do you rock your bike from side to side or keep it vertical?

- Downhill. My mate said, “Get as far back as you can.” So said a webpage I read. Issue is the saddle is back there so I can only get as far back as the saddle allows?

- What in the HELL is hucking?

- Riding kit. After reading a lot, I’ve determined that at a minimum, I need to have in a bag or on the bike, some spare tubes (1 or 2), a patch kit, a basic med kit, my emergency information, water. What am I missing? What do you always take when riding (helmet and eye protection a given)?

Thanks in advance! I have a long way to go to get back into biking shape. Amazing how much different “bike shape”, “running shape”, and “swimming shape” are. A mix of the three is probably where I need to be at 40.

Cheers, and I’m hooked. I can’t help but think if I’m having this much fun on a piece of crap Huffy, I’ll have twice the fun on my Pleistocene Cannondale. I’ll probably have four times the fun once I pry open the coffers for an updated bike.


Paul in Harnham, Salisbury

never

Posture - Up on the pedals

Climbing - Keep the bike vertical

Downhill - Get your butt over the tire, your stomach/chest will be over the saddle

Kit - Don't forget a pump or cartridge

gmoneyhobbit

i always thought if ur goign up a steep grade.. to use ur arms?? not just ur legs alone

Jason222

Don't sink all the way back on DH, the front will be unweighted too much, and the front brake wont work as well. Stay back, but not as far as you can.

Emory

This one was confusing me as well, thanks for asking for me UK Yank. So, this is what confuses me still:
Proper bike fit has the saddle set such that when your pedal is parallel with the seat tube, your leg should be just slightly bent. That means you wouldn’t have any room to stand up and still pedal fully. I get back on downhills, stay planted on climbs, and get off the seat for bumpy riding, but mostly right now I can’t pedal well when I am standing on the pedals. What am I doing incorrectly?

Evilbee

I agree that most people spent alot of time out of the saddle, but if it is muddy out you could end up having to sit down on the climbs so you get some traction. Plus I spend a lot of the time in the saddle due to slightly suspect fitness levels.
What's the riding like in Salisbury, I haven't been there since I was about twelve?

never

Use your arms, just don't rock the bike from side to side. Use your arms to pull down towards your body.

never

The further back and lower you can get, the more effective your front brake will be on steep downhills. But when riding an XC geometry bike with a high seat, you have to get back more than you would on a FR bike. On the same hill, I'm back a lot futher on the Rockhopper than on the Coiler.

never

Think of it as keeping the majority of your weight on the pedals (you can still "sit" on the saddle). You don't stand up, you just hover over the saddle. It allows you to react and throw the bike around better.

Emory

Thanks never, that makes a much more sense. I'll have to work on that one.