Sweetbike40

I just got a Trek 1000. When do you use the left side shifter? I've been using only the right side. I tried the left one day on a hill and had to get off the bike and walk up in order to pedal again to change it back. I love this bike by the way. I don't plan on racing, i bought it for exercise. I was taking spin classes 3x a week at the gym and thought a road bike would be fun.

baj32161

You use the left shifter to move the chain on the front 3 chainrings. Pushing on the thumb lever moves the chain to the smaller (easier) chainring for when you are sapped or when you are climbing...the inner, smallest being the easiest. I have often been glad to have this ring at times. To go up to the larger (harder) chainrings you push the brake lever in towards the center of the handlebars. Just keep practicing and you will find where your "sweet spot" for pedaling is.

Nice beginner bike BTW. Enjoy it.

Cheers,

Brian

Where in NJ do you ride?

Sweetbike40

Thank you. That is what i thought the shop told me. Well he said i'd use it on a steep hill. That is when i tried it but i must have done something wrong. I will practice it some more on a flat surface to feel what it is doing. I ride around town since i got it. I used to bring my moutain bike to the path in NYC that runs along the West Side Highway. So that is where this baby is going soon. I also need to find some smooth, challenging paths with hills. Maybe 9W in Englewood Cliffs.

yogi13

You should probably do your chain ring shifts before you get on a significant slope. Try to set yourself up when you don't have the pedals under much pressure, when the slope hasn't gotten too steep yet. Doing a cassette (rear) shift on a hill doesn't put as much strain on the drivetrain, and you're unlikely to pop the chain off doing so.

IchBinDarren

I have the same bike and love it! For most riding I keep it in the middle gear, I dont use the big gear much because I dont have the opportunity to ride super fast around this area, nor are there any good hills to use the small gear. Just curious, what paint scheme does your Trek 1000 have? I got the discovery.

float

I think you just shifted improperly. I'm assuming you have a triple and normally ride in the middle chainring. If you were trying to shift down (easier), you only use the inner paddle of the right shifter. To get the higher ring (harder pedaling) you move the entire brake lever. Find an uncrowded flat spot and play around for 20 minutes. That's what I did when I got my bike.

ElJamoquio

All - I believe the Trek 1000 has Sora shifters.

OP - you need to use the thumb lever and the paddle. Other Shimano shifters have double paddles.

Sweetbike40

The colors are dark grey (almost black) that fades to silver with splashes of blue. It's a 2006. I really LOVE this bike. It rides so nice and is so light. 1 week I have had mine. How long have you had yours?

waterrockets 

Sweetbike40: I would recommend you read through this page: https://sheldonbrown.com/gears.html

I'm not trying to discourage your post at all -- Sheldon's site is just a great place to learn about bikes and riding, so you should get a little more familiar with it.

float

Ha, you are right. For some reason that never crossed my mind.

fprintf

Ok, so here is a dumb question/statement but one that has been bothering me:

I have read Sheldon Brown's very informative site. In it he gives lists of gear ratios for the various tooth counts front/rear. It is clear that to keep the cadence the same in some gears that it makes sense to shift both the front and rear dérailleurs at the same time. If I am in the 39 tooth front chainring and middle cogs in the back, and when looking ahead and seeing slightly more downhill or flat I will shift the front chainring to the larger 53 tooth and *also* go up in the back 2 cogs to get slightly higher gearing. So I am using the gearing much like a car -- going progressively upwards in gears.

Now to the question - should I be able to spin fast enough to make the jump up front *without* also shifting the rear cogs up? It seems my cadence drops to the point it feels like my knees will give out, which is why I do all the multiple shifting. Or do most people stay in the middle/lower chainring until they reach the 13 tooth cog and then go up to the big chainring? (or vice versa, stay on the big chainring until they reach the 23/24 tooth cog, then drop the front)

waterrockets 

I don't go any smaller than the 14 in my small ring (12-23 cassette). I always shift the rear when I shift the front unless there is a sudden grade change.