Originally Posted by
kayzee
What gear should I be using as my baseline? (My road bike is a 24-speed, if that helps.) I know it's an individual thing, to a large extent; I'm just trying to figure out a good place to start.
If you sonsider yourself a beginner, here's all that you need to know:
Think of your bike as having 3 gear ranges that correspond to your 3 front chainrings. The little chainring is for uphills, the middle one is for generally flat roads, and the big one is for downhills. Within those 3 gear ranges you can adjust your gearing with the 8 rear cogs. If you think that your feet are spinning too fast, pick a harder gear. If you think that it's too hard to pedal, shift into an easier gear.
Do that for awhile and the rest will come.