Originally Posted by
shawmutt
I've been lurking for a while, hoping someone would ask this silly question--but that 28 mile ride is two weeks away and I have no idea how to ride for real! The way I currently do it is wrong--I basically set the front sprocket on the highest gear and use the rear gears for all my shifting. When I'm completely tired out I throw it into what I learned was the "granny gear" and relax.
I also realized through tons of reading that my cadence was too low and any serious biking distance will ruin my knees in short order. So, cadence sensor is in the mail for my forerunner 305 and I'm rethinking the way I pedal, but I can't find a consensus on this here interwebs about the correct way to shift...
...I hope this thread doesn't offer a different way with every post
It sounds like you're using a tripple chain ring. If this is the case, you should spend most of your time in the middle ring. Find a rear cog that feels comfortable riding all day but will not be too high that will injure or leave you exhausted. Only shift to the high gear when going down a large hill or if your riding in the burbs where there are no lights for quarter of a mile.
Once you see a hill, pick up speed and try to go as fast as possible. This will give you momentum and once you slow down to a crawl, drop the chainring to the granny gear first and spin up the hill. If you need to to go lower, use the rear derailuer.