I still consider myself a newbie because I'm usually too embarrassed to ask mechanical questions. So I just lurk around and try to figure things out for myself. I notice that spinning does allow me to ride farther. To get your speed up, (this is what I do) hunch down and see if you can literally push the pedals harder in a lower gear. Be careful though cuz I found out the hard way that if you're on too low a gear and you try to push really hard to spin, your feet are gonna fly off your pedals unless they're strapped on.