Originally Posted by kbarch

About the pedaling in circles myth, well, it seems obvious that attempting to maintain a perfect circle is not the best way for human legs to maximize power output, but it does seem that smoothness is more efficient in the long run, and it must be healthier in terms of wear and tear.

But speaking of myths and science, who here has read Bicycling Science by David Gordon Wilson? Looks like a hefty tome, and it's published by an academic press, so I'm wondering if it is in any way engaging to read. Unfortunately, the sample chapter was the first, on history, so it's hard to tell how dry or head-spinning the actual science might get.