Seconding that bit on gears. I gear down quite a bit at stops... I *can* get the bike going from a full stop in my normal cruising gear, but it takes a lot of effort. Not just physical strength, but balance since in a higher gear the bike doesn't want to cooperate. When I gear down, I have very smooth starts. Means I accelerate faster too, so I hit my cruising speed before some cars can even get started. Very handy when biking in traffic.

That was probably *the* best tip I found on the internet when I started biking again last year.