As you get fitter and more proficient you will find it much easier to achieve and maintain this seemingly high cadence for longer. Select your gears to suit your cadence, not the other way round. Select your gears to suit your cadence, not the other way round Even with advances in modern gear design, gears do not like changing under very large pedalling pressures at low cadences.
So when changing gear, especially uphill, ease off the pedalling pressure just a little to help the chain move across the sprockets or from one chainwheel to the next. This does require some anticipation on steep hills. Front gear changers can be particularly reluctant to move the chain to the smaller chainwheel so select your chainwheel before your cadence drops too low below about 60 rpm.
When approaching junctions or coming to a stop , drop down a couple of gears onto a larger sprocket so that you can move off comfortably with a lower gear when you need to. Avoid using the extreme gears big chainwheel and biggest sprocket, smallest chainwheel and smallest sprocket as the chain may be either too taut or too slack to work efficiently or may even foul the mechanisms. Listen to your gears too. If you can hear the chain 'tinkling' or 'crunching' against other parts, you may need to tweak the shifters to help centre the mechanism, or perhaps some closer inspection and technical adjustment may be required.
When descending , especially if you are freewheeling, shift the chain onto the big chainwheel and a medium cog, to keep the chain tight and prevent it from bouncing off. This will also be a more appropriate gear for when you need to start pedalling again. This is particularly useful when you are climbing or trying hard such as when racing.
Search for:. Share this article. What's the Best Gearing for a Mountain Bike? Are you sure you want to delete this family member? Find activities close to home. Activities near you will have this indicator. Within 2 Miles. Activities near you will have this indicator Within 2 Miles. To save your home and search preferences Join Active or Sign In. To save your home and search preferences. Most geared bikes have one, two, or three chainrings in the front the rings attached to the pedal crank arm and anywhere from seven to 12 gears—or cogs—in the back or the cassette attached to the rear wheel.
Moving the chain from the smallest rear cog to the largest eases your pedaling effort incrementally. Moving it between the chainrings in the front results in a more noticeable change— pedaling feels easier in a smaller chainring and harder in a bigger one.
The best way to get a hang of what your bike gears feel like is to take your bike to a safe place away from traffic, like an empty parking lot, and shift through all the gears in the front and rear to understand how they feel while riding. Cyclists spend most of their time shifting the rear gears to find their cadence sweet spot.
Use a harder gear on flats or if the wind is blowing from behind a tailwind. When in doubt, shift before the terrain changes, especially on hills. This will allow you to get the hang of it before you shift into harder gears. Once you feel more comfortable, you can start playing with different bike gears in different situations. You also want to avoid cross-chaining, where the chain is at an extreme slant either in the big ring up front and the biggest cog in back, or the small ring up front and the small cog in back.
This not only stresses the hardware, but it also limits your options if you need to shift again. Likewise, it may be inadvisable to use certain gear combinations because they can put the chain at an extreme angle.
For gear hubs and gearboxes, manufacturers will typically specify the range. For example, a speed Rohloff hub has a per cent range, while a Pinion P1. Imagine trying to pedal up a steep hill in a high gear. You would have to push incredibly hard on the pedals and grind your way up the hill. Instead, in a lower gear your force input at the pedals is lower, but as a result you can spin faster.
Your energy input in each case is roughly the same. The part about knee injury really is a key one. Conversely, there also comes a point where spinning any faster becomes inefficient and can even unbalance you. It makes sense to shift into a higher gear again in order to reduce your cadence. The ideal cadence will be very personal but is often considered to be in the 70 to rpm range.
The key thing with shifting gears is anticipation. Look ahead and try to predict how your speed will change and how you are likely to need to change gears.
As you come to a tight corner, anticipate that you will need to slow down and shift into a lower gear so you can accelerate out of the corner more easily. Equally, if you need to stop at some traffic lights, shift into an easier gear so that you can set off more easily when the lights turn green. Always ensure that you are pedalling to perform smooth shifts and shift gradually across the range of gears to find the right one.
Another thing to avoid is cross-chaining. The extreme angles this puts the chain at can result in increased wear and high loads on the drivetrain. Conversely, hub gears or gear boxes can usually be shifted when at a standstill. The key to keeping your gears running nicely is to ensure you keep them clean and well maintained.
In fact, keeping things clean in general helps you keep on top of maintenance and lets you identify any potential issues before they become more serious. As discussed previously, hub gears tend to be lower maintenance, though you may still have to adjust cable tension because it still stretches gradually over time.
General maintenance like this works wonders in the long run because a well adjusted and maintained bike is kinder on your components overall. Finally, we would recommend checking your chain for wear regularly with a cheap tool. Replacing your chain is much cheaper than replacing other worn out components on your bike.
Equipped with this knowledge, get out there and start using your gears. The basics explained Best mountain bike how to choose the right one for you.
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