I didn't know that nowadays you need to know how to change gears.. I thought everyone had automatic electric transmissions 😁 I've never really learned how to change gears in the hills.. it feels like it's always the wrong gear and it takes too much time to change.. I have come to the conclusion that I select too high a gear and then throw up at the top of the hill 🤣
I don't understand why most videos aimed at explaining gears to beginners don't start with a simple explanation of how gear ratios change how far you travel (or wheel turns) on a single pedal revolution. IMHO just telling people that big ring is harder and small cog is harder is less likely to stick with beginners. an animation showing pedal to wheel revolutions would be make a bigger impression
Agreed. Any GOOD instructional on manual transmission driving for automobiles includes this. Though the cyclist is essentially aiming at maintaining rpm in the power band (they call it cadence, since their engine is their peddling), which is similar to a manual turbo car sticking in their limited power band.
I used to have a gear/inch chart taped to my stem...back in 1970. Nowadays I just say "That gear is too hard!" (or easy) and shift accordingly/instinctively.
Right? Like I get this is the BIG and this is the SMALL, but what numbers do those translate to on the shifter? Like, is crank 1 the big or little wheel? Is 1 or 7 the large or small gear on the cassette?
For those that are new to road cycling, and have only got mrchanical shifting, I think that this is a great instructional video for them to grasp the basics of gear shifting.👍 Manon & Connor make a great duo on videos.
When I started cycling I was quite confused with the trim function of the front derailleur ("half clicks"). It allows you to shift the front derailleur a little to the side to prevent the chain from hitting the derailleur when cross-chaining a little bit. I haven’t seen this covered in videos about changing gear by major cycling channels and it took me quite a while to figure out how this works.
As someone who just bought my first road bike two weeks ago, I am very interested in this. The salesmen told me that my bike (trek Domane AL 2(?) disc) has this functionality but I still feel I do the guess and check method when switching front gear to not have that scratchy sound happening. Then sometimes when I get the scratchy noise to stop the difficulty will shoot to nothing or very hard to pedal. Hope I’m not doing anything too bad lol
When I just bought my Decathlon bike, the very helpful guy took me through how to change the gears, and also told me about this function. They were very professional there.
Exactly, I've made first ride on new Trek Emonda and I thougt a front deraiileur is not adjusted correctly. I discovered "half click" function accidentally, after 4 kilometers. Nobody mentioned that in videos. Why ?
One tip I could add is that when you shift in front, you should also shift one or two cogs in the back, so as to make the transition less abrupt. Unless of course you are coming into the bottom of a steep wall, then straight into the granny!
Don't know about Di2 but SRAM AXS has a setting for this so. On my mechanical bike I always did this anyway but its so much easier with the electronic gears
Another relevant tip at 5:22 : Manon hanging glasses upside down on her helmet. Wheh I stop I usually fold them and hang them on the sweater's neck zip. But here the young lady proves once again to be fun and absolute legend! Just like Conor and all you guys! Cheers from Italy :) Listening to your "cadence" in speaking English is always crystal clear and a big help in practising your beautiful language. You all keep up the cool work! :)
Great instructional video by Conor and Manon. In my experience coaching new riders, cadence is King. Learn what cadence makes you happy and the shifting will follow. Shift as often as needed to stay in your sweet spot. Two great points mentioned by Manon, downshifting before you get into the climb, and a split second of "soft pedaling" while changing gears will do wonders for a trouble free drivetrain. A little cross chaining is not a horrible thing, but Extreme cross chaining IS. Especially if it's Large chainring and large rear cog, which puts the rear derailleur and chain in Maximum Stretch. Avoid this combo at all costs if you love your bike. Shifting into the Big chainring and knowing when to get back out of it is the biggest hurdle for most new riders. It just takes practice, and with that practice will come improved fitness. It's a win/win situation.
Back in the 70’s I bought a second hand tourer for my 120 mile/week commute. I was blessed to have bought it of a bloke who had cherished it and one of my new colleagues was a VTT. The VTT looked me and the bike over, laughing, and said he’d have a chat with me in three months. Stan, the VTT, had me count the teeth on sprockets and rings and armed with an OS map of my commute and a cog ratio chart we went over my route. Five on the back and two on the front seemed a lot but after a chat and inspection of the cogs we found I was only using six. In those days you could buy individual cogs and customise your block. So, a trip to the LBS for new chain, a few cogs, and two new rings my commute turned into a dream ride. Well worth the effort. For me, cadence came out as ‘7 in 5’. Seven rotations in 5 seconds. Ok, there were two double changes in the progress through the gears but anticipation covered most of that.
Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you!!! Cycling has been my way of getting from A to B for a few years now (42, and never driven a car) Gear changes have always confused me so this will help me 200%
Always such a great reminder! I’ve been trying hard to really listen and feel my gears to know when it’s time to switch from the large ring to the smaller
Something that helped me was a tip from a katie kookaburra video, where she said every time she shifts her front gear, she shifts the opposite way twice on the rear (this is presumably 11 or 12 speed so your mileage may vary) and it has been a life changer. I used to just power through everything but the toughest climbs in my big gear up front but finding that comfortable ratio to shift each gear together has helped me to use both gears way more often! Hope this helps someone else like it helped me.
@@henryokelue1700 Sorry she posts a lot and it wasn't the focus of the video so it isn't in the title to easily find. It was just a little one off tip but I hope it helps you!
This is actually an advantage with the classic three speed IGH. It’s indexed, can be shifted on the move or at a dead stop (a huge advantage in stop and go city traffic). Click down for hills and standing starts, middle for steady pace, click up for downhills or high speed work. Mind, for anyone super fussy about cadence, the steps between gears are too wide with current hubs - one would have to find an antique Sturmey-Archer AR or AC hub (ultra close ratio hubs used for time trials, with the equivalent of one tooth difference on the rear cog). But if you’re coming from a single speed and aren’t dealing with Alpine climbs, three speed hubs serve quite well.
5:52 That made me chuckle - how it's "very rare" to have an entirely flat and level ride - 'cause I'm watching this from the middle of the Canadian prairies.
I was gifted a geared MTB. I had no idea about geared cycle. And it was in highest gear. I could not ride it even up a normal elevation and thought i became too weak. Then after some of your channels videos, GCN, thankyou. Now i can understand and can ride with less effort. 😂😂 Thankyou so much. Love from India ( Bharath) I
I'm a "re-beginner" cyclist, started cyvling again after more than 15 years because long-distance running is no linger advised. I feel so vlumsy and stupid! Bought a brand new Raleigh 1 year ago and seem to have constant trouble with it. Twice in 2 months I ended up stranded because I - I guess - stressed the chain. Your other clip explains, better than the dealer could, what I did wrong. I changed to a lower gear mid-climb, stepped hard on the peddle, and ..yes, chain came off. Bkje was fixed, and i cycled home smoothly. The right-side handlebar gear was on 3-4, while the left side was on 2. Yesterday, the left suddenly jumped to 1, and Ive no idea why. Cycling was difficult, especially as the Raleigh has a heavy frame. I'm not enjoying my rides at all - feels like a constant struggle.😢
Your situation sounds a lot like mine, but I'm fortunate to still have my Felt road bike from my previous riding days. I've never jumped the chain off mine, so I would recommend only changing gears when in an easy cadence with minimum pressure. But a bike that jumps gears or chains on its own sounds like a defect. I would have it checked by a reputable local mechanic or complain to your dealer. Just my amateur thoughts. Good luck!
After 3 countinuous hours watching tutorials and countless of tuning my converted mtb I have come to the conclusion of always shifting 3 gears bigger and then 2 smaller to shift one gear back.
Looks like an issue with the b limit screw. Had the same issue once. Try setting the top jockey wheel as close to the cassette as you could get without touching it. Also since you mentioned a conversation maybe you might've installed, example a 9 speed shifter with a 8 speed cassette.
Another plus for electronic shifting is the ease with which you can change into the correct gear. I don’t even give it a second thought and even under load the electronics will figure it out and make the proper gear change for you. I’m a smoother, more efficient and yes faster cyclist after upgrading to e-shifting.
Thanks for the excellent video tips on changing gears. I've always been confused about what gears I should be in. I ride on mostly flat ground. We don't have many hills in this part of Florida where I live. Thanks so much for mentioning what RPM is a good RPM to be at. At 4:10 in the video it was mentioned about the revolutions per minute for one leg to be at 80 to 95 RPM. That's pretty good advice and it probably will help me improve my average speed by a lot with the idea that I have. I rarely listen to music when I am riding even though I am a DJ but, I used to make Step Aerobic CDs in the mid 90's (around 130 BPMs) and I often wondered if I could make a music mix for keeping my pace while riding a bike but, I didn't know what a good BPM would be to use. I listen to my phone speaker while riding and I don't use earbuds like some people do which could be dangerous. I have played club (126 BPMs), house (134 BPM) mixes while riding before and I enjoyed the music but, my workout was just okay, it wasn't great. It seemed like when I listened to Reggae Music or Hip Hop which is around 85 to 95 BPMs that my average speed in mph was better. My problem when I ride, is I am not concentrating on what I am doing or when I hit a headwind and I am not paying attention to how fast my legs are going and I don't keep a steady pace so, my average speed gets hurt. If I listen to music while I am walking around a place, I am walking to the beat because I am a DJ. If I am in a headwind, I wil probably keep up with the revolutions per minute if I am listening to music. I am not too much into Hip Hop and I am more into Reggae. I am going to try to make a good long 2 hour Reggae Mix or just get two hours worth of Reggae music tracks and let it randomly play or any genre of music in that 80 to 95 BPM range could work out too and I will give it a try today and I will let you know how it goes. The music could also be doubled from 160 bpm to 190 bpms like good old 80's music in that BPM Range like Billy Idol, Rod Stewart, Kenny Loggins, Culture Club, Wham, A-Ha and So on. In the 80's BPM range it would be half revolutions. You all at GCN could probably make a video about affilitating music into a workout but, the downfall with working out to music is, it can put someone in a dangerous situation when there are vehicles around.
"Shift at six": Shift when your drivetrain (right) foot is a the bottom of the pedal stroke (six 'oclock), or a bit later as this is where the tension on the chain will be least. No need to "back off" on pressure. A proper shift will be almost silent and quick and shouldn't produce a grinding noise nor the chain slip on the cogs (even when climbing out of the saddle). If you hear a rubbing noise, the front derailleur likely needs to be "trimmed" or moved just a few millimeters by moving the paddle halfway, which is normal. Modern chain rings have ramps on them to lift up and drop the chain without skipping a single tooth. Again, it is also important to shift the front ring at the right time, and there's no reason why you cannot shift both front and back simultaneously. If you still have shifting problems, make sure your derailleur is set up correctly, the cables are kink free and of sufficient length and the derailleur hanger or cage is not bent.
Dead spot shifting should be a standard thing on electric shifting. Problem is it needs a sensor on the crank to know its location. Front derailleur and chainring would be a potential location for this. Assuming the derailleurs can talk to each other this would work.
Wonderful tips and tricks video again Manon, Conor and gcn! I've bookmarked it for newer riders for club rides. The best simplest way I've ever heard the principles of gearing described in order to avoid confusion of the inverse front size/ back size gears is "The closer the chain is to the bike, the easier the gear, the farther away from the bike, the harder the gear." Despite this being an excellent, comprehensive and thorough video, Conor's grammar mistakes were driving me wild, grinding my teeth (& my gears) when he kept talking about the "Amount of teeth" on the rear cassette! It's *NUMBER* of teeth Conor!! Yikes! Other than that, well done!
In my 3x8 shimano tourney/acera setup, the rear shifts perfectly but the front is more of a hit and miss situation. The sales guy told me the front needs more pressure while clicking and the lever has a longer travel but I doubt it's something else? Thoughts?
7:40 regarding cross chaining for those that have a 1x chain ring, it's best to shift or install the cranks aligned by spacing the bottom bracket to the sprocket you're most comfortable with. Just be aware once doing so leaves the chain more vulnerable to chain wear due to extreme cross chaining IF you ever go to the side you're least to ever use. 1x chain rings are supposed to be aligned in between the lightest sprocket and the hardest sprocket but if you rarely shift to either side then habits tend to stay with what the rider is most comfortable with. If you like to stay in the middle speeds, then keep the alignment the way it is. If you're a fast rider that prefers the hardest gear then I suggest you adjust the bottom bracket by using spacers towards that gear and vice versa if you're a casual slow rider. Like mentioned, be aware of extreme cross chaining if you have to necessarily use the opposite gears. I have a flat trail here and I chose my 1x spaced towards the harder gears to be a faster bike because I very rarely shift on my easier gears. It's almost like a fixie with only 3-4 gears used out of the 10. It works and there's hardly any wear on any of my gears at all. It's a very specific bike meant not to do any climbs because of the bike trail I chose to ride it on. It works for me
I read an article about cross chaining on Road cc a few years back and though Shimano said to avoid it, if you can, SRAM (which Conor is riding) said cross-chaining is not a problem and not to worry about it. I do it sometimes, like Si mentioned the other day, when powering up a hill it’s sometimes good for your ego to think you managed to stay in the big ring 😅
My SRAM Rival will let me go to big-big but won't got to small-small. I guess cross chaining on the big ring isn't as much of a problem as on the small ring
@@MacBob yeah I think the same. Do a search for Road cc crosschaining and you’ll find the article. Quite interesting to see the different advice the groupset manufacturers give
"Your right hand shifter will control the gears at the back of the bike, and your left hand shifter will control the gears up front." SRAM HAS ENTERED THE CONVERSATION.
I needed this! As someone who is getting into biking 😮 I need this! Also is there a video the breaks down a road break and its parts?! Trying to learn!
Isn't 1x system also cross chaining at the 2 extremes of the cassette? Can the inefficiency be felt by the rider? I'm on a 2x small bike, which I know will amplify the inefficiency.
I have an old 3 chainring on front, but I rarely use the smallest one (affectionately called the "granny gear"). On flat or downhill, I keep my road bike on the largest ring up front, but typically use the middle ring for almost all terrain that ranges from flat to gentle hills. My bike seems to respond to this the best. I've only used the smallest of my three rings for severe hills that are well over 30 degrees.
If you want to get more judicious about shifting, try a bike with down tube shifters. You have to chose your gears early lest you get stuck grinding in the wrong ring
Loved this presentation, I wonder if you could do one on accessories for the bike. I ride with a camera on my helmet but I had it on the stem of the handlebar for a while. I also use a Garmin on one side of my handlebar and a light on the other, especially when I used to commute to work. Finally when I ride alone, a lot of the time at the moment, I have a fitting for my phone for maps.
The part where I know I could do much better is when going from a downhill into an uphill. The strategy is to maintain as much speed as possible on the uphill while conserving energy so you don't fail on the climb. I just know I could do much better on that type of hill transition.
I accidentally got used to riding in my hardest gear most of the time, seems the only option is to find harder hills but if you go uphill you usually have to go down and I don’t like speed.
Is it ok to change gear while climbing? It works but there is no way of stepping lightly and the sound the chain makes feels a bit wrong. But sometimes there is no other way.
Changing gear on a hill is essential. Just give a burst of power if possible before the shift, ease off the power as you shift then back on with the power hard as you can to regain lost momentum. Then back to a sustainable power output. Repeat if you still can't maintain speed or are accelerating. Takes practice because you really have to be aware of exactly when the shift is actually happening so you can ease off the power for the shortest time possible.
Not sure if anyone else does this but if I get caught out on a steep climb, I stand up to get some pressure up, then sit down and change down taking the pressure off.
Because that's what the pros do which makes sense as they are putting out 300W +. Makes no sense to a typical cyclist who might only be at 100 - 200W when 65 - 75rpm might be more appropriate. To be most efficient it should vary depending on power output so as to keep the pressure or torque at a consistent optimum level for your preference. A higher cadence is often recommended as it reduces muscle fatigue, however its less efficient and puts more stress on the rest of the body. So it's very much a compromise and about finding the sweet spot which also depends on what you want to achieve and where you strengths lie. At the end of the day preferred cadence is a personal thing, it's whatever feels right to you.
I always try to tell people, shift your bike how you woudl shift a manual transmission, keeping high enough rpm to where its not consuming too much gas or getting too hot, but not so low as to stall it. Gearheads will understand what i mean by that alot easier than the average person.
If you've left it late changing down and having to really grind to keep going, often dropping to the small front ring is less traumatic than trying to skip through the rear cassette.
Should have mentioned, when talking about lightening the pressure while shifting on a climb, that the best way to break a chain is to shift under heavy load. Especially with regard to newer, thinner 12 speed chains. This is especially true if you decided to go and buy a cheap chain. I've broken chains this way, so I'm speaking from experience.
You know guys, you neglected (I think) to offer the plan when you do get caught up a steep grade in too high a gear. My plan is tp look behind me (make sure no cars coming behind or oncoming) and make a loop into other lane and shift while in the downhill part of the loop and avoid the ugly gear crunch of shifting under extreme load. What?
Another way is to learn how to apply the front brake while standing, change your gear and lift the back wheel up and rotate the pedal using your clipped in foot. May need to do this multiple times to get into the correct gear. Useful at traffic lights when a sudden stop means didn't have time to change down.
I still sometimes drop the chain while changing down from the big ring on a climb. I have seen it happen to others on a group ride, pretty embarrassing. I think it's to do with pedal pressure. Does this happen to anyone else?
Well, you don’t want to change gears when you’re pedaling harder than or faster than normal if at all possible. It’s rough on the drivetrain and can even cause the chain to pop off the sprockets.
An expensive Agu GCN Gilet/Vest at £164.99. When is a gilet not a gilet, when a GCN presenter wears it unzipped and it flaps in the wind like a boat sail.? Aero or not aero.?
I never know what gear I'm in. As long as I'm not spinning like a track sprinter. Or not ripping my leg off trying to turn the cranks. I'm a happy bunny.
Do you struggle with gear changes? ⚙
im usually between 70-90 in cadence when riding. Thats my comfort zone
Nope . Single speed "track bike". Let's go!
I didn't know that nowadays you need to know how to change gears.. I thought everyone had automatic electric transmissions 😁
I've never really learned how to change gears in the hills.. it feels like it's always the wrong gear and it takes too much time to change..
I have come to the conclusion that I select too high a gear and then throw up at the top of the hill 🤣
No because I got a CVT (continously variable transmission) hub and programmed a microcontroller to do the shifting for me.
@@JasonSmith-hb3xy 1x1 for life! 42x16 can get me up all but the steepest of hills in my hometown (and i'm working on getting up those too).
I don't understand why most videos aimed at explaining gears to beginners don't start with a simple explanation of how gear ratios change how far you travel (or wheel turns) on a single pedal revolution. IMHO just telling people that big ring is harder and small cog is harder is less likely to stick with beginners. an animation showing pedal to wheel revolutions would be make a bigger impression
Agreed. Any GOOD instructional on manual transmission driving for automobiles includes this. Though the cyclist is essentially aiming at maintaining rpm in the power band (they call it cadence, since their engine is their peddling), which is similar to a manual turbo car sticking in their limited power band.
I used to have a gear/inch chart taped to my stem...back in 1970.
Nowadays I just say "That gear is too hard!" (or easy) and shift accordingly/instinctively.
They have a video on that. It is meant to be watched in conjunction with this one.
Right? Like I get this is the BIG and this is the SMALL, but what numbers do those translate to on the shifter? Like, is crank 1 the big or little wheel? Is 1 or 7 the large or small gear on the cassette?
For those that are new to road cycling, and have only got mrchanical shifting, I think that this is a great instructional video for them to grasp the basics of gear shifting.👍 Manon & Connor make a great duo on videos.
Hi peter, thanks for dropping a comment here 🙌 That's the idea, we hope this video will give those new riders confidence
When I started cycling I was quite confused with the trim function of the front derailleur ("half clicks"). It allows you to shift the front derailleur a little to the side to prevent the chain from hitting the derailleur when cross-chaining a little bit. I haven’t seen this covered in videos about changing gear by major cycling channels and it took me quite a while to figure out how this works.
As someone who just bought my first road bike two weeks ago, I am very interested in this. The salesmen told me that my bike (trek Domane AL 2(?) disc) has this functionality but I still feel I do the guess and check method when switching front gear to not have that scratchy sound happening. Then sometimes when I get the scratchy noise to stop the difficulty will shoot to nothing or very hard to pedal. Hope I’m not doing anything too bad lol
Good observation, the same with me 👍
When I just bought my Decathlon bike, the very helpful guy took me through how to change the gears, and also told me about this function. They were very professional there.
Exactly, I've made first ride on new Trek Emonda and I thougt a front deraiileur is not adjusted correctly. I discovered "half click" function accidentally, after 4 kilometers. Nobody mentioned that in videos. Why ?
Changing to an easier gear ahead of time is pretty important when starting commuting too. Stop lights, banked up traffic etc.
What could be more fun than having to set off from some lights in 53x11?
Great point! Changing down before you have to stop is a great habit 🙌
So true for stop and go traffic!
Pro guys seldom change to easier gear, they off saddle with more power when starting commuting
@@schultzmoeller2532 I'm not convinced this video was aimed at "Pro guys" though...
Love Manon...she keeps the videos 'light' and funny. Keeps it from getting too serious for average rider😊
Perfect timing guys! Got my first road bike last weekend and searching for a video on gears. Really clear advice as always.
Glad we could help 🙌 What is it about changing gears that you are struggling with?
Literally how to do it! No cycling experience or friends so rely on you tube. Went out this week and got the hang of it thanks to you guys ❤️
No cycling friends - I do have friends 😂
One tip I could add is that when you shift in front, you should also shift one or two cogs in the back, so as to make the transition less abrupt. Unless of course you are coming into the bottom of a steep wall, then straight into the granny!
I do this. Solid advice
Don't know about Di2 but SRAM AXS has a setting for this so.
On my mechanical bike I always did this anyway but its so much easier with the electronic gears
Another relevant tip at 5:22 : Manon hanging glasses upside down on her helmet. Wheh I stop I usually fold them and hang them on the sweater's neck zip. But here the young lady proves once again to be fun and absolute legend! Just like Conor and all you guys! Cheers from Italy :)
Listening to your "cadence" in speaking English is always crystal clear and a big help in practising your beautiful language. You all keep up the cool work! :)
Great instructional video by Conor and Manon. In my experience coaching new riders, cadence is King. Learn what cadence makes you happy and the shifting will follow. Shift as often as needed to stay in your sweet spot. Two great points mentioned by Manon, downshifting
before you get into the climb, and a split second of "soft pedaling" while changing gears will do wonders for a trouble free drivetrain.
A little cross chaining is not a horrible thing, but Extreme cross chaining IS. Especially if it's Large chainring and large rear cog, which
puts the rear derailleur and chain in Maximum Stretch. Avoid this combo at all costs if you love your bike. Shifting into the Big chainring
and knowing when to get back out of it is the biggest hurdle for most new riders. It just takes practice, and with that practice will come
improved fitness. It's a win/win situation.
If your gears still aren't right you may have to get off the bike and give them a tune👉 th-cam.com/video/4Q34TIMxrcI/w-d-xo.html
We might give it a watch... or we'll just lend you to our bikes 👀
Back in the 70’s I bought a second hand tourer for my 120 mile/week commute. I was blessed to have bought it of a bloke who had cherished it and one of my new colleagues was a VTT. The VTT looked me and the bike over, laughing, and said he’d have a chat with me in three months. Stan, the VTT, had me count the teeth on sprockets and rings and armed with an OS map of my commute and a cog ratio chart we went over my route. Five on the back and two on the front seemed a lot but after a chat and inspection of the cogs we found I was only using six. In those days you could buy individual cogs and customise your block. So, a trip to the LBS for new chain, a few cogs, and two new rings my commute turned into a dream ride. Well worth the effort. For me, cadence came out as ‘7 in 5’. Seven rotations in 5 seconds. Ok, there were two double changes in the progress through the gears but anticipation covered most of that.
It was nice hearing Manon on BBC Radio Somerset (Extra Time segment) this evening 😊
Thank you Thank you Thank you Thank you!!! Cycling has been my way of getting from A to B for a few years now (42, and never driven a car) Gear changes have always confused me so this will help me 200%
My 12 year old grandaughter has just started cycling with me. This will be a great video we will watch together before our next ride. Thank you!
Awesome! Let us know how he gets on 🙌
I’m guilty of big ring/big ring. Thanks for this helpful info
We're all guilty of this one sometimes. It's just a bad habit to get 😆
Always such a great reminder! I’ve been trying hard to really listen and feel my gears to know when it’s time to switch from the large ring to the smaller
Something that helped me was a tip from a katie kookaburra video, where she said every time she shifts her front gear, she shifts the opposite way twice on the rear (this is presumably 11 or 12 speed so your mileage may vary) and it has been a life changer. I used to just power through everything but the toughest climbs in my big gear up front but finding that comfortable ratio to shift each gear together has helped me to use both gears way more often! Hope this helps someone else like it helped me.
Could you kindly share a link to that video?
@@henryokelue1700 Sorry she posts a lot and it wasn't the focus of the video so it isn't in the title to easily find. It was just a little one off tip but I hope it helps you!
This is actually an advantage with the classic three speed IGH. It’s indexed, can be shifted on the move or at a dead stop (a huge advantage in stop and go city traffic). Click down for hills and standing starts, middle for steady pace, click up for downhills or high speed work.
Mind, for anyone super fussy about cadence, the steps between gears are too wide with current hubs - one would have to find an antique Sturmey-Archer AR or AC hub (ultra close ratio hubs used for time trials, with the equivalent of one tooth difference on the rear cog). But if you’re coming from a single speed and aren’t dealing with Alpine climbs, three speed hubs serve quite well.
5:52 That made me chuckle - how it's "very rare" to have an entirely flat and level ride - 'cause I'm watching this from the middle of the Canadian prairies.
Adding a power metre really surprised me and helped me find best gear
I suspect the gears on my bike are no good. Of late, they have been very shifty.
My Di2 does it all for me.... 👌
😊
Omg thank you for this video, I hope it's not too late for my bike! I've been shifting gears wrong for a couple of weeks now.
I was gifted a geared MTB. I had no idea about geared cycle. And it was in highest gear.
I could not ride it even up a normal elevation and thought i became too weak.
Then after some of your channels videos, GCN, thankyou. Now i can understand and can ride with less effort.
😂😂
Thankyou so much.
Love from India ( Bharath)
I
I'm a "re-beginner" cyclist, started cyvling again after more than 15 years because long-distance running is no linger advised. I feel so vlumsy and stupid! Bought a brand new Raleigh 1 year ago and seem to have constant trouble with it. Twice in 2 months I ended up stranded because I - I guess - stressed the chain. Your other clip explains, better than the dealer could, what I did wrong. I changed to a lower gear mid-climb, stepped hard on the peddle, and ..yes, chain came off. Bkje was fixed, and i cycled home smoothly. The right-side handlebar gear was on 3-4, while the left side was on 2. Yesterday, the left suddenly jumped to 1, and Ive no idea why. Cycling was difficult, especially as the Raleigh has a heavy frame. I'm not enjoying my rides at all - feels like a constant struggle.😢
Your situation sounds a lot like mine, but I'm fortunate to still have my Felt road bike from my previous riding days. I've never jumped the chain off mine, so I would recommend only changing gears when in an easy cadence with minimum pressure. But a bike that jumps gears or chains on its own sounds like a defect. I would have it checked by a reputable local mechanic or complain to your dealer. Just my amateur thoughts. Good luck!
Thanks. Been waiting for this video for a long time… very helpful.
On the bikes for the whole video! Bravo! Quite a well done vid, much appreciated!
After 3 countinuous hours watching tutorials and countless of tuning my converted mtb I have come to the conclusion of always shifting 3 gears bigger and then 2 smaller to shift one gear back.
Mmmm sounds like something is up there 👀 Maybe time to head to the local shop?
Looks like an issue with the b limit screw. Had the same issue once. Try setting the top jockey wheel as close to the cassette as you could get without touching it. Also since you mentioned a conversation maybe you might've installed, example a 9 speed shifter with a 8 speed cassette.
@@gcn nah he's the one who screwed it up in the first place
@@shamendra.sakthivel tried that. After some pondering, I have realised that my derailure is bent.
@@shamendra.sakthivel I have a 7 speed speed cassette with a 7 speed shifter with a derialure that says 5/6/7 speed
You don't need a cycle computer and power meter to display cadence. An inexpensive cycle computer with a cadence sensor will do.
I think this video is better than the previous one you did on gear change. I learned something.
Another plus for electronic shifting is the ease with which you can change into the correct gear. I don’t even give it a second thought and even under load the electronics will figure it out and make the proper gear change for you. I’m a smoother, more efficient and yes faster cyclist after upgrading to e-shifting.
Thanks for the excellent video tips on changing gears. I've always been confused about what gears I should be in. I ride on mostly flat ground. We don't have many hills in this part of Florida where I live.
Thanks so much for mentioning what RPM is a good RPM to be at. At 4:10 in the video it was mentioned about the revolutions per minute for one leg to be at 80 to 95 RPM. That's pretty good advice and it probably will help me improve my average speed by a lot with the idea that I have. I rarely listen to music when I am riding even though I am a DJ but, I used to make Step Aerobic CDs in the mid 90's (around 130 BPMs) and I often wondered if I could make a music mix for keeping my pace while riding a bike but, I didn't know what a good BPM would be to use. I listen to my phone speaker while riding and I don't use earbuds like some people do which could be dangerous. I have played club (126 BPMs), house (134 BPM) mixes while riding before and I enjoyed the music but, my workout was just okay, it wasn't great. It seemed like when I listened to Reggae Music or Hip Hop which is around 85 to 95 BPMs that my average speed in mph was better. My problem when I ride, is I am not concentrating on what I am doing or when I hit a headwind and I am not paying attention to how fast my legs are going and I don't keep a steady pace so, my average speed gets hurt. If I listen to music while I am walking around a place, I am walking to the beat because I am a DJ. If I am in a headwind, I wil probably keep up with the revolutions per minute if I am listening to music. I am not too much into Hip Hop and I am more into Reggae. I am going to try to make a good long 2 hour Reggae Mix or just get two hours worth of Reggae music tracks and let it randomly play or any genre of music in that 80 to 95 BPM range could work out too and I will give it a try today and I will let you know how it goes. The music could also be doubled from 160 bpm to 190 bpms like good old 80's music in that BPM Range like Billy Idol, Rod Stewart, Kenny Loggins, Culture Club, Wham, A-Ha and So on. In the 80's BPM range it would be half revolutions.
You all at GCN could probably make a video about affilitating music into a workout but, the downfall with working out to music is, it can put someone in a dangerous situation when there are vehicles around.
"Shift at six": Shift when your drivetrain (right) foot is a the bottom of the pedal stroke (six 'oclock), or a bit later as this is where the tension on the chain will be least. No need to "back off" on pressure. A proper shift will be almost silent and quick and shouldn't produce a grinding noise nor the chain slip on the cogs (even when climbing out of the saddle). If you hear a rubbing noise, the front derailleur likely needs to be "trimmed" or moved just a few millimeters by moving the paddle halfway, which is normal. Modern chain rings have ramps on them to lift up and drop the chain without skipping a single tooth. Again, it is also important to shift the front ring at the right time, and there's no reason why you cannot shift both front and back simultaneously. If you still have shifting problems, make sure your derailleur is set up correctly, the cables are kink free and of sufficient length and the derailleur hanger or cage is not bent.
Dead spot shifting should be a standard thing on electric shifting. Problem is it needs a sensor on the crank to know its location. Front derailleur and chainring would be a potential location for this. Assuming the derailleurs can talk to each other this would work.
Wonderful tips and tricks video again Manon, Conor and gcn! I've bookmarked it for newer riders for club rides. The best simplest way I've ever heard the principles of gearing described in order to avoid confusion of the inverse front size/ back size gears is "The closer the chain is to the bike, the easier the gear, the farther away from the bike, the harder the gear." Despite this being an excellent, comprehensive and thorough video, Conor's grammar mistakes were driving me wild, grinding my teeth (& my gears) when he kept talking about the "Amount of teeth" on the rear cassette! It's *NUMBER* of teeth Conor!! Yikes! Other than that, well done!
Also for Conor, a power meter measures power, it's a cadence sensor you needs to count the revs.
That intro head on angle really shows how Connor’s head tube is almost longer than Manon’s seat tube lol
Cool to see you do the Recco ...Bon tri à tous !!
In my 3x8 shimano tourney/acera setup, the rear shifts perfectly but the front is more of a hit and miss situation. The sales guy told me the front needs more pressure while clicking and the lever has a longer travel but I doubt it's something else? Thoughts?
7:40 regarding cross chaining for those that have a 1x chain ring, it's best to shift or install the cranks aligned by spacing the bottom bracket to the sprocket you're most comfortable with. Just be aware once doing so leaves the chain more vulnerable to chain wear due to extreme cross chaining IF you ever go to the side you're least to ever use. 1x chain rings are supposed to be aligned in between the lightest sprocket and the hardest sprocket but if you rarely shift to either side then habits tend to stay with what the rider is most comfortable with. If you like to stay in the middle speeds, then keep the alignment the way it is. If you're a fast rider that prefers the hardest gear then I suggest you adjust the bottom bracket by using spacers towards that gear and vice versa if you're a casual slow rider. Like mentioned, be aware of extreme cross chaining if you have to necessarily use the opposite gears. I have a flat trail here and I chose my 1x spaced towards the harder gears to be a faster bike because I very rarely shift on my easier gears. It's almost like a fixie with only 3-4 gears used out of the 10. It works and there's hardly any wear on any of my gears at all. It's a very specific bike meant not to do any climbs because of the bike trail I chose to ride it on. It works for me
There's a little 20m ramp near us that takes a lower gear than you'd think to get up, always worth a good natured giggle when a new guy finds it.
I read an article about cross chaining on Road cc a few years back and though Shimano said to avoid it, if you can, SRAM (which Conor is riding) said cross-chaining is not a problem and not to worry about it. I do it sometimes, like Si mentioned the other day, when powering up a hill it’s sometimes good for your ego to think you managed to stay in the big ring 😅
Cross chaining should be avoided but we all do it now and again 😆 It's one of those things that if you can build up a good habit it's best to avoid 🙌
My SRAM Rival will let me go to big-big but won't got to small-small. I guess cross chaining on the big ring isn't as much of a problem as on the small ring
@@MacBob yeah I think the same. Do a search for Road cc crosschaining and you’ll find the article. Quite interesting to see the different advice the groupset manufacturers give
"Your right hand shifter will control the gears at the back of the bike, and your left hand shifter will control the gears up front."
SRAM HAS ENTERED THE CONVERSATION.
I thought they were actually gonna show us a visual example, and talk about cross-chaining wow!
I needed this! As someone who is getting into biking 😮 I need this! Also is there a video the breaks down a road break and its parts?! Trying to learn!
I'm learning this to help me drive a manual transmission
Isn't 1x system also cross chaining at the 2 extremes of the cassette? Can the inefficiency be felt by the rider? I'm on a 2x small bike, which I know will amplify the inefficiency.
What is recommended chain ring in front if your terrain is flat. ? And also chain ring in the front if your going uphill?
Thank…
I have an old 3 chainring on front, but I rarely use the smallest one (affectionately called the "granny gear"). On flat or downhill, I keep my road bike on the largest ring up front, but typically use the middle ring for almost all terrain that ranges from flat to gentle hills. My bike seems to respond to this the best. I've only used the smallest of my three rings for severe hills that are well over 30 degrees.
If you want to get more judicious about shifting, try a bike with down tube shifters. You have to chose your gears early lest you get stuck grinding in the wrong ring
I thought you can shift under load with SRAM AXS. Is that correct?
My tip is put 34-36 and high Pignoni back cassette when you store your bike in the garage
Loved this presentation, I wonder if you could do one on accessories for the bike. I ride with a camera on my helmet but I had it on the stem of the handlebar for a while. I also use a Garmin on one side of my handlebar and a light on the other, especially when I used to commute to work. Finally when I ride alone, a lot of the time at the moment, I have a fitting for my phone for maps.
Good one friend had a bad shift mid hill yesterday!
Crackin's vid! Super helpful!!
The part where I know I could do much better is when going from a downhill into an uphill. The strategy is to maintain as much speed as possible on the uphill while conserving energy so you don't fail on the climb. I just know I could do much better on that type of hill transition.
Everything (and I mean "every single thing") in this video I hard learned by myself, was just confirmed in this video. Just wish I watched it earlier!
Do a video with Conor’s endurance vs the aeroad
Still a newbie and i always end up big big. I need more practice to get used to shifting to the smaller chairing while still in the middle
I accidentally got used to riding in my hardest gear most of the time, seems the only option is to find harder hills but if you go uphill you usually have to go down and I don’t like speed.
Keep it really simple - ride Fixed!
Awesome video & Thanks :)
Excellent advice
Some time soon, perhaps a new video on how often and how best to clean a bike.
good job Celtic duo!!!
Thank you!!!
Is it ok to change gear while climbing? It works but there is no way of stepping lightly and the sound the chain makes feels a bit wrong. But sometimes there is no other way.
Like you said, sometimes it's impossible to avoid but getting in the right gear before you start the climb is never a bad idea 🙌
Changing gear on a hill is essential. Just give a burst of power if possible before the shift, ease off the power as you shift then back on with the power hard as you can to regain lost momentum. Then back to a sustainable power output. Repeat if you still can't maintain speed or are accelerating.
Takes practice because you really have to be aware of exactly when the shift is actually happening so you can ease off the power for the shortest time possible.
Try to avoid changing the front mech mid-hill. If you do, back off completely before you change
@@a1white Often that would mean stopping altogether.
Not sure if anyone else does this but if I get caught out on a steep climb, I stand up to get some pressure up, then sit down and change down taking the pressure off.
Thanks for the excellent content as usual. Why do you recommend a cadence of 80-95?
Because that's what the pros do which makes sense as they are putting out 300W +. Makes no sense to a typical cyclist who might only be at 100 - 200W when 65 - 75rpm might be more appropriate. To be most efficient it should vary depending on power output so as to keep the pressure or torque at a consistent optimum level for your preference. A higher cadence is often recommended as it reduces muscle fatigue, however its less efficient and puts more stress on the rest of the body. So it's very much a compromise and about finding the sweet spot which also depends on what you want to achieve and where you strengths lie.
At the end of the day preferred cadence is a personal thing, it's whatever feels right to you.
Nice sound recording.
I always try to tell people, shift your bike how you woudl shift a manual transmission, keeping high enough rpm to where its not consuming too much gas or getting too hot, but not so low as to stall it. Gearheads will understand what i mean by that alot easier than the average person.
So what is the forbidden gearing?please tell me by the way im using 12 speed
Connor , how many spacers do you gave on your ultimate .?
steep climbs definitely come out of nowhere on Zwift! And then disappear just as quickly. Being in the wrong gear is a given!
What about non electric gears changing. ??
If you've left it late changing down and having to really grind to keep going, often dropping to the small front ring is less traumatic than trying to skip through the rear cassette.
Ooo nice hack! Do you find you are then cross chaining?
Not as a rule but I'd say you're more likely to mess up the rear mech/chain, trying to shift up the cassette whilst stamping on the pedals. @@gcn
Should have mentioned, when talking about lightening the pressure while shifting on a climb, that the best way to break a chain is to shift under heavy load. Especially with regard to newer, thinner 12 speed chains. This is especially true if you decided to go and buy a cheap chain.
I've broken chains this way, so I'm speaking from experience.
How much do you weigh? I am 60kg and I think that would make a difference to hitting the chain's limit on load.
I haven't broken a chain, but I have snapped a rear derailleur off 🫢
Young whippersnappers never ridden friction downtube levers.... :-)
Press the lever thingy and wait for the clicking sound to turn into a clunking sound 🤣
Turn your pedals if using derailleurs. Optional if using internal hub gears.
I’m a bad shifter then why should I buy dura ace etc top grade, will it make it easier?
No, but it will make your bad shifts really smooth.
we always referred to cross-chain as goofy geared.
You know guys, you neglected (I think) to offer the plan when you do get caught up a steep grade in too high a gear. My plan is tp look behind me (make sure no cars coming behind or oncoming) and make a loop into other lane and shift while in the downhill part of the loop and avoid the ugly gear crunch of shifting under extreme load. What?
Another way is to learn how to apply the front brake while standing, change your gear and lift the back wheel up and rotate the pedal using your clipped in foot. May need to do this multiple times to get into the correct gear. Useful at traffic lights when a sudden stop means didn't have time to change down.
I still sometimes drop the chain while changing down from the big ring on a climb. I have seen it happen to others on a group ride, pretty embarrassing. I think it's to do with pedal pressure. Does this happen to anyone else?
Well, you don’t want to change gears when you’re pedaling harder than or faster than normal if at all possible. It’s rough on the drivetrain and can even cause the chain to pop off the sprockets.
Remember down tube friction levers and 5sp freewheels..... Live was easier, people knew more about simple mechanics.
I am wondering whether they are couple
GCN out of breath for every video haha
Everybody has 2 additional gears tho, out of the saddle and on the saddle xD
Hahahah spoken like a true singlespeeder 😆
Video assumes that we know how to change gears and gives tips accordingly. I got no clue how to change
An expensive Agu GCN Gilet/Vest at £164.99. When is a gilet not a gilet, when a GCN presenter wears it unzipped and it flaps in the wind like a boat sail.? Aero or not aero.?
How old am I? I'm "smash the downtube shifter with your knee while sprinting" years old.
In my commute, I have to go from gear 15 to gear 1 in two meters. Forget the sequence, and you're done.
I never know what gear I'm in. As long as I'm not spinning like a track sprinter. Or not ripping my leg off trying to turn the cranks. I'm a happy bunny.
I think it is time to clean that chain
Once you get Di2 and a head unit you can see exactly what gear you are in on the cassette. Used right it can improve the efficiency of your peddling.
Oooo we love that idea! That's the sweet nerdy stuff 👌
Who remembers Shimano Flight Deck?
Hey I have old Tiagra, it still has indicator markers at the top of the shifters!
I am so frustrated with all of these videos.
How do I cancel the gear already
Most of the time I change gears under load. I know its wrong but when climbing I don't really have any other options.
UFO in 8:38 🤯
Conner should consider waxing his chain. Gunky cassette just a nice.
I see unwaxed drive trains 😮
Make a video talking about using sneakers instead of flats.
👌
"you need a bigger gear" so use a smaller gear, the bigger gear is for climbing? Not confusing at all, you might want to rephrase that. 😆
Are gcn viewers really not going to know this?