Once you know which type bike you want, make sure the bike you select fits you properly. There’s essentially two ways to accomplish a good fit. If you want a perfect fit, for about $50, have a quality bicycle shop calculate your bike size using a computerized program called the Fit Kit. They’ll take various measurements such as, length of your legs, torso and arms then give you a printout of your measurements and which frame height and length best suits your body.
The second best way to get a good bike fit is to follow these guidelines:
Frame Height. Straddle the bike. You should have one to two inches of clearance between the top bar of the bike and your crotch, three to four inches if you’re going to be riding on off-road terrain. If you want to be a little more exact, measure your inseam, straddle the bike, pick it up until the top bar touches your crotch, then measure the distance between the bottom of the tires and ground.
Frame Lengths. Be sure when you sit on the bike you can comfortably reach the handlebars. If the handlebars are too far away you won’t have adequate control, if they’re too close you’ll be uncomfortable and tire easily.
Seat and Handlebar Adjustment. A quality bike shop will make the necessary adjustments for you to fine tune the fit of the bike. A critical adjustment is seat height. Your knee should have a 25-30 degree bend when the ball of your foot is on the pedal at its lowest position. The handlebars should be one inch lower than, or the same height as, the seat. Check to be sure you can comfortably reach the brakes and that the width of the handlebars are approximately the width of your shoulders.
Take a Test Ride. Just like purchasing a car, this is where the rubber meets the road. You should feel comfortable and in control. Your elbows should be relaxed with a slight bend and squeezing the brake levers should be easily accomplished. Slide your rear back off the saddle, stand up on the pedals, flex and round your back, and move your hands to various positions on the handlebars to assure you can move around on the bike easily while it’s in motion.
Accessorize Once you select the bike to purchase, you’ll want to get some accessories to go with it. Most important is a helmet. You may also want to consider a tire pump, tube repair kit, pressure gauge, seat pack, water bottle and cage and a lock. The bicycle shop can help you select these and install them on your bike. Depending on how much you spend on your bike, you may be able to convince the salesperson to throw in some of the accessories at no charge.
Enjoy the ride.
References:"How to Buy the Perfect Bike", Fitness, October, 1996 p.76Buying a Bike: Rec.Bicycles FAQ Part 2/5 at http://www.cis.ohio-state.edu/hypertext/faq/usenet-faqs/html/bicycles-faq/part2/faq.html A Bike That Fits at http://www.geocities.com/Colosseum/2737/fit.htm
Showing posts with label Tips and tricks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Tips and tricks. Show all posts
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
How to Improve Handling Skills
Bike handling skills also have to be developed over a period of time. Those who learned to ride as children have an enormous advantage over late learners. Riding in a straight line is an important first skill; motor vehicles often pass with just a foot or two of clearance, and motorists often honk at cyclists that they see swerving. Other important skills are gear shifting, mounting and dismounting the bike in various ways (especially at a traffic light or stop sign), avoiding stones, holes, or glass on the road, looking back while cycling straight ahead, turning sharply and suddenly, climbing while standing, descending rapidly, and avoiding the bites of dogs or kicking back at them to keep them away. Before riding in much traffic, a cyclist should be comfortable with the bike, even under emergency conditions. As children, we used to play lot of games or perform tricks that were actually bike-handling training rides. An adult learner can do the same thing. A large empty parking lot is an excellent place to practice. Try to maintain a straight line along a painted line, both looking ahead and to the rear, and to swerve to avoid some colored paper cut-outs prepared ahead of time. Practice almost stopping without putting a foot on the ground and then starting again. Practice mounting and dismounting under different conditions, including on slopes. Glancing back while riding straight ahead is difficult to learn, so many will want to get a rear-view mirror. Mirrors are sold which attach to the bike frame, the handbars, the glasses, and the bike helmet.
Bicycle Traffic Safety
Bicycle traffic accidents, also called cycling accidents, pedalcycle accidents, bicycle crashes, pedalcycle crashes, and bike-car collisions, can be avoided through understanding why they occur.
There are many people who think that bicycling is especially dangerous, not recognizing that cyclists travel more miles per fatality than pedestrians and more hours per fatality than passenger vehicle users.
However, saying that cycling is fairly safe on the average does not mean that individuals shouldn't make efforts to make their own cycling more safe. We see a vast difference in the safety of selected groups of cyclists; for instance, children have 720 accidents per million hours while a group of British cyclists averaged just 66 accidents in the same amount of cycling time.
We also see strong differences between individuals. Some have frequent, serious falls and/or collisions, and others have few accidents or none. In my 100,000 miles of cycling, I have fallen off of my bike six times, resulting in skin abrasion twice and no visits to the doctor. All of my own accidents, by the way, were due to my own stupidity and could have been easily avoided.
One choice a bicyclist can make is to be fatalistic about the matter and to decide that some cyclists are lucky and others are not, and another choice is to work to prevent future falls and collisions. However, the decision to try to be careful in itself is not safe enough. Many fatalities and injuries occur among those who were trying to be careful, but who weren't following the correct procedures. For example, cyclists who ride on the sidewalk, on wrong side of the road, and at the extreme edge of the pavement are all fearfully trying to prevent injuries, but the methods they employ greatly increase their chances of getting struck by cars.
Analysis of bicycling accidents and of cyclist fatalities demonstrate that cyclists are most safe when they operate their bicycles as vehicles. Motorists scan the highway in front of them and on either side watching for other vehicles. They do not watch as carefully for pedestrians, and they do not anticipate fast-moving bicycles traveling on sidewalks, crosswalks, and shoulders, especially when traveling in the opposite direction from the rest of the traffic.
For this reason, bicycle traffic laws are almost the same as those for motor vehicles. All state laws either define bicycles as vehicles or give cyclists the rights and responsibilities of vehicle operators. Unfortunately, police do not enforce these laws, probably on the principle that only the cyclist is likely to be injured. In fact, in some areas, cyclists are encouraged to ride on sidewalks where they are less safe or to use bikelanes which violate the rules of normal traffic behavior.
The advice I provide in my articles is based on my own experience in traveling by bicycle and on accident analyses that I have read. For those needing more basic advice, John Allen and Wayne Pein both have safety handbooks online (see the right-hand column).
There are many people who think that bicycling is especially dangerous, not recognizing that cyclists travel more miles per fatality than pedestrians and more hours per fatality than passenger vehicle users.
However, saying that cycling is fairly safe on the average does not mean that individuals shouldn't make efforts to make their own cycling more safe. We see a vast difference in the safety of selected groups of cyclists; for instance, children have 720 accidents per million hours while a group of British cyclists averaged just 66 accidents in the same amount of cycling time.
We also see strong differences between individuals. Some have frequent, serious falls and/or collisions, and others have few accidents or none. In my 100,000 miles of cycling, I have fallen off of my bike six times, resulting in skin abrasion twice and no visits to the doctor. All of my own accidents, by the way, were due to my own stupidity and could have been easily avoided.
One choice a bicyclist can make is to be fatalistic about the matter and to decide that some cyclists are lucky and others are not, and another choice is to work to prevent future falls and collisions. However, the decision to try to be careful in itself is not safe enough. Many fatalities and injuries occur among those who were trying to be careful, but who weren't following the correct procedures. For example, cyclists who ride on the sidewalk, on wrong side of the road, and at the extreme edge of the pavement are all fearfully trying to prevent injuries, but the methods they employ greatly increase their chances of getting struck by cars.
Analysis of bicycling accidents and of cyclist fatalities demonstrate that cyclists are most safe when they operate their bicycles as vehicles. Motorists scan the highway in front of them and on either side watching for other vehicles. They do not watch as carefully for pedestrians, and they do not anticipate fast-moving bicycles traveling on sidewalks, crosswalks, and shoulders, especially when traveling in the opposite direction from the rest of the traffic.
For this reason, bicycle traffic laws are almost the same as those for motor vehicles. All state laws either define bicycles as vehicles or give cyclists the rights and responsibilities of vehicle operators. Unfortunately, police do not enforce these laws, probably on the principle that only the cyclist is likely to be injured. In fact, in some areas, cyclists are encouraged to ride on sidewalks where they are less safe or to use bikelanes which violate the rules of normal traffic behavior.
The advice I provide in my articles is based on my own experience in traveling by bicycle and on accident analyses that I have read. For those needing more basic advice, John Allen and Wayne Pein both have safety handbooks online (see the right-hand column).
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