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Anatomy of a
Seat
Quick
Release
Skewers
Elastomer
Swing
arm
lock
point
Seat
Serial
Number
Seat Track
Rear
dropouts
Swingarm
Elastomer
Clamp
Wingnut
17
the bars in a light but firm manner. Let your shoulders droop, relax your neck, don’t
“death-clench” your teeth. Once you relax you will have more control over the bike.
Next, you should practice using the brakes. Stop and take off a few times, getting a feel
for how much pressure on the lever it takes to slow down or stop the bike. Remember to
always use both brakes together, with gentle pressure at first to stop the bike smoothly.
Drop both your feet to the pavement while giving the brakes the final squeeze to stop the
bike. Lean forward a bit and stand up, while reaching behind you for the seat frame to
steady the bike. Practice stopping and dismounting, then starting off again. You should
also practice stopping by dropping only one leg, typically your non-dominant leg. This
exercise will help you deal with momentary stops, such as at stop signs and traffic lights.
It does take a little practice to balance the bike leaning onto a single leg. Remember to
keep one hand clamped on a brake to prevent the bike from rolling, it really helps. I
usually immediately cock my “crank-bound” leg for the start, and then hold pressure
against the brake until I’m ready to go. You should also carefully investigate what hap-
pens to the bike with gradually increasing brake lever pressure, so you will be comfort-
able with quick decisions on the road.
Don’t fall asleep on me yet, we’re almost done. The last thing you should practice before
hitting the open road is your shifting. You really need to be work on being aware of how
the gears work. Be aware that you must be pedaling to shift the derailleur (if your bike
has one). Both the Nexus seven speed hub and the Sachs 3x7 hub can be shifted when the
bike is stopped, although sometimes you have to kick the pedals backwards a bit to finish
the shift. Shifting either derailleurs or internal gear systems should be done under light
pedaling pressure. Make sure you practice shifting into your start-up gear before you
stop.
You shouldn’t feel like you have to do everything in one session. Many novice riders
actually do much better working up to the open road in several short training sessions,
often days apart.
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