News & Information

Getting fit

To reduce post ride stiffness, before every ride do some warm-up exercises to get your body ready to perform. Start with some easy warm-up limb exercises - stretching, bending, twisting and swinging your limbs through some light movements. Five minutes is usually enough to warm up for a casual ride. When you first get on the bike, start off slowly, gradually increasing your speed over the next 10 minutes. When...

Read more... | Published: 11/01/08

Braking

Since you have two brakes, one for each hand, if you want to stop as safely as possible, you need to pay attention to how you use each of them. Conventional wisdom says use both brakes at the same time but with care. This is probably good advice for beginners, who have not yet learned to use their brakes more skillfully. Over the bars Many cyclists shy away from using...

Read more... | Published: 11/01/08

Using gears

For the novice, the hardest thing about learning to ride other than getting the right balance, is using the gears and knowing what happens next. The best advice is to practise where the different gear lever positions are, so you automatically know where to shift them. Practise on a quiet street, bike path or empty car park. To better understand how the gears work, try this simple 60 second exercise....

Read more... | Published: 11/01/08

Pedal Power

Leg speed translates into pedal power and it’s known as the ‘cadence’ or rate at which a cyclist turns the pedals per minute. If your leg speed is not tuned to the road ahead then neither are you. Over a distance if you pedal lower than the 60 to 80 revolutions per minute (rpm or cadence) you will quickly tire out. Climbing steep hills or cycling into a head wind...

Read more... | Published: 11/01/08

Choosing the right bike

Before buying a bike check with your friends or colleagues who ride regularly to get their opinion on what type of bike you should choose then visit your local bike shop to get their advice. Today you have more choices than ever before: Hybrid bike - great for rail trails, roads and tracks and everyday riding around town Flat bar road bike - an excellent choice for fast and efficient...

Read more... | Published: 11/01/08

Ideas and Suggestions

This thread has been created for people to post their ideas and suggestions for the Bikepaths site. So post away and let us know your views! The bikepaths team

Read more... | Published: 02/01/08

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