Proper Mountain Bike Gear Shifting

Proper Mountain Bike Gear Shifting

                 How to properly shift gears when riding your mountain bike                         by Eddie Aguilar

  On a recent mountain bike ride with the Blue Sky Cycling team I noticed several riders not shifting gears when needed.  This led me to write a quick blog about the proper way to shift your gears when riding a mountain bike.  The mechanism of a bicycle’s drive train that controls a cyclist's cadence; that rate at which a cyclist turns the pedals, and that rate at which the rear wheel turns is called bicycle gearing.  A bicycle gearing system includes the whole set of components involved in the gearing mechanism: The shifters, shifter cables, the derailleur, the gears and the pedals. Most conventional bicycles have only one gear, meaning that the gear is fixed. In this case, the cyclist has no choice but to vary his/her cadence to match what the terrain offers or the speed he or she wants to ride at. On the other hand, most contemporary bicycles such as mountain bikes and speed road bikes have multiple gears hens a variety of gear rations.  

   These gears are meant to solve the problems of efficiency and comfort. The rider uses the shifting system to select a desirable gear for most comfort and efficiency. For instance, it is most comfortable and very efficient to ride on a low gear when climbing and a middle gear when riding fairly flat and smooth trails. A cyclist's pedaling speed and strength is limited to the power of their muscles. Different cyclists of different stamina have different exhibit cadences. Therefore the gearing mechanism is used to ride a bicycle beyond the limits of the cyclist. A bicycle’s gearing mechanism uses the limited range in cadence of a cyclist and gives it the highest                                                                                                      efficiency if used properly.  

Taking advantage of your mountain bike gears

    In my opinion,  it is every mountain bike cyclist’s interest to make the full use and take full advantage possible of the gearing system and mechanism on the bicycle. Mountain bike cyclists such as cross country riders, whether in competitive riding, workout or any riding purpose need to know and decide when and when not to use the gear. They should also have the knowledge of which gear will best work for them in different circumstances. Efficient gear shifting doesn’t occur naturally. It is more of a skill that has to be learnt over time than an inborn phenomenon. Perfect gear shifting involves smoothness, precision and efficiency. Good gear shifting makes the rider a more capable mountain biker. Good gear shifting skills enables a rider to adopt rapid changes in the terrain smoothly and easily. It enables the rider to roll over obstacles with less fuss and induce more momentum faster with little effort. Well let us have a look at some gear shifting habits that can make you a better mountain biker if properly nurtured.  Some mountain bikers usually wait for a climb to get tough and start wearing them out before they can shift to a lower gear. This is not correct. It is important to look and anticipate the terrain ahead and get prepared for it. Shift to a lower gear just before the climb starts getting tough. This will reduce the loss of your momentum and make the shift smoother and easier.  Check out this link for more information on proper gear shifting.  

  Preparing Your Gear Shifting

     You may be tempted to shift gears when riding on large corrugation or rock gardens. These features are normally very rough and very fast. You should prepare in advance and decide to shift to an appropriate gear just before or after such features. If you dare shift while riding on these terrains, your chain risks falling off as your bike roughly jumps and bounces. Eventually you will lose momentum, concentration and in some cases you might be forced to stop and correct the chain before you continue.   If you intend to stop, it is not advisable to shift the gear immediately before you stop. It is recommended that you pedal at least two revolutions after you shift the gear before you stop. This will allow time for the chain to transition completely. This also ensures that you get a smoother quicker and more focused start after this.  

If your intention is to stop, it is critical that you quickly assess your terrain and shift to an appropriate gear in readiness for the next takeoff.  For example, if you are on an uphill terrain, it would not be efficient at all to start on the highest gears. If you stop on a sandy flat terrain, the best gear to make the next start is the low gears.  Low gears will help you get out of sand quickly by adjusting your gear ratios. 

Up Hill Gear Shifting

     When you are about to begin an uphill ride, it is more reasonable and efficient to begin shifting the front derailleur first. Then you will have the advantage of slowly shifting lower and lower using the rear gears. This will ensure that you keep your cadence steady through the whole shifting process. When riding uphill you need to get focused on the track and keep a steady cadence and shifting the rear gears first and the front last creates a great uneven change hence confusing your cadence and focus.  Pedaling hard during a gear shift only puts a lot of stress on the chain and gears and makes it more difficult to shift. It is advisable to keep the pedaling at a lesser force making it easy for the gears to engage smoothly.  If you are riding and the chain keeps brushing against the front derailleur cage, it means that most probably you are riding on a bad chain line. 

Great Video on Gear Shifting...

     An example of a bad chain line is when you ride on the smallest gear in the front and the smallest gear at the rear, or the largest gear in the front and the largest gear at the rear. This forces the chain to run diagonally between the front and the rear gears. Apart from inefficiency, a bad chain line can damage your bike by sagging or even snapping your chain. To ride on a good chain line, make sure that the chain does not cross excessively across the front and the rear gears.  For example, if you have three gears at the front and nine gears at the rear, make a habit of combining the three largest gears in the rear with the smallest gear in the front, the three middle gears at the rear with the middle gear in the front, and the three smallest gear at the rear with the largest gear in the front.  Thank you for reading and I hope this is helpful.  As always please feel free to leave a comment with any questions.  

Check out our website for all your mountain bike parts and accessories.  We also carry road bike parts!  

Blue Sky Cycling

2530 Randolph St.

Huntington Park, Ca 90255

(323) 585-3934

https://www.blueskycycling.com

info@blueskycycling.com