this post was submitted on 29 Jun 2025
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Cities do lower average speed significantly, but 30k in 3 hours is indeed very slow.
Hard to diagnose from afar, but I'd say take a look at shifting technique and pedaling cadence. It's actually not so easy at first to know when to shift and which gear is right (until it becomes second nature and you never think about it again.)
Pedaling speed should be viewed as somewhat of a constant (try to aim for 60rpm at first, maybe?), and your job is to pick the gear that feels comfortable for that cadence in a given situation.
I'll try to focus more on my shifting! Thanks for the advice :)
One question - for hills, for example, which derailleur has more of an effect? For example, on a big hill, am I better off being in 1st gear on the chainring and 3rd out of 8 gears on the cassette, or 2nd gear on the chainring and 1st gear on the cassette? Which do people usually use?
In terms of pedaling, it doesn't matter. The same ratio between teeth in the front divided by teeth in the back will feel exactly the same. The only rule here is that you are aiming to keep the chain in a somewhat straight line. Supposing you have two chainrings in the front: Never go small-small or large-large, as that would put strain on the components. For a 2x11, for example, usually all gears are safe except for 1-11 or 2-1, if that makes sense.
Yup, don't cross the streams...or chains as they say :)
A common proverb in cycling.
As well as "it doesn't get easier, you just get faster."
That is indeed something people actually say, but it's a lie. It gets easier in so many ways.