Newbie to a road bike

Jen194

Good morning.

I've decided to do a 100 mile charity ride end of September but haven't ridden a road bike before.

I find it quite scary because of the difference in shifting gears and the feet being stuck in the pedal 'cage' (?).

What's the best advice on how to get confident and where to learn how to cycle with this type of bike.

Is there maybe someone in Bedford who could help me out?

Many thanks,
Jennifer

lettingthedaysgoby

Velo South by any chance?

cld531c

Best advice? Get on the bike and ride it! You will soon get used to it and you dont need clipless pedals or toeclips to begin with, you can start out with flat pedals and trainers (you could stick with these if you prefer its just that toeclips/clipless make the hills a bit easier).
Good luck

yiannism

My wife used to scared to ride my road bike, she couldnt believe that had a good stability and the low position make her to feel very uncomfortable, until one day i convinced her to take a small ride and she loved it.

So the best advice its simple. Just ride!

H-Giant

Start off with just wearing trainers and normal peddles, once you get comfortable and confident then you can move onto the toeclips or clipless

Also start of riding on the tops and hoods to learn to use the brakes and change gears, as your confidence grows you can start putting your hands on the drops and changing gears and braking from there

Most people start in the park and then transition onto the roads

Hopefully this helps

keef66

You could see if you have a friendly cycle club nearby; they often welcome beginners on their slowest weekend rides, and you'd get plenty of advice and encouragement. And they'd be able to tell you if you have the right size bike and help you to adjust it to fit if required.

Failing that, just get out on the bike as much as you can.

Find some flattish, quiet, traffic free country roads for your first rides. Take the toe clips off if they worry you. Don't ride too close to the gutter; about a meter out into the road. Practice starting and stopping, braking and changing gear till you feel comfortable doing them. Then find some gentle hills so you get the hang of changing to lower gears to climb them, and the feeling of acceleration as you descend on the other side. Once you're confident handling the bike on quiet roads, you can add in some with more traffic, junctions etc.

Is your 100 mile ride doing the distance in a single day? If so, the sooner you start getting out on the road the better. You need to build up the length of your rides gradually, so you're comfortable spending several hours in the saddle. You also find out what you need to eat and drink on longer rides, what kind of pace you can sustain, and what kinds of clothing work for you.