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Keep Those Knees In!

04.15.2014 by Ray Niekamp // Leave a Comment

Back when I started riding, I was with a friend who was an experienced biker, taking a few laps on the Veloway. At one point, a young woman passed us, and my friend picked up the pace to stay close to her. This surprised me, because this particular friend isn’t interested in women.

I caught up to him, and he said, “I wanted to see her position on the bike — if she kept her legs in. She does. Looking good.”

Huh?

“A good rider keeps the knees close to the top tube,” he replied. “Some people ride with their knees sticking out to the sides.”

Uh, guilty as charged. When I walk, my feet splay out a bit. I even have my cleats adjusted, ever so slightly, to maintain that foot position on the bike. But I realized that my knees not only looked bad, they were putting pressure on some of the muscles in my upper thighs.

I paid attention to my knee position after that. It took some work, because it wasn’t a normal position for me. But over the ensuing years, I forgot about knee position.

Just last week, I noticed it. I’m not sure why, but it came to me that my knees were sticking out again. I moved them toward the center, and whadya know — it felt a lot better. It seemed as though I was putting more power to the pedals.

Putting the knees toward the inside has another benefit. It helps get the feet into a heels-down position. I had been gradually getting on my toes when riding. It seemed as though I was generating power. But it had been flexing my calves, and they were often sore and achy after a ride. With the heels down, I really am generating power. It’s easier to pedal in a circle, and I’m getting a little faster. And when I finish a ride, my calves don’t ache.

But it’s not something that I can attend to once, and adopt it as a new habit. In the last few days, I’ve caught myself with my knees sticking out on every ride. I pull them in. But another mile or two down the road, they’re out again. It looks like it won’t be easy for me to keep my knees in.

But I know it’s the right way to pedal. I’ll keep working on it.

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Categories // Technique Tags // knee, riding position

Rain Riding Tips

06.30.2013 by Ray Niekamp // 1 Comment

bikersintherainHere in Central Texas, mid-summer is a crazy time to write about riding in the rain, since we typically have so little. Still, I was caught in a downpour several weeks ago, so it can happen.

I noticed while riding in that downpour that I am a lot more skittish now when riding in wet conditions than I used to be. That’s because I’ve had some bad experiences in the rain. A couple of falls caused me some injuries, and at my age, it takes longer than it used to to recover from injuries.

So I asked Bike Noob readers to send me their tips for riding in the rain. I got some good ones. Here are the best:

Slow down. This is a no-brainer, I think. But there are good reasons to make this the number one rain riding strategem.

  • Visibility is down. Your glasses get spattered with water.
  • Motorists can’t see you as well.
  • Rain will spread oil residue around before washing it off.

Corner slowly. Take corners slower than usual. This is where I screwed up. In one crash, I turned from an older asphalt surface that absorbed the rainwater, onto a newly resurfaced street where the water stayed on the surface. My front tire slid out from under me. If I had been prepared for this possibility, I would have taken the curve much slower than I did. In the second crash, my rear wheel slid out because I turned too quickly on a wet street (It wasn’t even raining anymore!).

Some experienced riders suggest leaning the bike a lot less than usual when cornering on wet roads. Other riders say this is bunk. But because of my personal experiences, I try to lean my body a bit in a corner, while keeping the bike as upright as possible.

Pump the brakes. Since the brakes work by gripping your rims, you have less stopping power when the rims are wet. So it’s a good idea to allow more time to stop. Pumping the brakes from time to time will squeegee water off the rims. Of course, you should start pumping them early as you approach a stop.

Reduce tire pressure. Letting about 10 pounds out of the tires will increase contact with the road surface. That should give you better control.

One thing that struck me about this advice is that I’m already practicing most of this. I’ve been tripped  up in the past by not stopping to let some air out of the tires if I get caught in the rain. That, along with more cautious cornering, are probably the two most important things I can do to give me greater sense of control while riding in wet conditions.

Oh, and thanks to everyone who sent tips about dressing warmly, equipping the bike with fenders and wider tires, etc. In Texas, few riders I know have “rain bikes.” And since we don’t get a lot of rain, I don’t know anyone who has a set of fenders handy to mount in the event of a shower. I was mostly interested in riding techniques for this post.

But a couple of acquaintances told me they enjoy the rain. “Riding in a torrential downpour is something you won’t forget,” said one. Another recounted a 100-mile ride done mostly in rain. “It was probably not the wisest decision we could have made,” he said, “but in the end, the ride turned out to be epic.”

And whaddya know, overnight we had a pretty good thunderstorm. When I got up early for the Sunday club ride, rain moved in again. I finished breakfast and watched the lightning brighten up the block, and sheets of rain nourish our already-browning lawns. It was a great opportunity to put some of these rain riding tips into practice.

Instead, I invoked my first rule of riding in the rain (which some of you also shared with me) — I don’t. I waited for the rain to end and the roads to dry. Then I went out.

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Categories // Technique Tags // rain

How Do YOU Ride In The Rain?

06.20.2013 by Ray Niekamp // 9 Comments

Okay, I have to ‘fess up. I am hesitant to ride in the rain. I shouldn’t be, and I have a reasonable amount of experience at it — although in Central Texas, we have far less opportunity to ride in the rain than people in other parts of the country.

Here’s what triggered this post: I have fallen four times on the bike since 2009. Two of the four falls were the result of rainy or wet  conditions. Each time, I had little in the way of open wounds, but took a long time to recover from being banged up. Shoulders, ribs, hips, etc.

I joke with my friends that “I’m too old to fall.” I say that because at my age, I know recovery takes longer. And yet, back in March, I did fall.

And three weekends ago, I was on a club ride when the skies opened up. Oddly enough, it happened on a stretch of road where I had been caught in a downpour just last summer. Then, I recall sticking with the group, and covering about 10 soaking miles. This time, I found myself reacting in a skittish, almost timid way to the rain.

I slowed way down. The guy I was riding with took off, and in no time was a quarter mile ahead of me. The shower we were in didn’t last long, and the road actually started drying out after the next couple of miles.

A member of our club whom I don’t know well was recently hit by a car, and although his recovery is nearly complete, I’m told he has a sort of post traumatic stress disorder about it. He’s almost scared to get back on his bike and ride in traffic.

I’m not that bad about rain, but I’m a lot more cautious than I used to be.

And yet, people ride in the rain all the time — relish it, even. So, readers, I’m asking for some reader participation here.

How do YOU ride in the rain?

Rather than post in comments at the bottom of this page, I prefer that you email me. I’ll compile the suggestions, tips, skills, guidelines — whatever you want to call them — and put them in their own post sometime in the future.

It’s unlikely I’ll be looking for rain riding opportunities even after I get some tips — but I’m hoping I won’t be as hesitant about it as I am now.

Again, to respond, just send an email to rainycamp AT yahoo DOT com.

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Categories // Technique Tags // rain

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