// MANUAL
a. Shifting Gears
There are several different types and styles of shifting controls: levers, twist grips, triggers,
combination shift/brake controls and push-buttons. Ask PROPAIN or your dealer to explain
the type of shifting controls that are on your bike, and to show you how they work. The
vocabulary of shifting can be pretty confusing. A downshift is a shift to a “lower” or “slower”
gear, one which is easier to pedal. An upshift is a shift to a “higher” or “faster”, harder to
pedal gear. What’s confusing is that what’s happening at the front derailleur is the oppo-
site of what’s happening at the rear derailleur (for details, read the instructions on Shifting
the Rear Derailleur and Shifting the Front Derailleur below). For example, you can select a
gear which will make pedaling easier on a hill (make a downshift) in one of two ways: shift
the chain down the gear “steps” to a smaller gear at the front, or up the gear “steps” to a
larger gear at the rear. So, at the rear gear cluster, what is called a downshift looks like an
upshift. The way to keep things straight is to remember that shifting the chain in towards
the centerline of the bike is for accelerating and climbing and is called a downshift. Moving
the chain out or away from the centerline of the bike is for speed and is called an upshift.
Whether upshifting or downshifting, the bicycle derailleur system design requires that the
drive chain be moving forward and be under at least some tension. A derailleur will shift only
if you are pedaling forward.
CAUTION: Never move the shifter while pedaling backward, nor pedal backwards
immediately after having moved the shifter. This could jam the chain and cause serious
damage to the bicycle.
b. Shifting the Rear Derailleur:
The rear derailleur is controlled by the right shifter. The function of the rear derailleur is to
move the drive chain from one gear sprocket to another. The smaller sprockets on the gear
cluster produce higher gear ratios. Pedaling in the higher gears requires greater pedaling
effort, but takes you a greater distance with each revolution of the pedal cranks. The larger
sprockets produce lower gear ratios. Using them requires less pedaling effort, but takes you
a shorter distance with each pedal crank revolution. Moving the chain from a smaller spro-
cket of the gear cluster to a larger sprocket results in a downshift. Moving the chain from a
larger sprocket to a smaller sprocket results in an upshift. In order for the derailleur to move
the chain from one sprocket to another, the rider must be pedaling forward.
c. Shifting the Front Derailleur:
The front derailleur, which is controlled by the left shifter, shifts the chain between the
larger and smaller chainrings. Shifting the chain onto a smaller chainring makes pedaling
easier (a downshift). Shifting to a larger chainring makes pedaling harder (an upshift).
d. Which gear should I be in?
The combination of largest rear and smallest front gears (g. 16) is for the steepest hills.
The smallest rear and largest front combination is for the greatest speed. It is not neces-
sary to shift gears in sequence. Instead,
nd the “starting gear” which is right
for your level of ability — a gear which is
hard enough for quick acceleration but
easy enough to let you start from a stop
without wobbling — and experiment with
upshifting and downshifting to get a feel
for the different gear combinations. At
rst, practice shifting where there are no
obstacles, hazards or other trac, until
To Next Page
Loading...
