Stoopid question from Noob

Okay, I am really new rider (guess 2 years or so) but LOVE it. I lurk here a lot (post seldom) but this place gives such awesome advice so here we go. I had a bad spill about a year ago, but got back on. My first real bike was a Trek 7000 WSD (aka Bertha). Heavy, durable, step through design and a tad too small. oh and heavy! Well when hubby got new bike, I got his bike Trek 7.3 FX because it fit well (we went to lbs and checked). They reconfigured it for me and I like, no love, how it rides. No pain. Here is the problem. Dismounting -- I just get tangled up in it. I fell over yesterday and ended up in the dirt laughing. Still it ruined the ride. I just keep getting tangled up and it is a pain in the rear! Help? Hubby thinks I need a new bike with a step through but I just think that's odd. Why the issue -- any advice?

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Originally Posted by bikegrrl

Okay, I am really new rider (guess 2 years or so) but LOVE it. I lurk here a lot (post seldom) but this place gives such awesome advice so here we go. I had a bad spill about a year ago, but got back on. My first real bike was a Trek 7000 WSD (aka Bertha). Heavy, durable, step through design and a tad too small. oh and heavy! Well when hubby got new bike, I got his bike Trek 7.3 FX because it fit well (we went to lbs and checked). They reconfigured it for me and I like, no love, how it rides. No pain. Here is the problem. Dismounting -- I just get tangled up in it. I fell over yesterday and ended up in the dirt laughing. Still it ruined the ride. I just keep getting tangled up and it is a pain in the rear! Help? Hubby thinks I need a new bike with a step through but I just think that's odd. Why the issue -- any advice?

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1) No question is stupid! That is what this forum is for- help and support (:

2) I have a guys road bike, girls Mt bike- I keep my seat slightly lower on Mt Bike (also helps on technical stuff cuz I am not super skilled....) I usually have to remind myself to kinda lean way over and make a point of clearing the bar. I also do the stay seated and lean on stuff if I am not actually dismounting to avoid dealing with it (:

3) Give yourself time! Anytime you switch gear there is learning curve- when I switched to SPDs I gave many good laughs to (of course) large crowds of teenage boys! hahaha Luckily- they were polite enough to wait till I waved that I was still alive till they cracked up (:

I vote for a step through.

How are you dismounting?

After I stop and unclip both pedals so both feet are on the ground, I put my weight on the left foot and swing the right leg back and over the back of the bike. I guess I tilt the bike as I do this; I really never think about it.

Are you trying to get your leg over the top tube, toward the handlebars? Any problems with flexibility that make it hard to move your leg high enough to get it over the bike? Are you trying to stop and dismount all in one motion?

I may be trying to do stop and dismount in one motion. It just seemed easier before, but it may just take practice. I am not a naturally athletic person but its annoying, nevermind embarrasing, get tangled up in your own bike. Starting is actually easier on this bike.

It is hard to stop and dismount at the same time. You need to slow, lean your bike slightly to one side, and then put your foot down. You should be putting your foot down as you are at the point where you are almost stopped. Then, when one foot is firmly on the ground and you are stopped, you can swing your leg back and over to dismount.
This will become more like one action , but it's not.

It's just because this bike handles very differently from the one you're used to. Don't be embarrassed! As long as you can ride it you're doing great. Stopping and starting are the hardest points to learn, and if you've had a step-through it's just a balance movement that's completely new to you, nothing to do with your biking skills as such.

Hey, I know my bike inside and outside, and fell over attached to it on the ice yesterday :) It's not that easy to stand still on two little patches of rubber, and I have the bruise to prove it.

I dismount differently on all of my bikes. Generally I have to lean the bike over to swing my leg over it - and that is for all of my bikes. It depends on which bike as to how far I have to lean it over...

You will find the best way that works for you - don't worry about it. Changing bike types absolutely requires a different way to start and stop, and our bodies need time in which to learn the best approach for that bike. Give yourself time and have fun!

It is so hard to put these types of things in words so here is a nice video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5SjH...eature=related

Are you using clipless or clip on pedals? That adds another variable.

A bike that's taller in front (handlebars, stem, head tube) is harder for me to dismount than a drop bar bici or sport moto. A lot more of most people's range of motion in the "splits" comes from hip flexion in the standing leg, than from extension in the leg you're swinging over the saddle, so if your bike's front end keeps you from hinging forward very far at the standing hip, it can be hard to get your leg over in the back.

You always want to turn the handlebars away from the foot you plan to put down - because it induces the bike to lean toward that foot - but if that's an issue, maybe if you turned them even more, they would be less in the way of your head?

Just something that occurred to me. Personally, I'm more likely to get tangled in a step-through frame if I actually try to step through it rather than dismounting the "regular" way. But that's probably just a matter of practice. I do like the convenience of being able to "stand up, coast in, step off" on a step-through - I've never been coordinated enough to do that on a diamond frame.

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Originally Posted by goldfinch

It is so hard to put these types of things in words so here is a nice video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5SjH...eature=related

Are you using clipless or clip on pedals? That adds another variable.

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Nice little vid.

I just wanted to add, I'm a klutz and not very flexible. To get off after she stops in the video, I do an awkward little side hop so the bike is leaning toward me and thus the top tube is lower to the ground then step over.
I ride a bent now, an I still do this little shuffle to lower the amount of lift I need to get on/off. Looks awkward and geeky, but keeps me from falling over.

You might just need practice. I practiced getting off and on the bike so much it was ridiculous.

Are you losing your balance when you try to raise your leg to come off the bike?
That happened to me at first, and I just kept trying. I get off the seat and have both feet firmly on the ground before actually moving off the bike.

I agree with Oak that trying to step through a step through would make me more tangled, though I doubt that's true for everyone.

Good luck, and it is not a stupid question at all. Making sure you are confident and safe on your bike is the opposite of stupid.

I also dismount with one foot firmly on the ground, bike tipped slightly to that side and swing the other leg over the back of the bike. For me it's my right foot on the ground and left foot that I swing over the back of the bike, but I also realize this is from horseback riding that you mount and dismount a horse to the right side, so for me doing it this way is ingrained even though it's a bike and not a horse.

OK this might be a "stoopid" reply. :o
I had a road bike client once upon a time that fell over EVERY time he tried to get off the bike. I had started him with regular "open" pedals just to be safe because he was a bit tentative on the bike.
He literally came back with all his knees and elbows bleeding after owning the bike for a day and asked us what was wrong with the bike.
I walked outside with him and asked him to ride/stop and dismount. As his baggy running shorts over his tights snagged the saddle....he went down again. "See?"....he exclaimed, "it happens every time!"

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Originally Posted by Seajay

OK this might be a "stoopid" reply. :o
I had a road bike client once upon a time that fell over EVERY time he tried to get off the bike. I had started him with regular "open" pedals just to be safe because he was a bit tentative on the bike.
He literally came back with all his knees and elbows bleeding after owning the bike for a day and asked us what was wrong with the bike.
I walked outside with him and asked him to ride/stop and dismount. As his baggy running shorts over his tights snagged the saddle....he went down again. "See?"....he exclaimed, "it happens every time!"

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This cracked me up because one of my early wrecks was caused by riding in soccer shorts! I was going down a steep hill (MT biking) and got back so my weight was over the back tire, then when I came up the dip and slid forward to climb some excess fabric caught on the back of the bike seat! It was ugly, painful, and in hindsight hysterically funny!!!!! (:

Actually, now that I think about it a bit more. One thing we DO see a lot is women who try to step off a "standard" frame as if it were a step thru.
Rather than swinging off "horse style"
So they are straining to get that leg up so their heel clears the top tube. Even on a small bike this can be challenging. Maybe this is the issue?

Thank you -- had a practice session tonite with video as reference. I think its a balance issue.

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Originally Posted by bikegrrl

Thank you -- had a practice session tonite with video as reference. I think its a balance issue.

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Practice makes perfect :) The body has to learn things, just as our minds do. I remember when I first started learning how to ride 2 years ago (I am 52), getting things into my muscle memory was the most frustrating part - especially as I am the kind of woman who wants to go full-steam ahead with whatever I do :o :rolleyes:

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Originally Posted by bikegrrl

Thank you -- had a practice session tonite with video as reference. I think its a balance issue.

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It was definitely a balance issue for me. I can't really explain it, but I have to make sure my foot is firmly grounded before I swing my leg over.

I'm sure practice will make it better.

I'm pretty sure that if I read this thread carefully and think about getting off my bike, I'll start falling!

1. Decide which way you'll lean your bike when you stop. Most people lean to the right. You'll find that after awhile, the way you lean will become second nature.

For the sake of explanation, let's assume you'll lean right.

2. Before you come to a complete stop but are moving very slowly, take your right foot off of the pedal. Your left leg will be extended completely.

3. As you come to a stop lean slightly right. If this feels uncomfortable, turning your front wheel very slightly right will help you lean to the right.

4. As you come to a complete stop, your right foot will contact the ground. Hopefully nothing else will contact the ground. :D

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Originally Posted by Dogmama

3. As you come to a stop lean slightly right. If this feels uncomfortable, turning your front wheel very slightly right will help you lean to the right.

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I think that's reversed, Dogmama. Physics of countersteer says if you want to land on your RIGHT foot you should steer LEFT in the last couple inches of rolling.

Unfortunately I've been avoiding the cold by riding indoor most of the time now. But I did lower the seat a tad for those few outside rides (the weather this winter has been weird) and its made a big difference.

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Originally Posted by Seajay

I think that's reversed, Dogmama. Physics of countersteer says if you want to land on your RIGHT foot you should steer LEFT in the last couple inches of rolling.

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Hmm, I've always turned the wheel left to lean the bike left to step out on my left foot. I figured that if you're making a left turn, the bike is going to lean left.

But I can feel (in my mind's eye) how steering right would work, except I'm feeling like I'd have to be already leaning left.

I guess the bottom line is not to land on your bottom! :D

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Originally Posted by Dogmama

I figured that if you're making a left turn, the bike is going to lean left.

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And the way you initiate a left lean is by turning the bars to the right. Now you've got a smaller tire circumference on the left side of the front tire, the contact patch is at a less than 180° angle to your forks, and the bike's going to lean to the left. It's called countersteering ...

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Originally Posted by OakLeaf

And the way you initiate a left lean is by turning the bars to the right. Now you've got a smaller tire circumference on the left side of the front tire, the contact patch is at a less than 180° angle to your forks, and the bike's going to lean to the left. It's called countersteering ...

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this sounds like technical talk to me...where is the blinkey thing?:D

I've been meaning to say how helpful that link was -- It took practice but I am dismounting well now. Thanks!

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Originally Posted by bikegrrl

I've been meaning to say how helpful that link was -- It took practice but I am dismounting well now. Thanks!

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Yayyyy! My problem was always the other way - getting started. I STILL don't start "properly"...but I get it done :)

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Originally Posted by Koronin

but I also realize this is from horseback riding that you mount and dismount a horse to the right side, so for me doing it this way is ingrained even though it's a bike and not a horse.

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I grew up on a ranch in New Mexico riding cow ponies in a western saddle and they were all mounted from the left, each and every time without fail. When did it change? or does it depend on the kind of horse and saddle do you think?

just wondering

Incidentally, when I dismount my road bike (from the left of course) I have to lean it so far over to the left that the peddle touches the ground.

marni

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Originally Posted by marni

I grew up on a ranch in New Mexico riding cow ponies in a western saddle and they were all mounted from the left, each and every time without fail.

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Me too, grew up with horses, rode race-horses for a living for four years, left side all the way. Seemed very natural to me, as right-handed I'd be leading the horse (or the bike!) on that side anyway. But my horsy years are twenty years gone, so I'd be interested to hear if there's been a change.

For those of us who's traditions trace back to Europe...
Horses are (were?) mounted from the left, because all good Knights fought right handed, therefore your sword hung off your left hip. So it's much easier to mount with that leg staying on the ground and swing your right leg over the hind end of the fine steed.

We're culturally geared to mount and dismount from the left.

I'm not so certain about Asian cultures and horse mounted fighters.


My brain won't let me mount my bike from the right, unless I can step-through. Walk around to the left side, swing my right leg over the back wheel. The only way. :rolleyes:

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Originally Posted by bmccasland

For those of us who's traditions trace back to Europe...
Horses are (were?) mounted from the left, because all good Knights fought right handed, therefore your sword hung off your left hip. So it's much easier to mount with that leg staying on the ground and swing your right leg over the hind end of the fine steed.

We're culturally geared to mount and dismount from the left.

I'm not so certain about Asian cultures and horse mounted fighters.


My brain won't let me mount my bike from the right, unless I can step-through. Walk around to the left side, swing my right leg over the back wheel. The only way. :rolleyes:

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I also grew up riding horses (bikes were only interesting to me as pretend horses to me when I was a kid!) and I always knew you mounted from the left, but I never knew exactly why, or where the tradition came from. Thanks for the explanation. I don't think my brain would let me mount either a horse or a bike from the right, either. In fact, driving on the left side of the road would probably be easier for me.:)

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Originally Posted by bmccasland

My brain won't let me mount my bike from the right, unless I can step-through. Walk around to the left side, swing my right leg over the back wheel. The only way. :rolleyes:

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Iknew there was a reason having something to do with weapons but I couldn't remember it. Thanks for the reminder.

I have become so accustomed to swinging my leg back to dismount that I even do it on the step through spin, stationary and recumbent bikes, much to the amusement of those around me.

marni

I only just learned that motor cops dismount right, on the high side. That's so they're not stepping off into traffic when they're pulled over on the shoulder. It sure is one more thing to think about though, even if you're big enough to get your leg over - making sure you don't tip the bike over on the side where the sidestand isn't!