TEST RIDES ~ thoughts, meanderings and musings

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I love the bar end shifters on my Rivendell. I was a beginner rider when I got that bike, and I got used to them pretty quickly. Like anything, they seem odd at first, but you get the hang of it after a few rides. I like the left hand one to be non-indexed for the front rings. 'Non-indexed' or 'friction' is no clicking into pre-defined positions- just a smooth transition that slowly pushes the chain from one ring to the other. I like that for the front rings because you can then 'trim' the position to get it in the sweet spot. It sounds complex but it's really not, and it all becomes second nature after a while. It's actually sort of fun to shift this way...like a craft.

[sandra]

It sounds complex but it's really not, and it all becomes second nature after a while.

Not confusing at all. I get it. Similar to the shifting on the mixte where you can get it in the perfect spot by moving ever so slightly.