Clipping out up a steep hill?

[AnnieBikes]

Dropping the chain can be happening for several reasons. It can be from a bike that has a bit of cable stretch (as with a new chain over time) or if the limit screws on the derailleur are not set properly and the chain either goes off on the frame side of the chain rings or the pedal side. If it happens, it is easily fixed by pulling forward on the derailleur and putting the chain back onto the smaller front ring. You might get some grease on your hands but that's why I wear black shorts! If it happens very often,take note of which side the chain drops to so you can get your bike shop to reset the limit screws. If it happens only rarely, it can be a bad shift and I think that happens to all of us at one time or another!

Check out this website for help on a dropped chain...not trying to hijack this thread!!

http://www.bicyclesouth.com/chain.htm

[AnnieBikes]

Gabriellesca.it is so normal to be so scared!! I was absolutely petrified when I started and I assure you after you ride with them a while, you will become totally comfortable with them. My bike shop said to be prepared to fall off 11 times (who knows where THAT figure came from!!) I have fallen but I have gotten better and better and now don't even think about it. It DOES take time to become comfortable and what you are doing is right...practice, practice, practice. Plan to clip out a bit BEFORE you are ready to stop...plan ahead always and you will not fall. You will learn to go faster and you will learn to feel confident. It just takes TIME!! Good luck and don't give up!

[TrekTheKaty]

11 times! In what time period? I'm up to 3.

I forgot zig zagging. My DH rides a particularly RUDE route in Babler State Park, MO. My Brother-in-Law first tried the zig zag on that route, and he said it's better than walking

[Pedal Wench]

Check out this website for help on a dropped chain...not trying to hijack this thread!!

http://www.bicyclesouth.com/chain.htm

Ha! That's my local bike shop!

[AMP]

Today was Mother's Day, my 57th birthday, and I got to ride my spankin' new Bianchi Infinito with clipless pedals for the first time. For about ten feet and 3 seconds.... I clipped in with both feet, didn't bother to check what gear I was in, couldn't move the pedals fast enough and went right down. So, all the fear I had about how I was surely going to crash, how I wasn't going to be able to get my feet off those pedals was right on. And then after the shock and the indignity, I realized I was actually quite all right. I got back on, clipped in and out about thirty times each foot while I held onto my parked truck, checked my gears, and then rode for an hour around an enormous parking lot clipping in and out the entire time. Not gracefully and not without muttering some awful stuff about new technology.

But actually, I'm glad I spilled. Helped my panicky fear. I needed to get that out of the way. My LBS told me I'd have three spills. Better than 11. I figure I'd better keep out of traffic for everyone's sake and off very steep grades until I'm much more intuitive with these pedals.

I can't help but remember that learning to ride a bike was not without it's perils and that so many women have bravely mastered these pedals. I think we can all do it, but we need to give ourselves enough time to learn to this new--and scary--skill safely.

[Crankin]

You don't have to go through any of this to put a dropped chain back on! You have to think quickly to do this, but it's second nature to me now. As soon as you feel the chain slip, you put your bike in the big ring and keep pedaling. The chain goes back on by itself. Really.
If you are on a steep hill, this might be hard, but you can carefully shift the chain down to the next lower ring as you keep pedaling once it's back on, but you have to soft pedal. The trick to steep grades is to put your bike in the granny gear (or small ring if you have a double) before you start the climb and put the cogs in a higher gear, so you can shift down as you need to.
You can put a dropped chain back on if you are off of the bike the same way. Put the bike in the big gear, pick it up and rotate the pedals by hand until the chain pops back on.
I do not like those steep climbs with a stop sign at the top, either.
Clipless pedals are not that scary. Make sure you have the tension set at the easiest setting, if you have spd pedals. All this talk of 11 falls is crazy. I never fell and as I said earlier, I am not that coordinated.

[OakLeaf]

I do not like those steep climbs with a stop sign at the top, either.

+a million. Especially if the road you're crossing is busy. Especially if it's wet. I've come close to getting in serious trouble in that situation.

What I like even less is those steep climbs with a stop sign in the middle.

Back to the OP - I think a lot of it is about anticipation, just like all the other aspects of hill climbing. Think of clipping out as your final downshift. Just as you need to shift before you run out of power, and lighten up on your pedal stroke so you're not putting a lot of torque on the chain when you shift, it's the same with clipping out. Know when you're starting to run out of steam, know the minimum cadence and maximum power where you're no longer able to keep the bike upright (by feel, not necessarily by gadgetry, although those are nice if you have them), and don't be so hung up on getting up the hill without walking that you don't clip out until it's too late.

And it's possible (but just as likely not) I might have had 11 FTU falls since I first started riding clipless in 1987. Certainly not in any short period of time after I first learned.

[gabriellesca]

AMP - I wish I had such a healthy attitude. I'm so frightened of falling and I've only done it twice and both times it really upset me. Isn't that silly? The first time I was out on a road I had no clue where I was and none of my teammates were around. I really wiped out on that one (and that was just me turning to see if they were coming). Yesterday's fall scraped up my knee but you're right - I survived - it wasn't that bad. For me its all about the memory of my friend falling into that moving car. It really scared me.

But I do have to keep trying - not give up. So many people have gone through this and have learned it - and it seems to be second nature for everyone now. Just like anything in life, its all about attitude. So its time for a better attitude.

I'm planning on going down to my old hometown Wed, Thurs, Fri, and Sat - to ride those streets. I know the hills - and the hills I can't get up - I know where all the stop signs are - where traffic gets heavier. So I'm going to go down when kids are in school and parents are at work and ride. I'm hoping it will help give me a bit of confidence.

Thanks for the tips about clipping out on hill. Oak - great points that I hadn't really thought about.

I'm just wondering how long until when you ride you go back to your regular speed and you don't constantly clip in and out? I did it over and over again yesterday as if to just double check that it all still worked.

[gabriellesca]

ps. One time we saw this woman who was flying down a super steep hill with a stop at the bottom and a super busy road at the stop. She didn't have time to stop quickly and unclip and really wiped out - she was in bad shape. We had to call an ambulance. That is really scary. When I go down super steep hills I still use my breaks (I know I shouldn't) - but how in the world do you handle a hill like that? Unclip as you're going down in case there is a stop at the bottom?

[OakLeaf]

NO, don't unclip during a descent! That really increases the chances you'll lose control.

Covering your brakes is good; feathering them when you start getting beyond your comfort zone is good; riding them until your wheels lock and your tires skid (another loss of control), or until your rims heat up and you lose braking power, is not good.

Do a search on descending, there are lots of good tips on the forum.

[marni]

I do not like those steep climbs with a stop sign at the top, either.

Or how about the rides in the Hill Country with t he cattle guard half way up the steepest part of the steepest hills? Just when you realize that you are in your granny granny gear and can't get up enough speed to get over it safely. And it is such fun tip toeing over those things. One ride I did had nothing but hills, and most of them, or at least 14 had cattle guards on them. I walked a lot that day.

marni