Force of Habit
The CyclingSavvy course has a segment called Train Your Bike. But could your bike also be training you?
Yes, the bicycle teaches the rider. And muscle memory does not fade!
A child can develop habits that work poorly on a grownup bike. These habits can last a lifetime unless consciously reversed. Consider, for example, a child who first rides a bicycle with a low saddle and coaster brake — as is common.
Coaster-brake habits
Coaster brakes are relatively trouble-free and intuitive to use, but they train the rider in habits for starting and stopping. It’s like this: the rider stands on the rearward pedal to brake to a stop. The forward foot, then, has to step down to keep the bicycle upright. Both feet have to be down to switch feet and restart. Whole nations — Germany, the Netherlands, Denmark — have traditionally ridden coaster-brake bicycles (though that is changing) and the awkwardness of stopping and restarting has shaped their style of riding and their infrastructure choices. Coaster brakes are common too on children’s bikes in the USA.
Having both feet on the ground when seated requires a low saddle. And so, force of habit can lead cyclists to prefer the saddle low, reducing pedaling efficiency. Cyclists who have learned this way often never break the habit.
It can take some work to accustom a growing child or an adult with decades of ingrained habit, to a bicycle with handbrakes.
See what happens with coaster-brake habits on a bicycle with the saddle at the height for efficient pedaling. It isn’t pretty!
A bicycle with a freewheel and handbrakes makes for easier stopping and restarting, using the better technique. You slide forward off the saddle and put one foot down, then bring up the opposite pedal for a power-pedal start.
A simple experiment demonstrates force of habit
Subscribers to CyclingSavvy probably already use the pedal-step dismount and power-pedal start, but a simple experiment will demonstrate the force of habit. Try putting down the opposite foot when you stop. You’ll find that it takes practice to become comfortable with this. It’s actually useful if a pedal won’t release, or a shoelace winds up around a pedal spindle — or when riding a tandem bike with someone who uses the other foot.
Habits which the bicycle teaches aren’t only from childhood. The bicycle teaches the rider how to provide feedback to stay upright and ride straight. Different bicycles provide different forces through the handlebars and react differently to steering.
Switching among bicycles
Switching between bicycles with different frame geometry, handlebar shapes and mass distribution is like switching between musical instruments of the same family – soprano, alto, tenor saxophones, or violin and viola. They work essentially the same way but controlling them requires adjustments in behavior. I’m recalling my first time riding my long-tail cargo bike, when my reflexes from riding other bicycles led me to overcorrect steering and weave at low speeds. (Aviators have a fancy name for this: “pilot-induced oscillation”.) After a few rides, I adapted to the cargo bike’s handling. The lesson here is to be cautious when setting out on a new bicycle. Especially at the extremes of performance — high speeds, very low speeds, hard braking, cornering — you may need to adapt in order to “tune in.”
A bicycle can teach the rider efficient pedaling, or not. A bicycle without low gears will teach the rider to stand when accelerating and climbing and to conclude that bicycling is difficult. One of the modern pie-plate size sprocket clusters along with double chainrings and a front derailleur should not be out of the question if climbing is an issue!
Brakes again: Pothole damage would push out the sidewalls of the hollow steel rims on most bicycles up through the 1960s, so they lurched when braking. These rims also were slippery when wet and taught people to ride very cautiously or not at all in wet weather.Your bicycle probably has aluminum rims with good rim brakes, or disk brakes. Consider yourself fortunate that your bicycle does not teach you not to ride!
Unlearning and relearning
Overcoming lingering habits may require changing some equipment on the bike, or only a conscious effort and practice to relearn. Efficient stopping and restarting, steering, braking and use of the gears make for a more pleasant and safer ride.
CyclingSavvy online courses cover efficient stopping and restarting but also steering, braking, and use of the gears. Our in-person Train Your Bike session gives you practice and coaching.
It could take a while to change habits but it’s worth the trouble!
