CHAPTER VIII.
The Art of Wheeling a Bicycle.
There are three very important methods of controlling the bicycle, namely, steering by the hands, guiding by foot-pressure on the pedals, and guiding by the swaying of the body; and these methods may be used separately or in combination.
The wheels are kept in motion either by pedaling, or simply by gravity in descending a grade. The use of the hands on the handle-bar is two-fold for the inexperienced—for steering and for correcting undue pressure on the pedals. The hand opposite the pedal that receives too much pressure corrects the tendency of the bicycle by an extra pull on the handle-bars. This is very good exercise, but it is a useless expenditure of force, and cannot be prolonged without great fatigue. It is the work of hill-climbing done on the level. The feet are on the pedals, and the natural tendency is to press equally at all times on both pedals and pull at the same time on both handles. One pedal must descend, and the other pedal must ascend; they are attached to the same axle, which is turned by either pedal or both pedals. As the pedals are always on opposite sides of a circle, one is always coming up, and its upward tendency is resisted by any pressure, however slight. The lifting of the foot, therefore, from the ascending pedal means easy wheeling. This is one of the hardest things to realize. If there is little or no pressure to resist from the up-coming pedal, it is necessary to expend but little force to propel or push the down pedal; only enough, indeed, to overcome the weight or inertia of the bicycle and the bicyclist and of surface friction, provided there is no grade. But of grades, there are many; and to this is due the infinite variety of the sport of cycling, the muscular development and increased respiration of the cycler.
CORRECT PEDALING.
The handle-bars should at all times be ready to receive a sudden grip or squeeze. Grip the handles hard when you want to hold on, and only pull as much as is absolutely necessary; for if the arms are stiff and rigid from pulling on the bars, they will not be sensitive enough to control the bicycle. The handles of the bar are the ends of a pair of levers; and the nearer the hand to the centre of the bar, the less power is needed to oppose the other hand. When there is a tendency to pull hard on the handles, gradually slip the hands near the middle of the bar, and the pull will ease up. The front wheel, to run easily, should run steadily; and the less wiggle there is, the better for steady travel.
The pedal is the projection on the crank adapted to the use of the foot. There are many varieties of pedals, of differing sorts, weights, patterns, and purposes. The foot placed on the pedal pushes it down; the push is communicated to the wheel to propel the bicycle forward. As the pedal leaves the dead centre, the power begins to take effect, and continues until the dead centre below is reached. Now, it is necessary to push at just the right time and place; if too soon and too hard, the wheels of the bicycle will go too fast, and must be retarded by pressing down on the up-coming pedal. The natural weight pressure of the foot is more than enough to propel the bicycle over ordinary surfaces at a fair rate of speed, without the application of great muscular power.
The foot should be placed squarely on the pedal, the ball of the foot only resting on it, and the toe pointing downward. The foot may be made to perform divers duties, and numberless new combinations of pressure can be and are called for and applied.
To apply more power in the stroke, begin to push when the pedal is all the way up, the toe pointing down until at the lowest part of the stroke, ready to follow the pedal around, pushing it backwards, and helping to lift it. Here the toe-clip helps, and holds the foot on the pedal, in the place where the tendency to leave it is greatest. Balanced pedaling is a little different, and weight-pressure on the pedal is used as a factor to overcome the front wheel.