The Big Book of Bicycling

SAFETY FIRST. Tell your child that safety starts with a helmet, appropriate clothing—including shoes—and a well-tuned bike. Once you’re rolling, safety means constantly assessing the situation, looking out for danger, and knowing the path away from it. Tell him that being safe on a bike is a process that never ends.

Driveway games make great skill sessions: Challenge your child to steer around small rocks, or to stop before hitting a chalk line. It’s a great idea to get together with neighborhood parents and kids for a morning of fun riding at a local playground. Kids tend to learn best when simply following the example of others their size.

Talk about how everybody wrecks sometimes. Teach your kid to step over the top tube if the bike falls over (training wheels make rear dismounts tricky), as well as to tuck a shoulder and roll through a fall without sticking an arm out. Single best boo-boo saver: a pair of child-size cycling gloves.

DON’T GROW INTO IT. It’s tempting to buy a bike that’s too big so the child can grow into it. With adjustable handlebars and saddles, it can work (within reason), especially on bikes smaller than the 20-inch size. But here’s the problem: Too-big bikes are hard to control, making it more likely that Junior will crash. Always remember the keys to small-fry fit: being able to easily put both feet on the ground, and being able to turn without reaching uncomfortably far. If the larger bike lets your child accomplish both, then go for it. If not, the bike is too big.

What You Should Teach: Before the ride, put your helmet on, then help your child. Tell her she looks very grown-up, just like Mommy and Daddy. Resist the urge to extend the ride your first few times out. You want to familiarize your child with the process, not make him feel like he’s being toted around. Ask him where he wants to go, and point out trees, birds and squirrels. On your first longer ride together, 90 minutes max (with stops), go to a cool destination—the park, the zoo, an ice cream stand. Build the connection that bikes take you to places that are fun

IF YOU HAVE TO OPEN YOUR MOUTH TO GET ENOUGH AIR, YOU’RE GOING TOO HARD FOR A FIVE- TO SIX-HOUR RIDE.”—ALEC DONAHUE, SENIOR ASSOCIATE COACH FOR CYCLE-SMART AND A FORMER PRO ROAD AND MOUNTAIN BIKE RACER

Eat protein, too—it helps muscle cells repair and recover. “Use a 4:1 carb-to-protein ratio,” says Kimball. For example, a cup of low-fat yogurt, with about 30g of carbs and 6g of protein, is an ideal snack

Rest = It’s important to take at least one day per week—but no more than two—completely off the bike. (Easy riding helps you recover better than inactivity.)

Aches and pains crop up during long rides. To minimize them, move.

A) Periodically change hand positions, keeping your thumbs wrapped around the bar or brake lever for security.

B) To relieve your neck and shoulders, shrug for 5 to 10 seconds.

C) On a clear stretch of road, reach one hand up between your shoulders for a few seconds, then swap hands.

D) Stand up and drop one pedal so your leg is straight. Let your heel sag below the pedal. Hold for 20 seconds, then switch legs.—Alex Stieda

As he graduates to a bike with two hand brakes, explain that the front brake provides about 75 percent of the bike’s total stopping power, and should be used with greater finesse than the rear.

What are the biggest riding errors you see triathletes make?

I’d say they ride too big of a gear. But I can’t say that they are wrong; it’s more that I just have the reflexes of a cyclist. I’m in the habit of spinning my legs at 90 rpms, so that’s better for me. To me, they put too much emphasis on pushing big gears.

I would also say that often they don’t get the most from aero equipment. In Zurich, for example, a lot of guys were riding with disc wheels, but the circuit was really hilly. There was a three-kilometer climb, and riders were just dead stopped. That wasn’t the place to use disc wheels, because to get the full benefit you have to be in a situation where you can go around 27 miles per hour.