- Triathlon is an exciting and fast-paced sport,
and with the bike leg making up majority of the race,
we hate the thought that the absence of a few skills
could stop you enjoying it more.
- So we've put together our top five
essential bike skills for you to master.
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- Riding on the aero bars is a little bit
like riding one-handed.
It takes time to build up your confidence.
So, start off alone, away from a group
and try and find a smooth, straight road.
And then, when you're ready, just put one arm
on the aero bars, then the other until you're relaxed enough
to get into the full aero position
where you can make any adjustments
to make yourself comfortable.
- To get yourself out of the aero bars,
you just need to do the same again, but in reverse.
So lifting one arm at a time, and as a little safety point,
when you're in the aero bar, you're obviously quite far
from your brakes so you should continually scan the road
for any potholes, bends, or obstructions
so you've got plenty of time to react.
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- Riding out of the saddle is a very useful skill to have.
And it can also help save on effort as it allows you
to apply more pressure down through the pedals
using your body weight whilst also giving your bottom
that much needed respite.
- Now, depending on the incline,
you may want to shift up a gear as you get out of the saddle
so that you're still applying force
to the pedals without spinning out.
Now keep your hands on the hood,
while shifting your body weight forward slightly,
and you may notice a lot of people swaying their bike
from side to side a little like I am.
That is just to allow better transfer of power to the pedals
almost as if you're stepping into them.
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- Cornering ability can really separate cyclists.
A lot happens in a short space of time so it's important
that we try and break things down a little.
- So firstly, we want to consider our entry.
It's normally better to enter the corner slightly wide,
as if we're trying to straighten out.
And then we want to think about our braking.
We should try and do all our braking
or as much of our braking before the corner as possible.
And then if it's wet, you'll obviously want to go
a touch slower to try and scrub off
a little more than you usually would.
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As you round the corner, you should look ahead
towards the exit whilst applying pressure
on your outside foot at the six o'clock position.
And then, as you exit the corner,
you should continue to look ahead
and avoid pedalling until you're upright
so that you don't clip the ground.
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Cycling one-handed isn't just for the cool kids,
it's actually pretty important for any ride.
- Yes, firstly indicating to other road users
requires cycling with one hand.
The same is if you need to communicate
when riding in a group.
Also, when you want to take a drink, you need a free hand,
the same is to get food from out of your back pocket.
- It really is just a case of practise makes perfect.
You should try gently removing one hand
at regular intervals during a training ride
and to make things a little bit easier,
try holding onto handle bars lightly
almost as if you're playing the piano.
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And finally, braking is a really essential skill.
If you're following someone's will
or you're riding something technical,
then you should have your fingers over the levers
ready to respond, brake, and slow yourself down.
Now it's really important you know
which lever activates which brake.
It's actually your front brake
that is the most effective for slowing you down.
That said, you should always apply both brakes
even if you only feather the back brake
as it all helps to slow you down.
Try to keep looking ahead at the point you want to stop
rather than right in front of you
and keep your arms relaxed.
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So there's our five essential bike skills
and to see more videos like this,
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And to see our eight best value triathlon upgrades video,
just click above, and to see how to run
a fast 5k with GCN's, Dan Lloyd, just click below.