Cycling 101???

For all my cycling friends. Could someone give a summary of Cycling 101 for those of us who haven't ridden a bike in too many year to count. I last rode a bike when I was about 12 and it was a 1 speed. I could use some lessons on gears and proper braking since the bike I had you just pushed back on the pedal and you'd come to and awesome sliding stop( which I really don't have a desire to repeat in traffic.) I live in a very flat area except for a few bridges.  I go to different websites and they talk about cadence and I understand what it is, but  what should my cadence be?

A couple of thing I have learned...I'm no expert.  Drop down a gear or two when you hit a hill or going strong into the wind.  You eat your pride and use what your road gives you.  The other thing that has been great for me, is for my birthday or Christmas...My wife will get me a year supply of Bicycling Magazine...Good read or you can read it on line...

There are all sorts of tips and tricks for climbing and descending, but basically you want to find a gear that you can pedal at quickly without bouncing all over the place. Your body should be totally still as you ride and just your legs spinning in circles.

Make sure you get at least a basic fit for your bike, otherwise you could risk injuring yourself. At least to check and see if your knees are too high/low. Then you can play around with the gears, you'll catch on quickly- when you move it up it gets harder- etc... Just get out there and ride as much as you can and don't be afraid to play with the gears.

Make sure you bring your bike in for a tune up, and keep it clean (rubbing alcohol works wonders)!

Thanks for the info. I just got it back yesterday from the bike shop for a tune up and inspection. Made me feel good that the guys there were amazed and the deal I got for the bike. They put me on a ?spinner? so that they could show me the gears and to make sure the seat was in the perfect place. I went home and rode around my neighborhood to get accustomed to the bike and being back on a bike after a 2 decade hiatus. I rode 4.77 miles. Could have gone further but man was my ass hurting. So, I need some seat advise.  

Well, two things. First make sure you always wear padded bike shorts/pants when you are riding (and go commando) and second, it's not going to be comfortable for a while. You body needs to get used to it, so just keep going for longer and longer and it will get better. Last Sat. I was on my seat for 7hrs and I had no problems and my saddle is about 1/2inch thick!

It's not the thicker the better, because you want to sit on your sit bones. So you need to make sure that your saddle is wide enough for you bones, not your butt, but the bones. If not you'll be sliding all over the place!

Good luck,