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Based on the people I've seen riding, knees-apart is a symptom.
New rider - it takes time to develop a good pedal stroke, and some people haven't got there.
Saddle too low - If your position is really bad, then the knees instinctively separate. I have no idea why - try riding a way-small bike. Relates to....
Posture - riders who might remember the Moon ...
29
As (almost) always, the great Sheldon Brown has covered this particular topic. Standing while Cycling
To Sit or to Stand?
It is my belief that a great many cyclists stand up to pedal much more often than they should. I've often said:
"If you find yourself standing to accelerate, on level ground, it is a sign that your gear is too high or that ...
19
To complement Neil Fein's answer, the rider's position is almost entirely controlled (given a particular rider) by the geometry of the bike.
Compare the following bikes. In the first image of a hybrid bike, the saddle is slightly below the handlebars. In the second image depicting a road racing bike, the saddle is well above it, forcing the rider to lean ...
17
I agree with Hicks sentiment that the crank "giving" is more likely due to worn parts or misalignment. The crank would have to flex a lot to actually be responsible for ghost shifting, which would make it incredibly poor quality. Sheldon's article strikes me as cursory for "When Should You Stand"...
Assuming you have the gearing for whatever you're riding ...
15
I think this relates quite nicely to motorbikes where you corner at very high speeds and I'll give a run-down of the techniques, why they are useful and how they apply, and how they might apply to cycling.
So when turning left:
You shift your weight over on the seat and tilt the bike left. This allows the centre of gravity to be slightly lower, aiding in ...
15
Yes there is one main trick, and some regular skills.
The trick is: if you LOWER THE TIRE PRESSURE, any tire will float over sand like magic. It should not be so underinflated as to allow easy pinch flats, but the lower the pressure, the more marked the floating effect. There are just two limitations:
If the tire is skinny (low volume) it might not be ...
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I think that this is a bad advice you've heard (by many?).
For pedaling seated, the seat has only one position; the proper one. See How do I determine the correct position for my bicycle seat? for info on how to set it correctly.
Regarding the flab thing, as far as I know touching your stomach with your thighs (or any other part of your body) will not ...
14
There isn't really any reason you can't stand while pedaling. If your drive train is not adjusted properly then they will experience skipping or mis-shifting. That's an entirely separate issue from being able to stand up and pedal.
14
Low seats provide clearance for more acrobatic body movements. This is essential for bunny hops and nearly every other trick which builds off of this skill. If you look at trials bikes they similarly have lots of clearance for the rider over the frame and the saddle. Since speeds are relatively low, and long distance riding is not the goal, pedaling ...
13
Standing up on a bike, especially when you lack fitness, is a good way to go "anaerobic." Put simply, that means your body is working so hard, it can't get enough oxygen. You can only do that for a short amount of time, which for most people is in the range of 10-30 seconds. Then the lactic acid build up in your muscles becomes too painful and you are forced ...
12
Boardman used what is known as the "Superman" position, as shown in this image.
This position has been deemed to be against the rules by the UCI. Compare it to the position that Wiggins had on the bike, shown here.
His arms are not as outstretched, and therefore it is not as aerodynamic.
The superman position was first used in the hour record attempt by ...
10
I ride a pro racer XL BMX. They are built for speed. I keep my seat down for 2 reasons.
all my pedaling is done standing up -- power is everything for a racer.
My saddle is made of one material only -- composite material -- its like sitting on a steel plate.
I only use it to coast on and relax -- and that is only after the race. However, If I have ...
10
When you switch to the crankset behind cogs, you need to move the derailleur above the cogset.
Think of it as rotating the entire drive train 180 degrees forward or flipping the entire bike over the bars and then moving wheels down until they touch the ground.
Note that the different crank positions require different chain length.
10
Potential for damage to wheels depends on sharpness of the bump, speed, bike and rider weight, tire volume and pressure, and how tough the wheels are.
Moving your weight back or pulling up on the bars will lessen the impact to the front wheel but will increase impact on the rear.
Large or sharp bumps are best avoided altogether. Standing on the pedals with ...
9
I think most people find the bike-to-run transition quite difficult while the legs adjust from going in a circular motion to running. Particularly for longer distance courses.
Here's an interesting article from a renowned triathlon athlete/coach:
http://www.trainingbible.com/joesblog/2007/01/cleat-position.html
The article discusses the merits of putting ...
9
I would suggest attaching the bars and doing some test rides.
Is your bike, with it's aggressive geometry, stable when using them?
Are you comfortable using them?
Does this new position provide some relief, or is it just more annoying?
I think you're the only one who can determine if they'll be an advantage to you. In general, I'd think the extra position ...
9
Of course, you will have less control over your bike if you don't hold the handle bars, especially if something unexpected happens (like a truck coming out of nowhere at full speed for example).
Regarding sitting upright, you are very lucky to be able to keep your back straight like that, most people have a bad posture, and are not comfortable sitting ...
9
I really doubt it. A number of problems pop into my head immediately.
Corners.
French/Italian/Spanish road surfaces.
Holding your legs up long enough to be worth it.
I'm pretty sure this video is staged.
Chris Froome caused a stir this year at the Tour just sitting on his top tube and that looked sketchy enough at 100kmh, twitchy and uncomfortable.
9
I've almost done this, and its not "easy" but it should be possible.
However a non-stop 100 km is much harder than simply doing 100 km. Try working up do it. I don't know what your current distance is for a "big ride" but start with 25 km non-stop, then work up to 50, 75, and then 100 km.
Leave early in the morning on your big rides - it seems to help ...
9
It's all about core strength, not arm strength. If you want to ride like this for long periods of time you should be supporting most of your weight with your core muscles - not your arms. Your weight should be on your sit-bones, anchored on your saddle. Then your back and abdominal muscles stabilize your pelvis and share the load with your arms. Your ...
9
Your observations are confounded with time and lots of things can change in the intervening time, this include your flexibility (e.g., hips and/or hamstrings) and your components (e.g., your saddle).
Flexibility, is often the first thing to change, if you were relatively inflexible in your hips you may have adopted posterior rotation of your hips (i.e., ...
8
Your question is based on an incorrect assumption about how a bicycle makes turns. You say
"...move my bottom to the left and this is sufficient to tilt the bicycle to the left."
Unfortunately, what you are stating above is simply impossible in practice.
A bicycle can be thought of as a vehicle that is "attached" to the surrounding environment by an ...
8
What you're referring to is tucking, an act that's most easily done with drop bars - the curved handlebars with multiple hand positions you see on road bikes. The holy grail for some hardcore roadies (road cyclists) is the flat back, where the rider is tucked all the way forward, their hands on the lower part of the drop bars - the "drops".
This is done so ...
answered Oct 15 '12 at 19:14
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8
As @Daniel has commented, and I agreed, you probably have a bike fit problem. We cannot be sure; the only way to find out for sure is to get a professional fitting done. Having said that there are still a few things you can try.
While you say you try to adjust my hand positions, what positions do you use most?
...
The Allez handlebar setup is one I ...
7
Intuitively, I don't think it's possible to accelerate as much sitting down as standing up, no matter what gear you're in. Yes, standing up is less efficient, but it is faster over a short distance.
I'm a road commuter/tourer (straight bars), I stand up in these situations:
Pulling out at a junction in traffic, usually from a standing start. The ...
7
I have personally ridden and raced on many sandy courses and trails (e.g. Moab) and the best advice is to shift your weight back, relax and think about guiding rather than steering the bike.
You will never be able to ride in a perfectly straight line, so get over it or avoid sand. Rather you need to let the bike move and shift around under you. You will ...
7
Regarding part 1:
I'd start by raising the stack height a bit so that you lean on your wrists with less weight; your position will be more upright and less aerodynamic. Along with this, make sure your saddle is properly adjusted for height.
More importantly you should try strengthening your abdominal muscles. With a stronger core you will be able to ...
7
Pedaling while standing always takes more effort; we do it when we need the extra boost.
When you were younger and rid[ing] a bicycle a lot, you were also fitter. I'm guessing you have had a sedentary job for a while, so now your whole system needs to build up again. This is, unfortunately in our modern world, normal.
As with any strength / fitness program,...
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it might be for therapeutical reasons.
once I hit a pole with my knee and it hurt. I asked a physiotherapist how to ride until it gets better (I had to because I was working as a messenger) and I was told to stick my knees out. it did help.
the other explanations given by @Criggie may be more frequent, but this is a valid reason too.
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it would seem to me that nutrition, hydration, waste disposal and arm fatigue would be the greatest challenges
Nutrition: isn't that hard, although if you haven't already, you might want to spend some time figuring out what food works for you on the move.
You want things that are fairly calorie-dense, probably not too much fibre (see point #3) and agree ...
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