A Radically Practical Guide to Riding Your Bike - Just Ride

Practical is the right word to describe this book: the author eschews trendy clothing, bikes and accessories and advocates just getting on the thing and riding. Lots of valuable info. Stop by his shop in Walnut Creek if you're ever in the area, nice knowledgable people.

Are you tired of all the senseless biking gear out there? Caving in for social pressure to wear ridiculously tight uncomfortable biking shirts? Ride uncomfortable bikes because that what the pros do? ...

This book have liberated me from all the non-sense.

I now enjoy riding an excellent road-bike, fitted for comfort, not for pseudo-uncomfortable racing, with comfortable cleat-less pedals (see my "welgo" pedals review). I wear comfortable shirts. Riding has been fun ever since reading this short sensible book!

Then you need this, too. Its just as important to your tool drawer as a cyclist as a pump, chain lube, tire irons and patch kit. Which is saying something, because wihtout those you might as well not have a bike.

Perfect read for normal people that just want to ride a bike. Too many people are intimidated by the "professional" riders. Riding should be about having fun and getting from point A to point B, not about wearing crazy clothes or meeting goals. Give this book to anyone in your life that wants to ride but thinks they need all the accoutrements of racing before they can start.

This fellows point is well taken, that most people spend too much time trying to act like and buy bikes and accessories like the pros use. He is right that this approach to cycling wastes a lot of time and money that could be better spent out riding. As he says, just ride, get on the bike and ride. That is what is important, not how you look when you are out riding. Then he give advice on what he thinks is important and what is not important. That section is subjective. He doesn't think much of gel filled gloves as an investment. I think they are worth the money, and would not ride without them. If you fall, it is nice to have gloves on. Anyway, it is a feel good book, well written, and his point is correct, ride more don't spend more. Get on the bike and ride!!! He is right, stop reviewing books, and just ride.

I've known about Grant and Rivendell Bicycle Works for the last few years so I can't say I'm new to his opinions. But I will say I loved reading this book and plan on giving copies to at least a few friends of mine.

I returned to bicycling a few years ago, as I suspect many middle aged folks do. As a child I'd gotten everywhere on a bicycle but after getting sucked into riding racing type bikes in my late twenties I let cycling drift out of my life. Fortunately when I decided to give cycling a try again I ran across Grant while doing some research and thank goodness I did. He reminded me that when you get right down to brass tacks, bicycling should be fun.

Today I ride pretty much everywhere, commuting to work, out for the weekend, and even, every so often, for days on end riding long distances and eating a lot of pie afterwards (yes, I know, not in keeping with the no carb bits in the book). Most importantly, it is fun. I don't ride for mileage or speed (and I'm not at all speedy) but for enjoyment.

I owe a Grant a lot for both reminding me of that and for helping me learn how to buy a bike that fits, gear that actually works, and remembering that I need fenders.

This book is a distillation of what he's learned over a lifetime spent around bicycles. It's an easy read and by virtue of its structure can be taken a bit at a time. I'll probably be reading bits and pieces over and over for a long time.

Opinionated? Absolutely. I'm not sure I'd want to read a book without an opinion or two in it. This book is authentic, based on experience, and while it may not change everyone's opinion of what cycling should be, it certainly should give everyone food for thought. In short, take what you want and leave the rest - maybe just for later.

As for me, I'm going for bicycle ride. Even it it's only a ride around the block I can count it as another day I got in a ride.

Aloha!

Quick and dirty; Petersen is a "been there, done that" former bike racer who is now the unofficial misanthrope of cycling. His advice, while well meaning, is a big bucket of cold water on the heads of people who are new to cycling and actually want to be excited about riding a bike like the pros ride. I know I can't hit a golf ball like Tiger, cannot catch a 90 mile an hour fastball, am not a professional athlete. But if I want gear that is like the big boys use, that is part of the joy of amateur sport for me. Petersen's negative comments on the subject made me feel stupid that I paid him to make me feel less good about cycling on my new carbon fiber bike.

Petersen has extreme positions on most things, but to just state a few counter points; I have used toe clips for years and like the feeling of being connected to the bike. He argues that flat pedals are safer and clips offer no advantages for most cyclists. My wife is a relatively new cyclist who rode 20 miles yesterday kept up with me on flat pedals. She doesn't want to be clipped to the bike. She's happy. Petersen should be commended for arguing that cyclists don't have to be clipped to a bike to be efficient and capable riders. But I have used toe clips for decades and they seem to make my riding more comfortable and efficient. Can anyone prove that? Maybe not, but the kinesthetic feel of a tennis racket, or a fielder's glove is a valid and important part of our success and pleasure in using such equipment. A putter that feels good in our hands will be a good putter for us. It's fun to use something that feels good to us. He dismisses this aspect of using clips on the grounds that there are no studies that prove we "pull up" on the off-leg while cycling. Most serious cyclists use clips of some kind, and yes, most of us have fallen as a rite of passage in learning how to use clips. Is it valid, for that reason, to argue that no one should use them? Maybe we're all idiots, except for him. But it's fun to be clipped in, and few people who use clips go back to flat pedals when they get new bikes. Petersen is the odd man out on this point.

Petersen also sounds like a jilted lover when he complains that racing and the racing culture ruins cycling for the rest of us. Racers are freaks of nature, like most paid athletes, and every sport uses them to pitch equipment sales and their sport. Everyone knows we can't be like them, but riding a bike like theirs or setting up my equipment like the pros is fun. That's not a crime. If I buy the same bat that A-Rod uses, how is that worthy of condemnation? Racers are looking for every edge and if clips didn't do something for them, why would they tolerate the weight? The research is equivocal on whether or not clips make you a more efficient cyclist; but if using clips makes me enjoy riding and encourages me to ride more, they have value. You aren't stupid if you use them.

Also, I did not appreciate his snide comment that people who organize bike events to raise money for charity are probably pocketing the money for themselves. That is just being a cynical killjoy. I used to be a newspaper reporter and I left that profession because so many of the people there never had anything good to say about anybody and felt everyone was a crook. It was not a positive way to live. SOME people set up bike events because they love cycling and want to raise money for a good cause; the PGA tour has raised a billion dollars for charities this way. That is a GOOD thing. Petersen undermines well meaning efforts to help other people while having fun. Why would anyone discourage such efforts?

Lastly, as a physician who specializes in treating brain injuries, I believe it is simply wrong to encourage riders to not wear a helmet when riding. Yes, a bike helmet does not provide the kind of head protection I wish it did; wouldn't it be nice if it came with a force field? Yes, most people in the Netherlands don't wear helmets. But so what? If you are knocked off a bike the most important body part at risk is your brain, and having a helmet on is the best protection for that organ currently available. Get a good well-fitting helmet and wear it. If we only rode around other cyclists, and did not have to share the planet with cars, asphalt and dogs, you could make a no-helmet argument. I see plenty of brain injured people who have written in their chart, "patient was not wearing a helmet." But we know that already because they are our patients. I took care of a man who suffered a bad brain injury because, at the end of a ride, he removed his helmet and while talking to friends, standing over his bike, he lost his balance and fell, hitting his head. He was in the hospital for weeks. To ride in the US on a roadway system that is slanted in favor of cars, you need to wear a helmet. His opinion that "helmets-are-a-crock-because-they-don't-protect-you-as-much-as-you-think" is simply dangerously irresponsible advice.

Read the book if you believe that buying a $13,000 road bike is the only way to ride. But for the rest of us, who ride because we like it, and like to get cool stuff that we probably really don't need, this is a real buzz kill of a book. I wouldn't invite Petersen to my next bike party, that's for sure.

Great for rediscovering the fun of cycling over again. Opinions will challenge some, but without advocating the hipster trend, Grant Petersen has offered an interesting alternative to being just "one of the pack".

Nice & refreshing reminder of what I loved about riding my bike as a kid, before I knew one has to wear special clothes and shoes and helmet for that matter and buy thousands of dollars worth of snobbery.

A systematic debunking of the lightweight, all "carbon", lycra clad racing mentality; with a philosophy rebuilt on practicality and decades on personal experience in designing, building, and (most importantly) riding everyday bikes. Guaranteed to put the usefulness, comfort, and fun back into your riding.

A new or maybe a old perspective re-visited. Riding should be fun first, get you someplace second. All the rest is just often a hindrance. Says Grant Peterson. Those four thousand dollars bikes, the thousand dollar clothing wont make you a better rider than the kid down the street. Bike racing has spoiled it for the 75% of us that just wants to ride. That's what this book is about. Learn how to ride like a kid again, those other guys have made work out of it.

A new or maybe a old perspective re-visited. Riding should be fun first, get you someplace second. All the rest is just often a hindrance. Says Grant Peterson. Those four thousand dollars bikes, the thousand dollar clothing wont make you a better rider than the kid down the street. Bike racing has spoiled it for the 75% of us that just wants to ride. That's what this book is about. Learn how to ride like a kid again, those other guys have made work out of it.

This is a very easy read. Chapters are generally two pages or less. Basically a book that tells you about the bike and what you REALLY need to ride. I don't agree with all of it but the author neither wants nor expects you to agree with him. It's sort of the whole point of the book. Read for yourself.

This was enjoyable. Grant's writing is easy to read, enjoyable, and quite profound at times. Don't agree with all of his points, but certainly with most, and ultimately since this is about finding the fun in bikes, its worth reading and sharing.

The book is very well organized by topic, and quite readable. I am a 8-9 mph rail trail rider, and the book is geared (pun intended) more toward the 12-15 mph rider, but I still found many of its points quite relevant for my purposes. I was hoping it would have more info on basic maintenance, e.g. how to change a flat, how to adjust the braking system, but I presume the author decided that would be too much, and there are already many books on bicycle maintenance. I was particularly encouraged by the advice a non-racer like myself should dress to be comfortable, not to look like a professional.

Grant Peterson is one person who you would expect to be heavily entrenched in the conventional wisdom of the bicycling world. Don't be fooled! Mr. Peterson of Rivendell Bikes (some of the most beautiful frames I have ever seen) challenges the conventional wisdom of clipless pedals and bicycle seats with wisdom that only years of experience bring.

An enlightening and enjoyable read. So, you don't feel like suiting up in the latest wild colored synthetic jersey and spandex shorts! What to do! Take Grant Peterson's advice and "Just Ride". It is supposed to be fun you know.

Nobody who's ever heard of Grant Petersen or Rivendell before reading this book will be taken by surprise by most of what Grant thinks and says, but it's nice to have most of what he proselytizes about in one critical mass of prose.

Smart, informative and short enough so that it won't keep you off your bicycle for long, "Just Ride" is just what a lot of people who've been intimidated by the spandex set need to reclaim the roads (and the bike paths) for those who love two wheels simply because riding makes us feel 8 years old again.

Yes, it told me a lot of stuff I'd managed to figure out on my own, but it's also helping to raise my fitness level simply by encouraging me to push a little harder on those hills, rather than shifting at the first sign of resistance. (Which turns out to be no big deal when you're only out for an hour or so.) And I'm feeling a lot better about the bike bag I use to cart a week's worth of produce back from the farmer's market every week.

Only wish I'd read this before I bought my latest bike (replacing a heavier one I'd owned, and ridden on and off, for 25 years). I like being able to lift it, but I'd probably have forgone the carbon fork, and maybe opted for something with slightly higher handlebars.

Good information for someone who just wants to ride around the neighborhood or down the street. Some tech stuff. For casual riders, not racers, this book is a must. Fun and easy to read with great pointers for us all!

The premise of being an "unracer" or riding for fun made me think about riding. Many of Petersen's comments for example on blinking lights, clip pedals, low-carb dieting make a lot of sense. On the other hand, many of the ideas are mentioned only fleetingly without much development. I am giving the book 3 out of 5.