The only problematic thing is that they can be tricky to learn, and in this instance i mean you might feel that you’re falling over just a ‘tad bit’ too much no matter what you do.

It’s just a matter of practice

Normally, the reason why you still keep falling over with the bike using the clipless pedal system is because you either forget you’re clipped in, or don’t know how to correctly unclip when coming to a stop.

In case the culprit is forgetfulness,  well, you have probably not been cycling with the clipless pedals long enough. Just like learning how to ride a bicycle, getting used to having clips on takes time for your brain to learn, so keep sticking to it!

When it comes to not knowing how to unclip properly when needed, the way to do so correctly is by disengaging your foot out only when the pedal hits the 6 o’clock position, and all that should be done in a twisting motion.

I highly suggest focusing on doing so with only one leg, like your non-dominant, as that’s going to make it easier for the habit to develop.

You can also try loosening the pedal tension a bit, which will make them clip and unclip easier.

Other reasons

You might be an overall newbie

Sure, the right practice is usually the key in resolving any clipless pedals learning curves, but if you’re just a beginner to cycling in general, that can alone be the problem in falling too frequently.

If you’ve been riding a bicycle for only around a couple of months, or got back to it after a long time, it’s generally suggested to do so with flat pedals only as it familiarizes you with the basics of cycling easier, especially in more off-road situations.

Seat height

A seat that’s set even just a bit too high can make it harder to reach the ground once you unclip, which can obviously make you fall.

Why the clipless pedals are amazing

Personally i feel that cycling using the clips is much more efficient – I’m able to climb longer distances, and in general, feel less tired after a long day of riding.

If you do mountain biking, having your feet securely clamped makes you feel more confident during harder trails, and it’s nice to know there no chance of slipping off them, and we all know how that can end.

Additional tips

Riding more off-road trails will make the clips and your shoe cleats dirty, so be sure to keep them clean as that’s going to make them work better.

Another thing to keep in mind is that over time, the cleats on the shoes start to deteriorate, so replace them every once in a while.

Mount it on the frame

One of the simplest, although not the most aesthetically pleasing ways to carry a pump on your bike is by mounting it on the frame.

There are a load of ways to do that, but the most common is probably by securing it to the bottle cage bracket. Depending on the type, the pump doesn’t always take up the water bottle’s space, so there’s that.

What makes this approach pretty great is that you’ll be able to mount bigger pumps, which will make inflating tires much quicker, but sadly this solution doesn’t come without any disadvantages.

The pump will be prone to get covered in dirt, especially if you do mountain biking, and that can make it not function at all when it’s needed to the most.

A pump mounted this way can be easily stolen. Top of the line mini pumps aren’t that much expensive, but losing the stuff we use daily can obviously still hurt.

Carry the pump in the hydration pack

Hydration packs come in all sorts of different types and sizes, so getting one with a large storage compartment can let you hold far more than just a pump, like the multi tool, CO2 cartridges, spare tubes and such. It will even end up freeing the need to use the water bottle holder!

These types of backpacks are generally used the most in the mountain biking community, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have one if you’re a road biker, as long as it’s not an official race.

Saddle bag

Saddle bags are not the largest bicycle storage compartments out there, but definitely more accepted in the overall cycling industry.

You’ll still be able to carry a lot of various fixing equipment, but when it comes to the mini pump itself, it’ll definitely need to be more compact in order to fit the bag’s size.

Jersey pocket

If you’re a roadie, you probably already know that putting things inside your jersey’s pocket is arguably one of the best ways you can carry additional stuff without impacting your aerodynamics as much, so storing a compact pump there can be a great solution.

Storage bottle

Storage bottles can be placed inside the water bottle bracket serving as an easy to access way to carry any cycling goods you like, like a pump in this case.

Summary

Personally i think a hydration pack is the way to carry a mini pump for MTB’ers, and the jersey pocket if you’re a road biker.

Whatever you end up choosing, i highly suggest primarily using CO2 cartridges for inflating the tires when time is of the essence, and a pump, preferably the smallest one possible, just in case or when you want to fill a custom amount of air.

Grip shifter pros

Quickly change a lot of gears

What makes grip shifts so much better than the common trigger shifters is that with them you can change a large range of gears in seconds. Shifting from the smallest to the highest gear using triggers requires more than one repetition of pressing, while grip ones can do so in just one twist.

Work great in any weather

You can have even the thickest gloves on and you’ll still be able to shift up and down with no problem. Not saying the same can’t be done with the trigger shifters, but more often than not it’s harder to do so, especially if your fingers are even slightly cold.

Great alternative for people with thumb problems

Trigger shifters require thumb movement in order to move gears, so if you have some type of problems with them, twist shifters can be a great solution.

Less expensive

Because twist shifters aren’t as complex as the trigger ones, they tend to cost a bit less.

Trigger shifter pros

More ergonomic

The fact that trigger shifters don’t take up much space on the handlebars itself means you can put really any kinds of grips you want, which can provide more comfort.

And the winner is…

Well, there is really no best way to go around this, as it’s really just a personal preference.

If you haven’t tried using a quality set of twist shifters before, i would highly suggest doing so as you might end up liking them more, especially if you do a lot of MTB’ing, or simply have a bicycle with flat bars.

On this article, i’ll try to answer this question as best as possible.

Cyclocross Advantages

Made for long, relatively unextreme roads in mind

MTB’s can definitely work in vastly different terrains, but once you use one for even a slightly longer and more frequent commute, it’ll just tire you out more than provide much benefit.

A cyclo-cross bike is engineered in a completely different manner – it doesn’t have a suspension system, wide tires or a lot of weight, so it makes sense that it will work better when we talk about riding a lot of miles.

The handlebars are also very much different, which aid in providing more comfort during longer periods of cycling.

Tires on these bicycles normally are slightly knobby in order to provide more grip on unsurfaced roads, but they can always be changed to something more slick, which will make paved rides only better.

29″ Mountain Bike Advantages

Works anywhere

Sure, a MTB won’t be able to be as efficient on a paved road as a cross bike would, but at the same time, any sort of off-the-road terrain will be almost always easier to get through.

The great thing mountain bikes is that they can also support all sorts of tires, so putting slicker ones can only make them go easier on a surfaced road, if that’s your goal.

What should you choose?

If i was to purchase only one bike then i would always go for a MTB, although the choice can definitely change if, let’s say, you already own a mountain bike, even a smaller one, in that case you’d better get a CX, at least in my opinion.

No matter what your end choice is, i would highly suggest first trying to ride both of the bicycles first – i’ve heard of many situations where people, after trying out the bike they thought would enjoy at first, choose the completely different one after a single ride.

The reasons

Pedals

One of the main culprits of some type of clicking noise when pedaling are the pedals themselves. To find out whether or not they are actually the cause of annoyance on your bike, try to pedal them one at a time.

This way you’ll be able to figure out if the pedals have anything to do with the clicking in the first place, and if they do, which exact one should be fixed.

Once you find the troublesome pedal, spray some penetrating oil just where it connects to the crank arm – if that doesn’t help, you can try removing and installing the pedal back again.

Not always a simple grease up can make the clicking disappear, so you might need to replace the pedal altogether if it is faulty.

The seat

Yes, out of all the bike’s components, a seat can also be the cause of noise when pedaling, especially when that happens only when you’re doing so seated.

Just like with the pedals, your best bet is to take out the seatpost and grease it up freshly. Also, make sure the seat itself is secured tightly to the seatpost too as that can also be the cause of noise.

Bottom bracket

One of the main components of a bicycle, the bottom bracket can also be the source of noise when using the vehicle – the bracket might just be slightly too wobbly, so tightening it should fix it. Sometimes the part can be worn out, and in that case you should probably considering getting a new one.

Tinkering around with the bottom bracket is definitely not an easy job, and if you think the clicking has anything to do with it, you should probably get your bike looked at by a mechanic.

Other potential reasons

A chainring that isn’t properly tightened with the bolts can also click when pedaling.

The cable that sticks out of the front derailleur could be hitting the crankset and produce some noise every other revolution, so be sure you get it out of the way.

Every now and the the shoes, yes you heard me right, can also “click” when riding a bicycle.

The clicking can’t always be fixed

There are a ton more reasons why a bicycle can make some sort of clicking when riding, not to mention pedaling it, although there are some people who literally reassemble their bike from the ground with absolutely no results, so if you’ve seem to already tried everything, chances are the best thing you can do now is to get used to it, really.

Definitely doable, although some changes might need to be made

Mountain bikes can surely be driven comfortably on a pavement just how they are, but even then it all really depends.

Most of it comes down to how much you’re willing to be driving such bike on a road like that, as it has a lot to do with the tires.

Tires

A MTB that’s, let’s say, is used for trail riding will have quite aggressive tires – this feature is definitely important for those conditions as the extra knobs provide more traction, but on a solid surface they are little to no use and eventually make the tire deteriorate quicker.

If you are going to be driving a lot of miles frequently on mostly pavement, i’d highly suggest you switching the tires to more slick ones as they’re going to prevent any unnecessary wear, and give more traction too.

Suspension

The suspension system is definitely great when there are a lot of bumps to pass through, but on an even, hard road it only makes your pedaling experience harder.

Not all mountain bikes have this feature, but if your’s has the option to lockout the suspension definitely do that.

Still won’t compare to a proper bike

Even with all the modifications you can do to a mountain bike, it’ll never match the performance of a bicycle that is made exactly for that use, like a road bike.

A better idea overall would probably be to keep the MTB as it is and get a second bike, as you can buy one relatively cheaply used and it’ll definitely work better on the road.

In case that you haven’t bought a mountain bicycle yet, you might just want to get a cyclocross bike instead which provides best of both worlds, but don’t expect to do much of the extreme hill jumping either.

In conclusion

If you want to make the most out of your mountain bicycle on a pavement, the changes should definitely be made, but then again there are so many people out there who don’t care about that at all and still put in hundreds of miles.

It all really depends on just what types of pavements you’re going to be riding on, as there are cyclists who claim to be riding nothing but on it with the most aggressive off-road tires and they still hold up well.

Headset spacers only work so good till a certain point, and that’s why additional parts like the adjustable stem or a stem riser exist, but the question is, which one, if any should you get?

It’s not the best choice, really

The thing about using adjustable stems, or even stem risers for that matter, is that they’re simply too wobbly and weak to be used in proper conditions.

Sure if you only drive your bike around the city limits and don’t hit much of the off-road, chances are these things can definitely last for even a longer time, but again if you do some more extreme type of riding, they can be more dangerous to you than do any good.

Then what should i do?

The best way you can increase any bicycles maximum potential handlebar height is by buying a fork which has a longer steerer tube. This is definitely going to be a lot more costly, but again if you’re serious about your riding, that’s really the only route to go for.

The other thing you can try to do instead is getting a solid angled stem. This alternative is also cheaper, but the amount of raise you get is usually minimal compared to the first option.

The fact that shock pumps resemble regular tire pumps makes some cyclists think that they can be used exactly for that task – well, that definitely should not be done, so let me explain why.

Different tools for different fixes

The first sign that tells us we shouldn’t use tire pumps for shocks lies in the valves themselves – usually the types of valves tires have are completely different from the ones on shocks.

What that means is that even if you’d want to try and pump your suspension system using a regular pump, you’d need to buy an adapter.

Adapters aside, using a tire pump on your shocks can simply damage them – the goal of a pump that’s made for inflating tires is to move a lot of air with little pressure, while shock pumps do so the other way around.

And yes, there are tire pumps with gauges that could theoretically be used on some types of shocks, but again i wouldn’t suggest doing that and instead invest in a good quality shock pump.

Other reasons why a shock pump is a must

Shock pumps are engineered in a way to make them lose little to no air pressure when they’re being hooked on or off – letting even a slightest bit of air escape can impact the overall sag negatively, which again proves that they’re the best too for the job.

These types of pumps also have special valves that can be used to release even the slightest amount of pressure, and that lets you fine-tune the shocks to the perfection.

More information on mountain bike suspension

Shocks pumps are definitely a must have tool for any MTB’er, but the thing is, you only use them once in a while – if you find that you have to pump them up after each riding session, chances are there is something wrong with them, so you should definitely get them checked out.

But how many of them should you use on your bicycle? Sadly, the same amount doesn’t apply to everyone, as it simply depends.

Different goals require different bar height

As i already pointed out, the amount of spacers you should use on your bike’s headset really depends on what you intend to do with it.

For example, if you’re a mountain biker and do a lot of downhill racing, you might want to use more than just one spacer in order to concentrate your balance more on the rear, which helps with the stability.

Road cyclists strive to be as aerodynamic as possible, so in this case their goal is to have the body closer to the frame, which requires smaller spacers – on the contrary, a cyclist who commutes to work on a bike might just want to raise his handlebars to the maximum in order to be more comfortable.

The only way you can really figure out what’s the optimal amount of spacers for your situation is to just play around – you might even find a combination that works better for you that doesn’t really follow the general guidelines.

General headset spacer tips

Don’t leave a lot of tube above

The extra slack that the steerer tube provides can definitely be covered with additional spacers, but normally you should cut off the excess as it can become a serious hazard, especially if you do more of an extreme type of cycling like mountain biking, not to mention it does make your bicycle look less professional.

Too many spacers can be bad

Many bicycles allow a maximum of 30 mm of spacers under the stem, and if you exceed that, it can cause premature steerer tube damage . In order to find out just how many spacers your bike can handle, usually the best place to look for is it’s documentation.

Also, try to cover the space with bigger spacers first, that is, having four 5 mm spacers can impact your overall steering ability negatively when compared with doing the same by using only two 10 mm spacers.

Aren’t always the solution

Having the need to use a lot of spacers in order to make your rides “just right” could mean that you should look into other factors first.

You might just have handlebars which are overly flat for your type of bicycle, so getting ones with a higher level of rise can solve the problem.

The bike itself could be simply overly small for your height, so getting a new frame could be all that’s needed.