Carrerra Valour Road bike question - am I using the gears properly?

Question

I have always used mountain bikes as a kid. I bought my first road bike - a carrera valour for £360. When I took it out I found it virtually impossible to cycle up very modest inclines. I tried to select the lowest gear but from my experiences of mountain bikes (which had very heavy frames) the low gear in the valour felt like the 10th gear of a mountain bike. Could someone please tell me what I am doing wrong cos I look like an idiot when I try to cycle this bike.

Is it the gears or what and if so how do I select the gears correctly? To select the gears on my bikes I have to push the brake lever sideways.

Many thanks.

Answer 1

i have the exact same bike and im made up with it,  very good value for ya cash..........  right hand side is higher gears..push the button to notch up a gear and push the break its self inwards ( left ) to lower the gear.          left hand side of the bike is lower gears... same again push left hand side button 2 up ya gears and push break inwards ( right ) down ya gears...

baisicly... up hill use ur left hand gears, thats 1-8 and when more speed is req then gear on the right side useing ur gear up button..

the gear ratio on a racer isnt as low as a mountain bike but still u shouldnt have a problem,  i usally stand up off the seat when hill climing,  find it easier..   good luck

Answer 2

Here's a page with a really simple explanation of how to select gears:

http://sheldonbrown.com/gears.html

Answer 3

The shifters you have are a bit different than those featured in the article. They're more like Campagnolo Ergo shifters, where you have a little shifter on the side of the unit, near to where your thumb would be if you were riding on the hoods.

Say for the rear derailleur (the right-hand shifter) if you wanted to shift up to a higher gear, you would use the little thumbshifter on the side.

TBH I like them, as it makes it easier to shift when climbing.