How to Tandem

 How to Tandem


Setting out on a 1000+ mile trip is not the time to learn how to tandem!  Like many things in life, two people riding successfully on a single bike is a skill and to do it well takes time.  There are the physical aspects of riding the bike, the communication between the Captain and the Stoker, and the mental aspect of hours of pedalling in all kinds of terrain and all kinds of weather.


These next sections are an overview of all three areas at a very high level.  Having a lesson with someone from a tandem shop will provide better detail and be more hands on as they can point to the areas of the bike and in some cases demonstrate how to do things.  For example, our 'instructor' took me out for a spin whilst describing what a Stoker should be doing. He then instructed Steve step-by-step on the specific things a Captain should do on the front of the bike.


Attitude in riding in sync is important, along with letting go of many of the approaches that worked on a solo bike.


The Physical Aspects of Riding a Tandem


Mounting, changing of gears, turning, ‘bum breaks’ or standing up in the pedals, pedalling standing up, dismounting


Mounting


Steve is 6 foot 2 inches and I am 5 foot 3 inches.  He has to be able to put his feet on the ground, it’s less of an issue for me.  The way we were taught to mount (and this has worked well for us for 15 years) is:


  1. Captain tips the bike toward him to get his leg over the bar

  2. He straddles the bar and holds the bike steady, using brakes if necessary

  3. Stoker mounts the bike on the left,  placing left foot on the pedal (clip left foot in here) and swinging right leg up and over the seat to place right foot on the right pedal while settling onto the seat (clip right foot in here). Left hand on the handlebar and right hand can either be on the seat or handlebar

  4. Stoker raises the left pedal to the starting position for the Captain

  5. Stoker lets the Captain know she is all set and the Captain’s pedal is properly positioned, ‘Ready’

  6. Captain clips into the left pedal and checks surroundings for cars / hazards

  7. Captain lets Stoker know it’s safe and indicates to start pedalling - ‘3-2-1, go!”

  8. Hard push on the first few turns to get some momentum, then Captain clips right foot in


Changing of Gears


To avoid ‘breaking things’ (a very technical term, I know!), it is important for the Stoker to ease off on the pedals when changing gears.  For the Stoker to ease up on the power, she has to know that the gears are changing and in order for her to do that timely, she really needs to know that in advance.  This means that the Captain must tell her that he is changing the gears and early enough so she can stop power pedalling and just rest her feet on the rotating pedals.  This is particularly important when rapidly dropping gears when heading up a hill.  The time to tell her that the gears are being changed is definitely not as they are changing!


When gear changing for us, Steve simply says what he is doing - ‘Up a big one’ or ‘Down a little one.’  It matters less about what gear he is changing to and more about the fact that he is making a change.  My response is to stop pressing firmly on the pedals and just rest my feet on them as they turn.  I can then hear, see (by looking down) and feel when he has completed the change and put the power back on.


He will periodically ask which ring we are on and we have learned that is better for me to look down at rather than for him to look back at. Swerving tandems are not fun.


Turning


The Captain is doing enough while turning - changing gears, checking traffic, foot down to stop, navigating so indications of direction are for the Stoker to handle, once the Captain has stated he is getting ready to turn.  ‘Right, right, right’ or ‘Left, left, left’ is what we use.  I then indicate with a straight arm point towards the direction we are heading in (check the arm signalling rules for the country you are in, they differ).  Be big and bold in signalling your directions - car drivers are often busy with other things and it is important to catch their attention.


Catching the attention of car drivers


One of the things Steve learned when motorbiking is to make sure a car driver has seen you.  This is particularly important when they are turning onto a street in front of you or emerging from a street into traffic on the street you are on.  They are looking for cars, and sometimes pedestrians.  They are not looking for bicycles and so, unless you make yourself visible and ensure that they see you, they can miss you and pull in front of or into you.  This is something that has been brought home to us over and over through the years.  Steve is always preparing to stop and I am always working to catch the driver's eye.  


We’ve had drivers not see us many times over the years and Steve’s brother had a van pull out in front of him causing him to end up headfirst into the driver’s side window.  He was really lucky and ‘only’ broke his collarbone.  We bumped into another tandem couple where the wife was the Captain because her husband had been hit on his solo bike and could no longer ride as a single due to balance and dizziness.  The stories are numerous and being aware of whether the drivers see you whilst making yourself visible is crucial


A simple approach for this is for the Stoker to wave.  People like tandems and someone pedalling by whilst giving a cheery wave is a good way to attract their attention.  We also dress in VERY bright colours.  


It’s a big bike, with two people on it, dressed in neon colours, and you would be amazed at how many people just don’t see us!  Wave, wave madly and be prepared to stop!


‘Bum breaks’ or standing up in the pedals, freewheeling


Unlike solo bikes, bums stay in the seats more on tandems.  The solo cyclist stands up in the pedals much more often than ‘tandemistas’.  If the terrain is hilly, we can spend hours in the saddle pedalling uphill and seconds standing up freewheeling down. The section on Training discusses this in greater detail, but it is important to get off the seat as much as possible to prevent some very sore sit bones.  Trying to stand up while moving and get off at regular intervals helps immensely with this.


I’m a foot shorter than Steve so simply standing up on the downward pedal doesn’t give me a break, I can just barely lift my backside off the seat, so we use the ‘bum break’ position.  When we have the opportunity to coast, we put the pedals horizontal to the road and both stand up for a bit.  Getting the sit bones off the seat even for 10-20 seconds every 15 minutes or so in addition to regular breaks makes a huge difference in the amount of end of day soreness!


Pedalling standing up 


There are people who ride tandems who can stand up and pedal, together.  Even after 15 years, we haven’t mastered it.  I can stand up and pedal as we crest a short, steep hill.  Steve can stand up and pedal on the flat.  Pedalling standing up is tricky and much harder than on a solo bike.


The recommendations I’ve seen from tandem couples who have mastered it are:


  1. Captain stands up and pedals until both are used to how he and the bike moves

  2. Stoker stands up and pedals until both are comfortable with how she move

  3. Both stand up and pedal together


There are two difficulties that we have found with this.  One, the power of two pedalling standing up is significant so the gear must be a big one.  Being in a big gear when going up hills (which is when you could really use the power) is fine, until you run out of steam - then being in a big gear is dangerous because you no longer have the momentum to get into a smaller gear or to unclip if you need to stop.  Two, unless you’re both really, really strong (not just solo bike strong), you lose steam fast pedalling 500 lbs up a hill in a big gear.  


Some folks do it, we have done it going up very, very short hills (e.g. over small bridges), but we have yet to master it!


Dismounting


Getting off the tandem isn’t a reverse of getting on.  The process for dismounting is:


  1. The Captain comes to a stop, unclips right and left feet and places both feet on the ground while steadying the bike.  He notifies the Stoker that he is ready for her to begin dismounting

  2. The Stoker unclips the right foot and swings right leg over the bike to the ground (like dismounting a horse) and then unclips from the left pedal. Some Stokers unclip both feet before dismounting and some (taller than me) unclip, put both feet on the ground and then swing the right leg over to dismount. It's an individual and height-based decision

  3. The Captain tilts the bike to bring his leg over the bar and fully dismounts

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