Newbie question: 15 speed...?

Have "inherited" a fifteen speed bicycle...tips on correct use of these add'l gears, anyone? I'm rather a novice with gears, although I've been doing some reading at the Sheldon Brown site and elsewhere in this forum. -Allen

Avoid the big/big and little/little front/back combinations.
Practice shifting so you can get the feel.
Big/little for going fast down hill; little/big for "spinning" up the next hill.
Learn what range of cadance (pedaling RPM) works best for you.
Try to learn to raise the level of cadance where you can apply power smoothly.
From Sheldon's site, become familiar with the gear inches you have in each of the usable gear combinations. If you have choices of nearly the same gear inches in different front/rear, choose the combination(s) that have the chain running as straight as possible. This is the most efficient use of your power and makes your drive-train last longer.

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David Ornee, Western Springs, IL USA

Thanks Dave. I took the bike out to the store this AM, and am getting a feel for the gears. How wonderful!! ...just takes practice, I guess. It's nice to know us old-guy-45-yr-olds can benefit from all this new-fangled technology... -Allen