How do bicycle gears work? And why is the large gear hardest on the front and the small gear hardest on the back?

Question

And what’s with all the confusing terminology…

In: 0

Answer 1

Simplified: the ratio between the teeth on the front chainwheel and rear cogs determines how far the wheel rotated per revolution of the cranks.

A larger ratio means you’re turning the wheel more each revolution of the cranks, so you need a greater force at a slower pace to match the same output as if you were using a lower ratio