Your complete guide to the most important cycling terms, gear and expressions.
A
- Aero bike — a bicycle designed for maximum aerodynamic efficiency and speed.
- All-rounder — a rider or bike suited for multiple terrains.
- Attack — a sudden acceleration to break away from the group.
B
- Bibs — cycling shorts with suspenders.
- Bonk — complete exhaustion due to lack of energy.
- Bottom Bracket (BB) — where the crankset bearings are housed.
- Breakaway — a group of riders escaping from the peloton.
C
- Cadence — pedal revolutions per minute.
- Chainring — front gear on the crankset.
- Chamois — cycling shorts pad.
- Cleats — plates that attach shoes to clipless pedals.
- Counter-attack —
- Criterium (Crit) — short circuit race, often in cities.
- Cyclocross — off-road racing with obstacles and dismounts.
D
- Derailleur — mechanism moving the chain across cogs.
- Domestique — a support rider in pro cycling.
- Drafting — riding close behind another to reduce wind resistance.
- Drop bars — curved road handlebars.
E
- E-bike — bicycle with an integrated electric motor for assistance.
- Echelon — diagonal formation of riders to shield against crosswinds.
- Electronic Shifting — gear shifting controlled electronically instead of mechanically.
- Endurance — the ability to sustain prolonged cycling effort.
- Equipe — French term for a professional cycling team.
- Ergometer — indoor training device that measures power output.
F
- Fondo / Gran Fondo — long-distance organized cycling events.
- FTP (Functional Threshold Power) — highest power sustained for ~1 hour.
- Fixed-gear (Fixie) — bike without a freewheel.
G
- Gravel bike — designed for mixed terrain and gravel roads.
- Groupset — drivetrain and brake component set.
- Giro d’Italia — one of cycling’s Grand Tours in Italy.
H
- Headset — bearings in the head tube allowing steering.
- Hybrid bike — mix of road and mountain features.
- Hammer — riding at maximum sustained effort.
I
- Intervals — structured training efforts with set intensity and recovery.
- Intensity — the level of effort or exertion in cycling performance.
- ITT (Individual Time Trial) — a solo race against the clock.
- In the Drops — riding with hands on the lower curved part of the handlebars.
- Indoors — cycling performed on a trainer or stationary bike.
J
- Jersey — the cycling shirt, often representing a team or leader’s classification.
- Jockey Wheels — small pulleys in the rear derailleur guiding the chain.
- Jump — a quick acceleration to attack or close a gap.
K
- Kick — a short, explosive burst of power, usually in a sprint or climb.
- KOM/QOM — King/Queen of the Mountain segment title.
- Knurling — textured surface on components to improve grip, often on handlebars or tools.
- Kneewarmers — removable sleeves worn to protect knees in cool conditions.
L
- Lactate Threshold — point where lactic acid accumulates faster than cleared.
- LBS (Local Bike Shop) — local bike shop for service and gear.
- Lead-out — pacemaking before a sprinter’s final effort.
M
- Mass Start — race where all riders start together.
- Mountain bike (MTB) — bike for off-road terrain.
- Musette — small feed bag handed to riders.
N
- Neutral Service — support car or mechanic available to all riders during a race.
- Negative Split — pacing strategy where the second half of a ride or race is faster than the first.
- Nutrition — the fueling strategy cyclists use to maintain energy and performance during rides.
O
- Off the Back (OTB) — when a rider is dropped from the peloton or group.
- Overtraining — physical and mental fatigue caused by insufficient recovery between rides.
- Organizers — individuals or groups responsible for planning and managing cycling events.
- Overgearing — using a gear ratio too hard for the terrain, leading to inefficiency and fatigue.
P
- Peloton — main group of riders in a race.
- Power meter — measures power output in watts.
- Puncture — flat tire from a hole in the tube.
- Prologue — short opening time trial stage.
Q
- Q-Factor — the distance between the outside of one crank arm to the outside of the opposite crank arm.
- Qualifier — a race or event that determines eligibility for a larger competition.
- Quick Release — a lever mechanism that allows fast removal or adjustment of wheels or seatposts without tools.
R
- Race — a competitive cycling event where riders aim to finish first.
- Recovery Ride — an easy, low-intensity ride designed to promote muscle recovery.
- Red Zone — the maximum effort heart rate zone where a rider is close to exhaustion.
- Rim — the outer circular part of the wheel that holds the tire.
- Road Bike — a lightweight bicycle designed for speed on paved surfaces.
- Rollers — a type of indoor training device with three cylinders that allow free riding balance.
- Rouleur — a rider who performs well on flat and rolling terrain.
S
- Singletrack — narrow mountain trail.
- Soigneur — support staff for riders.
- Stem — connects handlebars to the steerer tube.
- Slipstream — low-drag zone behind a moving object.
- Stage race — multi-day race with cumulative times.
T
- Time Trial (TT) — race against the clock.
- Tour de France — The largest cycling race in the world.
- Trainer — indoor training device.
- Tubeless — tires without inner tubes sealed with sealant.
- Track cycling — velodrome racing on fixed-gear bikes.
U
- UCI — Union Cycliste Internationale, the world governing body for cycling.
- Undercarriage — cyclist slang for the pelvic area that comes into contact with the saddle.
- Urban Cycling — riding a bicycle in city environments for commuting or leisure.
V
- Velodrome — an oval cycling track designed for track racing.
- VO2 Max — the maximum rate of oxygen consumption, a key measure of endurance capacity.
- Virtual Ride — indoor cycling session simulated through digital platforms like Zwift.
W
- Watts — unit of power output.
- Wheelset — pair of wheels including rims, hubs and spokes.
- Wheel sucker — rider who drafts but rarely leads.
- Watt/kg — power-to-weight ratio important for climbing.
X
- XC (Cross-Country Riding) — a mountain biking discipline focused on endurance, climbing, and varied terrain.
- XCO (Cross-Country Olympic) — a mountain bike discipline raced on short, technical circuits.
- XCR (Cross-Country Race) — competitive cross-country mountain bike events, typically longer than XCO.
- XDS — a lightweight carbon fiber frame technology used in performance bicycles.
- XTR — Shimano’s top-tier mountain bike component group, designed for elite racing.
Y
- Yellow Jersey — the leader’s jersey in the Tour de France, symbolizing the overall race leader.
- Youth Category — racing category for junior riders, usually under 18 years old.
Z
- Zone Training — structured training based on heart rate or power zones to improve performance.
- Zwift — a popular online indoor cycling platform for training and virtual racing.