WHat is press riding?

Question

what is press riding as in dancing?

Answer 1

I don't know about the dancing part, but I have heard press riding referring to someones pedaling style. Meaning they are only pressing on the pedals instead of using their legs all the way around. It is very common in new riders, and almost impossible to avoid without toe straps or clip ins. It will appear more jerky because of the surge of energy at one spot in the pedal stroke. A more experienced rider is still putting most the power in the same spot, but they are controlling their legs motion all the way around and probably pulling up slightly or even hard as their leg comes up. This make the pedaling smoother, faster and more efficient. The efficiency comes from not having to lift your leg with the power from the opposite leg. In this one respect, I guess pedaling like this is better even without toe straps.

Answer 2

These are not tearms you hear often, the first thing that comes to mind for "press riding" could be referring to "pressing the pace" or riding faster at the front to put pressure on the rest of the pack. The only time I've heard the term "dancing" would be in a description of a rider during an amazing climb for example Phil Liggett might say "He's out of the saddle now, dancing on the pedals". I could be way off base here, but that's what comes to mind.

Answer 3

I've heard this term used to describe pedal mashing. The goal of any cyclist is to have a nice smooth pedal stroke around the entire circle. It involves both applying upward and downward pressure. When you do not have a smooth stroke and rely only on the down stroke. It is called mashing the pedals. I've also heard it called press riding, but not very often.