Abstract: A bicycle gear assembly has first and second sets of cogwheels, each having at least three cog wheels of various sizes including a largest cogwheel and a smallest cogwheel. These two sets are oriented so that the largest cogwheel of the first set is aligned with the smallest cogwheel of the second set and the smallest cogwheel of the first set is aligned with the largest cogwheel of the second set, the first and the second sets of cogwheels define at least a first, second and third pair of substantially aligned cogwheels. Additionally, a chain is mounted about a first pair of the aligned cogwheels and a gear shift assembly is adapted to move the chain from the first pair of cogwheels to the second pair of cogwheels and from the second pair of cogwheels to the third pair of cogwheels.