So guess what I did? I swapped out my old cassette (the cogs on the rear wheel of my bike) for a newer cassette with a larger range of gear ratios. I'm so excited because it makes going up steep hill much easier. I can also go a good 5-10 mph faster downhill. Better than all of that, I learned how to take apart my rear axle and gears, which I assume that my front axle is the same as the rear so I know how to take apart that too! I road it up to campus this morning with a lot of weight on my bike (I also got a rack for my shoes and clothes), and I gotta say I don't think I could've done it without that new cassettttttte!