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Post your road bicycle

Discussion in 'General' started by cha0s#242, May 19, 2016.

  1. RichB

    RichB Well-Known Member

    Thanks, I'm still working out the angle having read conflicting things about the angle. The rear of the saddle is quite a different angle to the front half.
     
  2. tecknojoe

    tecknojoe Well-Known Member

    I had a bike fit last year with the guy that designed the power saddle with specialized. My sit bones measured 131mm, and according to that I'm between a 155 or even 168mm of that saddle.

    Take a tape measure, measure out your sit bone width, then place it on the saddle. It'll show where you'd be sitting on that particular saddle.
     
    RichB and Senna like this.
  3. ducnut

    ducnut Well-Known Member

    I did that sit bone device at a Specialized dealer, but, found a wider saddle much more comfortable. I’ll take more thigh friction over a wedge up my ass.
     
  4. Senna

    Senna Well-Known Member

    Did he have any advice on where exactly you should sit on the Power?
     
    RichB likes this.
  5. speedluvn

    speedluvn Man card Issuer

    :crackup::crackup:
     
    ducnut likes this.
  6. rice r0cket

    rice r0cket Well-Known Member

    The think the Specialized thing is a good start for people to understand the idea of sitting on your sitbones versus a la-z-boy, but what it doesn't exactly address is your position vs the measurement being taken. I too sat on it about a decade ago, and what I didn't realize at the time was sitting on the device is far different from sitting on a bike, with your hips rolled forward, etc.

    Maybe that's taken into account in Specialized's measurements vs what the saddles actually measure, but given that the pelvis is angled there, it does vary quite differently depending on your position.

    [​IMG]

    Fizik tried to address this in their "spine concept" fitting system, except I just didn't like any of their saddles.
     
    ducnut likes this.
  7. Senna

    Senna Well-Known Member

    Depends on your kink, I guess. :crackup:
     
    rice r0cket and ducnut like this.
  8. Senna

    Senna Well-Known Member

    I've come to the realization that my bike is too damn big. I slapped a 60 mm (yes, 60), on the bike to test how a shorter reach feels. I'm massively more comfortable with that shorter reach without feeling cramped up or too much bend in my elbows. Competitive Cyclist put me a 54-55 for top tube length, which does sound about right. Canyon also has me at a 54 as well at 180cm total height and 80 cm inseam.
     
  9. rice r0cket

    rice r0cket Well-Known Member

    Haha. Maybe just bring your current bike to a fitter, and get their feedback? Even if your bike is the wrong size, tthey can at least set you up w/ the right contact points and take measurements to translate to your new bike, even if it totally jacks up your steering/geometry.

    $100 spent here might save you thousands in swapping frames, etc.
     
    Cannoli and pscook like this.
  10. ducnut

    ducnut Well-Known Member

    A local shop used to push Fizik on everyone, even to me who has some experience. As I told them, that’s a professional physique, professional technique saddle. Regular people usually have fat on their asses, actually sit on a bicycle seat, and aren’t hammerheading to a finish line. Pro saddles fit a very narrow-focused group, so quit pushing them on everyone. I further criticized their lack of saddle selection. I told them, eliminating a single $7K bicycle would allow them to stock 50-70 different saddles, one unit deep. Then, there would be something for everyone. Set their operating system to auto-fill, when they sold a saddle. It’s a simple concept that keeps a variety of people coming through the door. And, there are a whole lot more commoners to sell to than hammerheads. Want to know why brick and mortars are failing? The above is a start.
     
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  11. Senna

    Senna Well-Known Member

    I 100% will, but I'm really hesitant to spend the cash on it right now. I'm still saving up pennies for track season, and I'm on track to lose about 20 pounds by May, which I'm sure will affect my fit. I'd rather not spend $260 for a fitting now, and then have to spend yet another $260 in a few months when my body composition changes.
     
  12. tecknojoe

    tecknojoe Well-Known Member

    I believe in a more relaxed position, on the power, you should be around the widest part of the saddle. Of course as you roll forward into the drops your pelvis will roll forward onto the seat a bit
     
    Senna likes this.
  13. tecknojoe

    tecknojoe Well-Known Member

    Are you saying for example, you measured 130, and looked for a saddle that measured 130? The goal is to give your sit bones support. As a rough estimate, you usually add 20-30mm to whatever your sit bone width is, and that's the size saddle you might want to start with


    If a person is riding in a very low race position or TT position, that's going to change things a bit as your rotate forward. For the majority of recreational riders, you want to support sit bones
     
  14. ducnut

    ducnut Well-Known Member

    Been some years, but, the device thing they had featured outlines with saddle width numbers on it. I measured 143 and rode a saddle that width, for quite a while. I had a 155 off one of her bikes I tried and liked. I switched bike styles (TT to gravel-still on aerobars and roughly the same cockpit length) and the 155 led me to trying a Brooks B17 Imperial that, believe it or not, I liked. I’ve been riding a Brooks, ~8yrs, off and on as health permits. I have B17 on my single-speed, as well.
     
    tecknojoe likes this.
  15. Senna

    Senna Well-Known Member

    Anyone racing pedal bikes in 2020?

    I'm waiting for my local crit series schedule to come out. Should release soon. I'm about 80% committed to road cycling over the dirt stuff this year. The statewide XC series has a pretty wide radius. Don't want to add another hobby that takes significant windshield time to enjoy, and our dirt season tends to suck with the rainfall we get.

    My saddle search ultimately ended up right where I began - the Romin Evo. I plan to get a fit in the next few weeks to get another opinion on my positioning.
     
  16. rice r0cket

    rice r0cket Well-Known Member

    I used to, I quit when I almost ended a kid's life when he overlapped wheels on a final sprint and went down in front of me. I had nowhere to go and hit him in the head in a full sprint. He lost a handful of teeth, I was concussed for about 6 months from hitting the deck. If he fell two inches further to the left, I would have crushed his windpipe.

    Cycling is too rooted in tradition to consider what "real" safety looks like. Helmets only became mandatory in the Tour, in 2004? I'll ride solo or in a group of 2-3, any more than that and nobody is using their head.
     
  17. Senna

    Senna Well-Known Member

    Road racing can be gnarly, that’s true. It seems like at least some companies like Trek are innovating with helmet technology to help improve safety. Course layouts were a big issue 15 years ago when I raced actively. Some of the old Superweek crits had poor course design - funneling riders from a space that allows them to go 4-5 wide into a much smaller, twisty one that requires single-file was one particularly bad example I saw.

    There are some cool innovations, though. My Garmin will auto-sense a crash and call my wife and family with my location if I don’t turn it off within 30 seconds. The Varia rear-view radar sensor is also pretty neat in giving you a heads up on what’s going on behind you.
     
  18. Newsshooter

    Newsshooter Well-Known Member

    Seems like grids for bicycle races are smaller than they used to be when I was racing in the 80's. We always had 100 rider grids and waiting lists for crits, most road races too.
     
  19. brex

    brex Well-Known Member

    The grids for MTB racing are off the charts here.
     
  20. tecknojoe

    tecknojoe Well-Known Member

    I've always wanted to race crits, but the guy at my LBS was saying you need to be able to hold ~250 watts throughout even for a cat 5. Does that sound right?

    Other than that I've considered the Big Mountain Enduro series out here in Colorado
     

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