OP
OP
gillelive
Active Member
- Location
- North West
i tried a medium in the shop and it felt very small, i may look at flipping the stem or go back to the shop for advice
Views on my bike size (inc pics)
- Thread starter gillelive
- Start date
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i tried a medium in the shop and it felt very small, i may look at flipping the stem or go back to the shop for advice
OP
OP
gillelive
Active Member
- Location
- North West
I tried a medium and it felt very small, i may look at flipping the stem or go back to my lbs for advice
pshore
Well-Known Member
- Location
- Last contour N of Cambridge
I am no expert on bike fit but have had knee problems myself. Your saddle height looks like it is at the high end of normal range. That is good for efficiency but might not be kind to your knee - depends on what type of injury you had though.
Search t'internet for knee angle.
I ride with my saddle at the low end of the range after carefully measuring the angle and almost everybody says my saddle is too low. It is kind to my itb however.
Search t'internet for knee angle.
I ride with my saddle at the low end of the range after carefully measuring the angle and almost everybody says my saddle is too low. It is kind to my itb however.
OP
OP
gillelive
Active Member
- Location
- North West
just been playing with new phone and got wife to take this video, hope this add to the pics, again any advice appreciated, i have raised the seat about 10mm from the original pics and played about with my cleats
hope the vid works
hope the vid works
peelywally
Active Member
looks like the seat could drop an inch just so your leg isnt fully extended at the max stroke length,
your compensating a little by dipping your toes imo , try and keep your feet flatter throughout the pedal stoke and that way remove strain and stress
that your getting .
if you watch video you notice that your almost continually toes down when pedaling this is so common its almost accepted as a standard riding position watch this vid and it might explain better
View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j2ZrbnR-0dI
your compensating a little by dipping your toes imo , try and keep your feet flatter throughout the pedal stoke and that way remove strain and stress
that your getting .
if you watch video you notice that your almost continually toes down when pedaling this is so common its almost accepted as a standard riding position watch this vid and it might explain better
View: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j2ZrbnR-0dI
abo
Well-Known Member
- Location
- Stockton on Tees
Argh Timex Ironman, the strap on my watch broke after just over a year and it cannot be replaced. Waste of a good watch
OP
OP
gillelive
Active Member
- Location
- North West
thanks for that clip, one of my problems is patella tendinitis, the guy refers to this as a specific problem resulting from feet/toes in downward position - think i need to play with my set up again
bigjim
Legendary Member
- Location
- Manchester. UK
Not only is he allowed in the kitchen with it, he's now got it in the lounge and she's filming it? I think I'm in love 
,
I think the bar height is wrong through. The weight is not distributed equally. Alright on a short run but I would not want to spend too long in the saddle.
,I think the bar height is wrong through. The weight is not distributed equally. Alright on a short run but I would not want to spend too long in the saddle.
That really is toe down pedaling. You must not be putting your full power potential through the pedals like that. Perhaps losing the clips and using a flat broad pedal would teach you to keep your feet flatter because if you pedalled toe down like that your feet would slip off? Just a thought, no idea if it would work but the clips can't be doing much like that besides keeping your feet on the pedals.
OP
OP
gillelive
Active Member
- Location
- North West
Not only is he allowed in the kitchen with it, he's now got it in the lounge and she's filming it? I think I'm in love
I will be in the bedroom next!!
I think the bar height is wrong through. The weight is not distributed equally. Alright on a short run but I would not want to spend too long in the saddle.
Are you suggesting a lower bar height?
OP
OP
gillelive
Active Member
- Location
- North West
i have now lowered the seat this morning as others have suggested and my feet do seem to have fallen in to a mor natural flatter pedal stroke, still not sure if i need to flip the bar stem
OP
OP
gillelive
Active Member
- Location
- North West
hi, just resurrecting my post....
anyone got any other thoughts on my vid clip? my physio is going well and i am starting to feel well and truely stretched, i have adjusted the saddle again, slightly lower, and as i said earlier my feet appear to be in a more natural flat position, what i am getting confused with is the bar height, how easy is it to flip the stem and is it a usual thing to do on a hybrid? i think i need to stop thinking about this too much, i have to say though when i was riding regularly (work commute) i did feel that i might be more comfortable in a lower position especially in the wind, any thoughts appreciated
anyone got any other thoughts on my vid clip? my physio is going well and i am starting to feel well and truely stretched, i have adjusted the saddle again, slightly lower, and as i said earlier my feet appear to be in a more natural flat position, what i am getting confused with is the bar height, how easy is it to flip the stem and is it a usual thing to do on a hybrid? i think i need to stop thinking about this too much, i have to say though when i was riding regularly (work commute) i did feel that i might be more comfortable in a lower position especially in the wind, any thoughts appreciated
I have just sold my Sirrus ... only because I am not doing much road riding .... not for any other reason really.
I had the bike about 18 months and it is an L ... and I am 5'11". It felt a little small after my last bike but time in the saddle told me it wasn't. I tried the XL and it stretches me in reality too much. The bloke who bought it is 6'1" and loves it.
The video to me looks totally fine. I am hardly experienced in sizing but am very particular with sizing for my own bikes and have to get it just right. I think you are doing what I do and thinking too much. The bike goes give a lot of adjustment and it is just the case of finding by trial and error what is best.
So, FWIW, large is good for you IMO
I had the bike about 18 months and it is an L ... and I am 5'11". It felt a little small after my last bike but time in the saddle told me it wasn't. I tried the XL and it stretches me in reality too much. The bloke who bought it is 6'1" and loves it.
The video to me looks totally fine. I am hardly experienced in sizing but am very particular with sizing for my own bikes and have to get it just right. I think you are doing what I do and thinking too much. The bike goes give a lot of adjustment and it is just the case of finding by trial and error what is best.
So, FWIW, large is good for you IMO
MacB
Lover of things that come in 3's
- Location
- Farnborough, Hampshire
That video Peelywally links to is very good around foot/ankle position and pedalling in circles and you're definitely going about it the right way by getting your saddle/pedal relationship sorted first.
The bars should then feed from that, in your video it looks like the bars are too close in, but this may differ a bit now as you've since adjusted the saddle again. It all gets a bit trial and error for the bars but you need to think about your weight distribution. Based on your saddle/pedal position there will be a natural angle your upper body will want to settle at, this can vary according to personal flexibility. If the bars are too close you'll be pushing your upper body back and up as it constantly tries to dip lower. You'll also be sitting heavier on the saddle than your position is suited to and, in that scenario, I'd expect to suffer from hand, wrist and butt problems with possibly some shoulder issues as well. These may be non existent on a shorter ride but as you get beyond 30-40 miles will start to make themselves felt. They can go from mildly annoying to excruciating within 2-3 miles, at least it did with me. If you look at the chart on this page:-
http://www.prodigalchild.net/Bicycle6.htm
scroll down about 1/8th of the way and it shows road bike stats based on the guys building/shop experience versus customer stats. For flat bars with bar ends I find these fit pretty well, so just have a look at your height, inseam and footsize and see what your suggested TT and stem are compared to what you have. I've followed different detailed setups and all of my bikes end up within a few mm of Daves chart.
Thankfully messing about with stems is easy, you can adjust the height by altering the spacers positon, flip the angle or try a new stem...to see what difference a stem will actually make this site is invaluable:-
http://alex.phred.org/stemchart/Default.aspx
you plug in your existing dimesnions for stem length, stem angle, HT angle and spacers and then can plug in a new set of data and see how the two positions compare.
If you get your saddle right then don't be tempted to move this rather than the bars.
The bars should then feed from that, in your video it looks like the bars are too close in, but this may differ a bit now as you've since adjusted the saddle again. It all gets a bit trial and error for the bars but you need to think about your weight distribution. Based on your saddle/pedal position there will be a natural angle your upper body will want to settle at, this can vary according to personal flexibility. If the bars are too close you'll be pushing your upper body back and up as it constantly tries to dip lower. You'll also be sitting heavier on the saddle than your position is suited to and, in that scenario, I'd expect to suffer from hand, wrist and butt problems with possibly some shoulder issues as well. These may be non existent on a shorter ride but as you get beyond 30-40 miles will start to make themselves felt. They can go from mildly annoying to excruciating within 2-3 miles, at least it did with me. If you look at the chart on this page:-
http://www.prodigalchild.net/Bicycle6.htm
scroll down about 1/8th of the way and it shows road bike stats based on the guys building/shop experience versus customer stats. For flat bars with bar ends I find these fit pretty well, so just have a look at your height, inseam and footsize and see what your suggested TT and stem are compared to what you have. I've followed different detailed setups and all of my bikes end up within a few mm of Daves chart.
Thankfully messing about with stems is easy, you can adjust the height by altering the spacers positon, flip the angle or try a new stem...to see what difference a stem will actually make this site is invaluable:-
http://alex.phred.org/stemchart/Default.aspx
you plug in your existing dimesnions for stem length, stem angle, HT angle and spacers and then can plug in a new set of data and see how the two positions compare.
If you get your saddle right then don't be tempted to move this rather than the bars.
HLaB
Marie Attoinette Fan
My thoughts are just the same as has already been posted, you have your toes down quite a bit and will be stretching the back of your legs quite a bit. I would lower the saddle a bit and also put it forward slightly but it sounds like you have already done this. Flipping the stem is easy and I done it to my sirrus. You just need an allen key, loosen the side bolts, remove the top cap, flip, tighten the top cap, then side bolts. The only thing you've got to remember is not to tighten the side bolts first, like I did my first time :-)
