My Dream Evo Hi-Mod - Update 9-14-2018

[Bianchi10]

Lol ok so I'm normal as hell! good thing I didn't start taking my bike apart to sell the frame just yet then! Haha

[DOUG]

I'm 5' 10.5" and run a 77cm saddle height with a 55cm reach on this. As I say, we're all different.

I actually started typing out a response with my own numbers and realised that we are almost exactly the same height (I'm 5' 11") and have the exact same saddle height and reach to the mm! What are the chances?

I like to think Im about as average as average comes for height and body type so I guess its not too surprising.

Very nice ride BTW.

[RichTheRoadie]

I like to think Im about as average as average comes for height and body type so I guess its not too surprising.

Very nice ride BTW.

Thanks for the compliment.

If you have the same numbers as me I would say you're far from 'average', though. It points to having long legs for your overall height, usually referred to as having long legs and a short torso.

[DOUG]

You reckon? I guess my reach is fairly short at 55cm but then my CAAD doesn't have a particularly aggressive position as I use it primarily for training. My race bike (Canyon Aeroad) is more like 57cm but I haven't really noticed what other peoples reach is of a similar height. It does depend on the saddle as well i guess, I have a Fizik Arione which is quite long so would potentially skew the figures a bit?

Oh and sorry for the thread hijack @Bianchi10 but if you hadn't put the short stem on there then we wouldn't have even had this conversation in the first place. Clearly all your fault

[Bianchi10]

Haha yes, my fault entirely!

[RyanH]

Not to suggest that your fit is wrong, but I will share a little of my fit history. I started off riding a 100mm stem for the first couple years. I had fitters validate that position too. The problem with fitters is that most won't suggest a more aggressive or racy position unless you specifically tell them to. They're used to dealing with people having problems, so the default is high stack and short reach, it's the safe way to go for most of them. How many times have you heard a fitter go, hey, let's put you on a much longer stem, it's going to field weird and maybe uncomfortable for the first week but after that you should be good? Never.

So, with that being said, I had the infamous Colnago thread where my fit was all jacked up cause I thought I could make it work since it was close to what my fitter OK'd previously.

Fast forward to today, my drop is 3cm more and reach is 3cm longer. I saw my old fitter a couple months ago and she asked how my fit was and I told her how I changed it...she was a bit incredulous. Mind you, she was also adamant that I needed a Selle Super Flow since there was no way I wasn't cutting off circulation with a regular saddle . My current guy is a professional track sprinter and does Retul. I tell him I want an aggressive fit and he works with that. Last time I went there, he looked over my 12.5cm of drop, put the fit stem on and watched me ride with variations in stem length and lesser drop. After we got done, he explained my shoulders were a lot more relaxed at 9.5cm of drop, and ultimately I was more aero.

Long story short, take fitting with a grain of salt. You have to sometimes try things yourself. I worked my way up from a 100mm stem straight to a 120 then a 130. It took a couple weeks to adapt but now I'm significantly more comfortable than I was on a 100mm stem. I eliminated some numbness issues that I got. Handling changes too when you are so far back on the bike whereas ideal handling is usually found with more weight over the front.

As others have said though, we're all different. At 5'9 and a 32" inseam, I have a relatively low saddle height at 71cm, partly due to an ITB injury and I need to keep it low otherwise it causes a flare up but also because I pedal with my heels level and not up like some of the other people I know. My saddle setback with the Berk List (long saddle, so add like 3-4cm for a power saddle) is about 5cm and total reach is 548mm (again, 588mm if on a power saddle). My fitter also said that I could go longer on reach but my knee extension is near the max of what he would suggest so I shouldn't increase saddle height and my saddle setback could go forward a few mm for KOPS if I wanted to.

If you do try new stem lengths, stick with it for at least a week. It'll feel weird at first and you probably won't like it. You may get some aches that you normally don't, but after a couple hundred miles your body will most likely adapt and then you can try the next size up.

[Bianchi10]

All good info. I have taken some similar actions. I got my fitting done several years ago and have made my own adjustments from there. I've gone with the in her stem amd reach bars and deeper drop and lower drop. I've played with my fit a lot. I'm by no means a professional but I understand the basic fundamentals and I know what does and doesn't work for me.

Biggest issue is I don't get on my bike nearly as much these days due to my kids sports activities. My weekends are packed with tournament softball and soccer and football amd volleyball. Half of my miles this year have been on my rollers, while the other half has been accumulated by getting out for a quick 10 or 20 with the occasional 40 or 50 if I have the time. So to play with a fitting and give it a week won't really work with the lack of time I've been able to get on the bike. I fully understand the desire to have the weight further up, but this works well for me. I'm comfortable while being in a fairly aggressive position for me. As mentioned, we all have various fits and this is what works for me. Who knows, maybe I'll play around with some demo bikes and try out a 52 and see how it would feel. Might be the best change I could make, but at the same time, this does indeed work for for what I'm after.

[evan326]

The new bars somehow make this bike look even better.
What tape is that?

[Bianchi10]

The new bars somehow make this bike look even better.
What tape is that?

Thank you

Lizard skin 1.8 race tape

[RyanH]

Pretty sure reach is the same between the 54 and 52, at least for the geo charts that I pulled up, so all you'd be doing is introducing spacers to your setup and may necessitate the need for a 25mm setback post instead of 15mm or whatever that is.

If you ever get a new bike, a Parlee Altum would be a good fit for you. Looks like a small with the short cap would require an extra 2cm on the stem length:

http://parleecycles.com/wp-content/uplo ... -Chart.pdf

[DOUG]

Not to suggest that your fit is wrong, but I will share a little of my fit history. I started off riding a 100mm stem for the first couple years. I had fitters validate that position too. The problem with fitters is that most won't suggest a more aggressive or racy position unless you specifically tell them to. They're used to dealing with people having problems, so the default is high stack and short reach, it's the safe way to go for most of them. How many times have you heard a fitter go, hey, let's put you on a much longer stem, it's going to field weird and maybe uncomfortable for the first week but after that you should be good? Never.

So, with that being said, I had the infamous Colnago thread where my fit was all jacked up cause I thought I could make it work since it was close to what my fitter OK'd previously.

Fast forward to today, my drop is 3cm more and reach is 3cm longer. I saw my old fitter a couple months ago and she asked how my fit was and I told her how I changed it...she was a bit incredulous. Mind you, she was also adamant that I needed a Selle Super Flow since there was no way I wasn't cutting off circulation with a regular saddle . My current guy is a professional track sprinter and does Retul. I tell him I want an aggressive fit and he works with that. Last time I went there, he looked over my 12.5cm of drop, put the fit stem on and watched me ride with variations in stem length and lesser drop. After we got done, he explained my shoulders were a lot more relaxed at 9.5cm of drop, and ultimately I was more aero.

Long story short, take fitting with a grain of salt. You have to sometimes try things yourself. I worked my way up from a 100mm stem straight to a 120 then a 130. It took a couple weeks to adapt but now I'm significantly more comfortable than I was on a 100mm stem. I eliminated some numbness issues that I got. Handling changes too when you are so far back on the bike whereas ideal handling is usually found with more weight over the front.

As others have said though, we're all different. At 5'9 and a 32" inseam, I have a relatively low saddle height at 71cm, partly due to an ITB injury and I need to keep it low otherwise it causes a flare up but also because I pedal with my heels level and not up like some of the other people I know. My saddle setback with the Berk List (long saddle, so add like 3-4cm for a power saddle) is about 5cm and total reach is 548mm (again, 588mm if on a power saddle). My fitter also said that I could go longer on reach but my knee extension is near the max of what he would suggest so I shouldn't increase saddle height and my saddle setback could go forward a few mm for KOPS if I wanted to.

If you do try new stem lengths, stick with it for at least a week. It'll feel weird at first and you probably won't like it. You may get some aches that you normally don't, but after a couple hundred miles your body will most likely adapt and then you can try the next size up.

Really useful post. I also had a retul fit but I've actually considered increasing my reach recently just to see what difference it would make and whether it would help make it easier to hold a more aero position. That said I'm reluctant to do so as I have zero issues at the moment on my daily ride and have my race bike set up more aggressively for this reason. Might just buy a couple of cheap stems in various lengths and give it a go, I guess you cant really know until you try.

[rheosibal]

try out a 52

DO IT! Satisfy the internet.

Just raise your seatpost and stick a 130 -17 for the sake of picture kudos

[Bianchi10]

try out a 52

DO IT! Satisfy the internet.

Just raise your seatpost and stick a 130 -17 for the sake of picture kudos

Hahaha!

[beeatnik]

All good info. I have taken some similar actions. I got my fitting done several years ago and have made my own adjustments from there. I've gone with the in her stem amd reach bars and deeper drop and lower drop. I've played with my fit a lot. I'm by no means a professional but I understand the basic fundamentals and I know what does and doesn't work for me.

Biggest issue is I don't get on my bike nearly as much these days due to my kids sports activities. My weekends are packed with tournament softball and soccer and football amd volleyball. Half of my miles this year have been on my rollers, while the other half has been accumulated by getting out for a quick 10 or 20 with the occasional 40 or 50 if I have the time. So to play with a fitting and give it a week won't really work with the lack of time I've been able to get on the bike. I fully understand the desire to have the weight further up, but this works well for me. I'm comfortable while being in a fairly aggressive position for me. As mentioned, we all have various fits and this is what works for me. Who knows, maybe I'll play around with some demo bikes and try out a 52 and see how it would feel. Might be the best change I could make, but at the same time, this does indeed work for for what I'm after.

In your many photos of the same position (sprinting not the exhausted sitting on the top tube pose) on IG, you look like a dude on a 130. So, keep the little stem.

[Bianchi10]

Lol thanks brah!