Singlespeed & Fixed Gear - fixed gear comfort

i commute 30 miles to and from work, and I am thinking that my bike (IRO Mark V) must be set up wrong for i am quite uncomfortable. I think my position is too far forward (making my wrists and elbows uncomfortable) and my seat really hurts.

any suggestions on how yours is set up so i can ride more comfortably?

i commute 30 miles to and from work, and I am thinking that my bike (IRO Mark V) must be set up wrong for i am quite uncomfortable. I think my position is too far forward (making my wrists and elbows uncomfortable) and my seat really hurts.

any suggestions on how yours is set up so i can ride more comfortably?


Check your fit:

http://www.competitivecyclist.com/za/CCY?PAGE=FIT_CALCULATOR_INTRO

get a centimeter tape and check specs against your ride +/- 1-2cm ... eat spinach.

one of the big problems with track frames is that they're not made for comfort... at all. a couple things may help, though:
- check the angle of your saddle. if it's tilted forward, that puts more weight on your hands. tilt it back a little.
- compare the height of your handlebars vs. the height of your saddle. most track frames have saddles higher than bars, which is uncomfortable for most people (unless your arms are quite long). Putting riser bars or a stem with some rise in it may help.

That- and I see people do crazy things with chopped bars...

I used the fit calculator above to set up my Litespeed. Then, I bought an IRO with .5cm shorter top tube & some additional rise on the stem. As a result, it is very comfortable. I'm sitting slightly more upright, but still very aero when I'm in the drops. I did a 6hr ride on it this past Sunday. I was very comfortable & fresh when I finished. No saddle soreness. No arm, hand, wrist, or back discomfort. Finding the right saddle & setting the correct angle (for you) is important. I use a more padded heavier saddle on my IRO (a cheap WTB) & set it up level to slightly nose up.

If your wrists are uncomfortable, you are probably too stretched out. Either the top tube is too long, stem too long, or you need more rise on the stem (bar is too low). For a quick fix, you can move the seat forward on the rails (if it is not already all the way forward) & that may help some.

slight hijack but related: i feel perfectly comfortable with my bike set up as it is, but i get numbness in my hands on longer rides (with gloves, without, with tape, without). do you think angling the seatpost up a tad might help?

slight hijack but related: i feel perfectly comfortable with my bike set up as it is, but i get numbness in my hands on longer rides (with gloves, without, with tape, without). do you think angling the seatpost up a tad might help?
sometimes it's that you need to move your hands around on the bars-- could be just repetitive stress from having 'em in one place too long.
but the seat angle matters, as does handlebar height.

on my Masi (3 cm drop from saddle to bars) I can ride for hours with no hand pain or numbness; on the mystery bike (20 cm drop saddle to bars) I get a little numb if I don't take a break every 20 minutes or so. Both bikes became SIGNIFICANTLY more comfortable with brooks b17 saddles.

duh i mean angling up the seat not the post. i have a b17 - love it to bits

ugh, have one too...never have been more uncomfortable. and since switching to that saddle and trying all kinds of various configurations, my wrists have never hurt more.

i know, cry me a river.

I think my position is too far forward (making my wrists and elbows uncomfortable) and my seat really hurts.

I replaced my old turbo for a Brooks B17 a few weeks ago. No more pain and numbness [scary!]
on long rides. I noticed with the Brooks that when I had the seat angled too far downward,
the leather is so slippery I was sliding a bit and putting a lot of pressure on my arms and
wrists. I leveled the saddle, raised the stem a tad. Now I can ride all day without any pain
whatsoever. And I'm no longer worried about my ability to father children!

Yet another vote for the brooks. Goddamned is that thing a pleasure. Just don't wear slippery pants.

ugh, have one too...never have been more uncomfortable. and since switching to that saddle and trying all kinds of various configurations, my wrists have never hurt more.

i know, cry me a river.

do i sense a slightly used brooks for sale? (or trade for a SSM eva luxe?)

its the womens brooks saddle...

thinking bout keeping it in case my glorious san marco rolls disappears one of these days. sorry.

Question about applying road fit results to track frames:

Normally with a track fit compared to a road fit, you'd want a seat tube that was a centimeter or two shorter due to the bottom bracket differences. However, what about the top tube? That's a more important length to consider, but unfortunately I don't know how to apply the handy applet that was linked above to a track frame. Should I subtract something off the top tube length that was provided, or go with it?

Thanks,

- eyefloater

Some suggestions, most already covered here:
Angle seat up slightly. You might need to try a more padded seat.
Get a stem that will raise the bars higher than they are now.
Maybe get a shorter stem.
One thing that helped me - get a seat post with a little set back. Some seat posts have the clamp right over the post, while many others have the clamp 25 mm behind the post. I bought a post on ebay that was set back 25 mm. This gets more weight on my butt and less weight on my hands - it made a big difference.