Road Cycling - Giant Road Bike Owners

Nobody resonded to my post about this in bicycle mechanics so I thought Id try it here. I have a 2001 Giant OCR1. Right below where the front derailleur is attached to the frame there is an indentation about 1.5 inches long. Likewise there is also an indentation along the lower part of the frame that goes out to the wheels (Im sure theres a better name for that) right around where the rings end. Does anyone else have these? It cant be from a crash because my cranks and front derailluer would have to have been really pounded into the frame for them to make these and they are in perfect working order right now. Anyone else see these?

They are supposed to be there. The one on the seat tube is for front der clearance in the small ring postion. Early models did not have this and the der would hit the frame before shifting the chain down to the small ring.
The small tubes that run from the bottom bracket are called chain stays, the ones that run up to the seat tube are called seat stays.
The indents in the chainstays are for tire clearance, if you run a bigger tire.

Thanks rev. Almost thought my frame got crushed somehow. Good to know.

TriDevil..... How do you like your bike? I have a 2001 OCR1. It seems like a real stiff and fast bike, Ive though about upgrading the wheel set on it. But I spend most of my time on my "Sunday" bike though. Oh and BTW, just checked mine and the Rev is right about the small chain ring and clearance for the front der.

This is my first real road bike and I couldnt be happier. The full 105 groupo on it shifts like a dream. Im also looking to upgrade the wheel set some time. Do you still have the adjustable stem on it or did you switch that out? I still have the adjustable one on it. Its a great bike to roll up to a red light,have it turn green and sprint past the cars.

Swapping out the adjustable stem will drop about 8 oz. off the bike.

Ive thought about getting rid of the stem. How do I determine what size stem to get? Just look at the setup I have now and take some measurements? I guess the stem setup depends on what type riding I want to do. I have aerobars for triathlons but I still go out for long rides and stuff so Im off the aerobars to a considerable amount.

Just measure your stem length and eyeball the angle and consider any fit change you might want to make.