Road Cycling - Fitting (Top Tube and Reach)

Hi all,

I have been playing with the adjustment of my saddle, more specifically fore / aft and tilt positioning. I have noticed that I ride much more comfortably with all the way back and the nose slightly tilted down to relieve the pressure off the... well important parts... Anyway I can't put my saddle any further back and I think I may be even more comfortable if it was.... So I was wondering if my top tube way too short for my torso. When I am riding the hoods I am not sure if I'm leaned forward enough which may be causing the stiffness in my neck and shoulder after about 25 miles of riding. Well if there is any advice that can be offered as far as fitting in regards to reach would be good. I have been to the LBS and they seem to think I am good and I do have less pain than before but still get pain... just trying to get a second opinion.

Thanks,

Scott

Stiffness in back and neck could be caused by incorrect reach. It can also be caused by having a bar too low in relation to saddle height.

How long have you been riding a road bike? What is your general fitness level? How flexible do you consider yourself?

As for reach - go to wrenchscience.com and go through their fitting program. You'll need help getting the measurements done accurately. Whatever they indicate as your reach is a good starting place - compare it to where you are now and make adjustments as needed. If you need more space, you may consider a longer stem or a setback seatpost if you don't already have one. If you are maxxed out on stem and seatpost and still need more, then you might have the wrong frame.

Again, check the bar-to-saddle height difference. If you are a casual, new or just-getting-into-shape rider only, your bars should be no lower than a couple of CM's from the top of the saddle. Good luck.

55/Rad

Been riding about a year... took the winter months off... I would say I have average fitness... however I do notice improvements every week.. I have been training with a heart monitor... I lost about 45 lbs from last season to this season that's a big differnence and I feel alot better. Hamstrings and legs are pretty flexable.. .however I have a hip injury so flexability there is iffy... upper body flexability is good I do alot of neck and shoulder stretches I learned in physical therapy last season. I have been weight training this year focusing on shoulder, neck, and abdominal strength... I do still start to get very stiff in my neck and shoulders after about 25 to 30 miles... I know cycling should be a workout but no so painful that you want to cry like a "girly man" ;)

tilting the saddle nose down will punish your arms and hands more, since your weight will make your butt slide forward, and the only couterforce you can use is your arms..

The saddle fore-aft adjustment is for position adjustment of the saddle to the BB. This is used to fine tune the position of your knees relative to your pedal axle at 9o'clock. Some say you knees should be directly over your pedal, but I like mine 1cm behind.

If you think your reach is too short, adjusting the saddle wont do you much good. Try swapping your stem w/ a longer one and see if its better. :)

The top tube length is independant of the seat-tube angle. That means that the same top tube can be used to build a bike with a large layback from the bottom bracket, or by using a steep angle, achieve a short layback.
To measure your frames layback, mark the position of the BB on the top tube (use a weighted string) and measure back to the middle of the seat-tube. You can use this length to compare bikes, its much easier than trying to measure angles.
You can alter the layback of your saddle by replacing the seat-post. These are available in a variety of laybacks.
In setting the latback, you also have to consider the crank length, since this affects the pedal position at 6:00 and 3:00.

With bike position, everything is connected, so your problems may be connected to the saddle-bars positioning. How low are your bars relative to the saddle?