Pain around knee cap with new bike - looking for alternatives for Cervelo R3/BMC
 

Hello All!

recently started road cycling. It was a longterm wish and so happy to have my first bike! After short time I got some left knee issues and I went to a sports doctor for a dynamic bike fit. It appeared that my Specialized Dolce X3 51 was not optimal for me, even after adjustments the saddle can not be further to the back and is missing 2 cm space there. ...So I am in search for a new bike now, and very dissappointed. The shop told me they will help to look for an alternative, but the alternatives that the sportsdoc gave me are very pricy for me, so I am in doubt and continuing my search. Meanwhile, the sun is shining here so perfect weather to go out, but I am bikeless....:cry: :backpedal:

The alternatives she suggests are the Cervelo R3 48 or the BMC Endurance 48, as the seat tube angle would need to be about 73 or 73.5 max, while now I had 75.5 degrees....does anyone know of bikes that would have similar geometries but are more for beginners, especially in terms of price? I feel that for me both bikes are a bit pricy as I am just a newbee...doesn't mean that I am feeling that this will become one of my new activity addictions ;)

Does anyone know of any bikes that I could explore instead? Please let me know! Or else, where can I easily find alternative measures? Is there a site for those types of calculations/comparisons?

Can you simply use a seatpost with more "setback", i.e. the clamp that holds the saddle rails is further to the rear of the post?

Some reading
Learn About Bikes with Rivendell Bicycle Works

A combination of seatpost and saddle that achieves a whole lot of setback, although costly
Nitto Lugged seat post 27.2 x 250 - 11048

I'm not familiar w/ the model of bike you currently have but some reading says it has a 27.2mm seatpost, so just look for a seatpost of that diameter, with a lot of setback, like 30 or 40 mm.

EDIT: I looked at pictures of "Specialized Dolce X3 51" online, and the stock seatpost seems to have very little setback (also called "offset"). If that is the case, then a not-too-expensive seatpost with 30 mm setback like
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Kalloy-Uno-C...item5898a52039
might give you the desired 2 cm (20 mm). If that isn't enough, you can look for a saddle with longer rails.


Here is a thread w/ some ideas
http://www.bikeforums.net/road-cycli...-diameter.html

I also ran across this interesting part, which may or may not fit your existing seatpost
VK saddle adaptor - £23.99

You know, this may sound dumb but moving the saddle back 2 cm is the same as moving your foot forward 2 cm, as far as your leg is concerned. Foot position on the pedal is only an real issue with some riders, others are fine with a larger range. Can you move the clip back, or use platforms?

Layback seat post. Like BMX.