Originally Posted by prooftheory

Tyler, when bike people say "tight geometry" they usually mean something like the fact that the wheels are closer together which makes for a more responsive, more aggressive and harsher ride. You said that you wanted a shorter stem which indicates that you are looking to be less stretched out and thus having a less aggressive, less harsh ride so the term that you were using was in direct contradiction to the result. As for proper stem length, it is often suggested that the front of your hands should end up directly behind a position directly above the front axle. This is somewhat shorter on frames with tight geometry than on road bikes but it is more dependent on the handlebars.

/still not scrod gosh darnit