Originally Posted by
megalowmatt
no1- I have loosely followed your plight regarding this "heel strike" issue. Looking at the geometry of your bike (kona smoke?) it has 45cm chain stays - I ride a "touring" frame with 45.5cm chain stays and have never once had an issue with heel strike on the panniers. Even the ever respected long haul trucker has 46cm stays.
Do you have gargantuan feet?
My Kona Smoke has chain stays measured at 16.3" from bottom bracket shell to the rear drop out. The rack has a platform length of 12". I wear size 10.5 or 11, depending.