Originally Posted by
badger1
Jinkster,
From what you've said so far, I'm going to (somewhat unhelpfully!) +1 several comments above:
1. Get yourself checked out medically; if you can't or won't do that,
2. Get yourself to a properly-qualified sports physiotherapist, preferably one who works with cyclists; if you can't or won't do that,
3. Get your bike fit professionally checked out.
That said, I do have one question. It's not clear to me if this is happening on all (three?) of your bikes, or just one/the new Crosstrail? I'm wondering about crank length. I usually ride a 'medium' frame (hybrid or mountain); 54 road. Most "medium" hybrid or mountain bikes come stock with 175 mm cranks; I can't tolerate anything more than 170, even though I do have quite long legs for my height (at 5'8" tall I have a 33" [84mm] true cycling inseam) and should be able to. If I use 175 cranks, I quickly develop knee pain (and hip pain). 175s, relative to 170s, inevitably push your knees 'up' higher as you come over the top of the stroke, and close your hip angle. It may seem a small thing, but some of us just can't tolerate this on a repetitive basis. I needed the help of a sports-medicine physiotherapist to figure this out. Might be totally irrelevant to your situation, but thought I'd throw my experience in fwiw.
Hmmm....I do have one old chiropractor friend I trust and have used many times over...he straightened out my back and squared my hips after numerous sport bike racing accidents...also gained me a ton of range of motion in my neck and?...he's a flat out health nut and fitness freak....and only charges me $25 (and a handshake) per session...I'll go see him and see what he has to say besides....
"Where the hell have you been!" LOL!
And that's an interesting point you bring up regarding crank length...I always giggled at such thinking what a bunch of brew-ha-ha...figuring if I have too much pressure cranking?...whats the difference between the leverage of longer cranks VS just downshifting a gear or two?...and with me at a whopping 5'6+"s on a good day?....my inseam is just shy of 29"s short...so I also thought if I have short legs?...what business do I have with long cranks?....nevertheless?...all I have is a tape measure and the best I could measure was just a hair under 6 3/4"s fron center of crank to center of pedal spindle on all three bikes...which metrically converts too 170mm cranks on all 3 bikes...also?...the seat tube on my Giant RB is 19"s while both my Trek MB and my Crosstrail hybrid the seat tubes are 18"s....so I'm good there right?...or is it possible I need even shorter cranks?...with the seat height up where my legs are near full extension they don't feel like my knees are getting jammed...but with just a slightly lower seat height they can.