Originally Posted by
cyclezen
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Saddle fit. If you're not riding for max performance - position the saddle so that when you're on the bike, riding, you feel most of your weight on the saddle, and the hands feel 'lighter'.
It's a hard thing to really 'experience'. Mark the saddle rails with some indication of where the post clamps on at this time. Then you can make horizontal changes and always go back to where it was originally. small changes 1 cm increment at a time. You might find a point where your hands and 'grip' feels lighter - a good thing.
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Ride On
Yuri
I need to explain/expand this, above, a little, to avoid misunderstanding...
The 'lighter' feeling happens when actually riding. It's not intended to be determined in a static fit, by just sitting on the bike.
some background - as you pedal, apply pressure to the pedals, the force of pedaling is counteracted by the 'mass' of your torso, and the inverse - your pedal force will make the torso feel 'lighter' at the hands/bars contact point.
The harder you pedal, the lighter the feel.
Intuitively, one might think that moving the saddle forward, lightens the most, because the torso is more vertical - and yes, some of that happens. BUT that effect is not a 1 to 1 relationship.
it manifests more as a curve, more lightening at greater torso angles...
so
road bikes position Always have some significant forward torso lean... more than riding a cruiser, old school 'English Racer'/Town bike/OpaFiets or other upright ride design...
depending on where the saddle is currently positioned, often getting the greater 'Lightening' effect for the hands happens when the saddle is moved BACKWARD a bit, not forward. This depends on the most usual pedal pressure a rider will exert on any ride... so, yes, that will vary.
don't be afraid to experiment with a rearward saddle reposition - always make only ONE change/adjustment, then ride for some reasonable time, to feel the result of the change - RIDE - not balanced on a trainer, on road.
Ride On
Yuri