I had the same experience as you. My first "real" road bike was the exact bike you quoted, a felt z85. I was NEVER comfortable on it. It measured ~ a 56cm and even though I can ride that now, I was never comfortable on the felt. My hands went numb constantly and I just really didn't like the bike.

Fast forward to today. I now own a dozen bikes all of which I'm comfortable on to varying degrees. My hands no longer go numb because I'm on different bikes.

Maybe it's just something with that felt.

Can you post a photo of the bicycle and another photo of you standing next to the bicycle or (even better) on the bicycle?

That would give us a better idea of what the bicycle looks like in terms of fit.

Something to think about,
A drop bar road bike is basically limits one to drop bars. A flat bat bike allows one to choose from a wide selection of bars other than flat bars.

I hate flat bars, but will take trekking, northroad, mustache, pourter, luttewasser, or dutch bars over drops any day.

Verrrry interesting... <arte johnson voice>

They are so nice they're planning to charge me $50 for it! lol
They are a nice shop - and seem to have a very good rep and following - especially with a race / triathlon crowd - but at time of purchase they were very laid back and I don't recall any input at all on the fit of the bike beyond the most basic "you're a 54".

The OP is past his best before race bike days. SELL the damn nuisance.
Time for an old fashioned IGH roadster with dutch bars. Even better if it has drum brakes that won't need service the rest of his life.

Ah - so, from several of the responses I've gleaned the notion that part of the bike feeling twitchy may be because of the time I'm spending on the tops of the bars. Hands closer in, more nervous steering.

Regarding a shorter stem I'm a bit concerned that it may not be much of a change. The 54 comes with a 90mm stem and the shortest Felt stem is an 80mm. The stem calculator I looked at says that's effectively only going to be 8mm difference. Yes, I realize I don't have to use a Felt stem but then I'm introducing different angles and, short of having 6-8 different stems to try out that seems a bit of a crap shoot.

At 5'8" you may be more comfortable on a 52 than a 54.

Fwiw, I'm 5'7", a bit long in my torso, and I'm riding a Ridley Fenix (endurance racing) in small, which comes out to a 52.

If the standover height is ok, maybe look at a zero setback seatpost, along with a shorter stem, and that might get you quite a bit closer to what you want.

What you need is this:

Ritchey Adjustable Stem | Chain Reaction Cycles

80mm, +40 to -32

Use it to figure out what you like, then get one that matches. I did this, lowering it a few degrees every week, until I bilt enough core to not need it and then put the stem back on that the builder intended me to have on it.


Also, raising the stack hight makes for effectively a shorter stem, so that is another option.

Hmmm - I have a totally different experience than the OP.
About 3 years ago I was looking for a hybrid to start cycling to get into better shape.
But instead of purchasing a hybrid, I figured I just jump right in and buy a CAAD10 (size 52) - it was priced right and I really liked it.

After a while I decided that I wanted something a bit more endurance-oriented, and also something that was a little heavier and less twitchy...so I bought a Felt Z85 (size 54). I'm 5'6"...both bikes fit nicely. I don't find the Felt to be twitchy at all.

So I'm not really understanding the "twitchy" ride...except that it's all a matter of perspective.


I think a good bike fit and getting yourself a bit more in shape will go a long way to being more comfortable.
But if your heart is really just set on a hybrid, I'd go along with what others have said and just trade in the Felt for a hybrid of your liking.

yeap, I discovered I can't climb on drop bars worth a dam even though my road bike is half the weight of the mtn bike. I believe it's because the much wider straight bars of the mtn bike just offers a better climbing position. and I've had a few crashes now on the road bike because of the brake positions. I'm new to road bikes.

I wouldn't give up on the Felt just yet. There has to be a way to fit it better.

I am 5'8" and I ride a 55 cm frame. I can't imagine going down to a 52, but then again, everybody is different.

A good bike shop would do this for you until it was right. From what you say, I wonder if the bike shop wasn't a good fit for you. Not that they are a bad bike shop, but rather, a bike shop for serious roadies and tri athletes looking to squeeze a few minutes or seconds out of a big race might not be the best for someone coming back to cycling after a hiatus.

I think that when I rode the smaller frame (51 or 52 I forget) I felt like I was towering over the bike - which seems to me to be just a part of modern frame design but I've not studied the subject enough to have anything other than a suspicion about it.

The one thing I DID do to my Felt Z85 was put on a different seat. Yes, I have to admit that with the original seat I was quite uncomfortable on the bike.

Thanks. I'll have to look for something similar - the Felt uses a 31.8mm clamp.

There is nothing for me to like about the stock seat. I've just been assuming it was me needing to spend more time on it. I have a brand new Selle Italia gel on another bike here that I can try. Can't do any harm.

Thanks - unfortunately that's a 90mm stem - same as what came on the Felt. Lets me play with rise anyway which does also shorten reach a little. The only other Kalloy I could find is 110mm.

With stems there is length, and EFFECTIVE length. It is 90mm if it near 0 degrees, but as you move to the upper or lower bounds it is EFFECTIVELY longer or shorter.

By moving spacers up and down you can vary that effective reach as well. Once you use an adjustable stem to figure out where it is most comfortable for you, then you get a fixed stem to match it.

Or keep moving it down a few degrees each week until you build the core strength you need.

80mm, 31.8 version of the Ritchey, which is a very secure mechanism:

https://www.amazon.com/Ritchey-Adjus.../dp/B00G2FYOTA

Which is why I said as much in my post.

Unfortunately very expensive. Cheapest one there is $89.xx. More than 2x the other Ritchey adjustable stems.

Yeah it cracks me up that Kalloy Uno might cost $12-$32 depending on source, and some people sell stems which are no stronger and no light for three times the money.

Anyway, someone might advise that the OP go on EBay and buy a couple $10-$15 stems and swap things around.

Also ... if the bars are 25.6 or whatever you can buy shims.

I'm 67 and 5'9" and find a 54 frame to be my max... but I suffer from short legs/long torso so smaller frames introduce other problems. Biggest surprise I read in your posts is that your shop did not do a comprehensive fitting when you bought the Felt; I have always assumed it was a standard to provide this free with a new purchase). I'd try hard to get them to help you dial in your fit. With 30 minutes on a trainer they should be able to diagnose your hand problems. I also have some hand numbness but I attribute it to multiple hand surgeries over the years; and I manage it with frequent position changes that drop bars give more than any other. And I also utilize progressive lens eyeglasses so I understand your head position/neck issues. All of which should be elements in a good fitting session.

When I returned to cycling in 2013 after a 35 year hiatus I was drawn by the totally new look and feel of the bikes and the incredibly different ride characteristics. The twitchy front end had both great liveliness as well as tremendous fear and loathing. A few hundred miles of conditioning made most of that go away. Fine tuning saddle height and fore/aft positioning from my initial fit helped immensely. And the constant search for the next tweek is, for me, part of the joy of the sport.

If I were you (and it seems I was for a while) I wouldn't give up on the Felt until you have exhausted your fit options. As many here have pointed out, there are huge changes possible in mere millimeters... a stem change of 10 or 15 mm can be huge. And changing bar height relative to saddle can be the difference between sadness and euphoria (a nod to Billy Joel). After a double metric century last summer my ride companion complained of his back and neck pain. I asked why he rode with such a long stem in the flattened position. He had no idea that his stem could be reversed. He has been in that euphoria place ever since.

Hang in there... Good luck.

:thumb: This is so true, and it took me a couple of years to figure out myself.

I have yet to find an online bike store with anywhere near as comprehensive a range as Bike24, and they have a 90mm Ritchey Adjustable Stem (-55 to +55 degrees) for Euro29.33.


If you are not logged in, you will see the price + VAT of 19%, which you don't have to pay if you live outside of the EU/UK.


Bike24 have a flat transport fee, whether you buy one item or 10 items, so it always works out best if you can buy other items you need/want as well, as their pricing is always very competitive.

It seems many cycling related items are significantly cheaper in Europe, with a lot more variety as they're nowhere near as focused on the sport aspect of cycling as here in NA.
Even with shipping, I typically save a fair amount of money.

Actually you can select your country on the top and then it shows you accurate pricing without having an account or logging in.

Stem plus shipping US$55.15. Better than $89 but still expensive for an experiment.

Using a stem comparison tool I found online I could bring the bars a maximum of 48mm closer and 36mm higher compared to the original Felt. Be interesting anyway.

Their shipping for a single item can be a bit of an annoyance, but if you need say tyres or tubes or brake pads or other things, you will find getting multiple things so much better. :)