Freefallman

So I recently purchased a new bike and today while riding I experienced lower back pain. I did not have this problem on my first ride this Saturday. When I got home I whipped out the tape measure and checked the length from seatpost to stem and the seat tube length and compared them to my hardtail which I've ridden without problem for years. Both of these measurements are more or less the same.

I'm 5'10 and I'm riding a medium Stumpjumper which is about the same size as my 17.5 Trek 4500. Any theories about why the back pain? I'm thinking maybe I had the seatpost too high?

PS. I'm 28 with no history of backpain.

victim

I'm 5'9" and ride a large stumpjumper. I dumped the setback seat post and put a shorter stem and higher rise handlebar on. We are both "tweeners". I love the way this bike fits me now. I think you have a 10mm spacer above your handlebars, try raising the bars that 10mm and see what that does for you.

mcoomer

If you purchased the bike new from the shop, go back and ask them to help you setup the seat height and position and stem length. On my Stumpy I ended up with a setback seatpost to get the right saddle position and a shorter stem.

Freefallman

I'm going to go back in. I stopped by (minus the bike) today to talk to them. The girl there was less than helpful and they have some sort of premium fitting service she was trying to press on me for 175$. I think people in Santa Monica have more money than experience/sense. All I want is someone to look at me on the bike and let me know if there's something obviously wrong. I feel like if I buy an expensive bike that's the least you can do. I'll definitely be reporting my experience with them here if it's negative.

theextremist04

Do core strength workouts. I'm guessing that's all it is, but I'm no doctor. So yeah.

vec

this might be it. i remember after doing some deadlifts one day, and then when i went to ride my mtb, my lower back was a bit sore because i was tired from the lifts. otherwise, i can ride hours on end without a hitch. did you work out any before your ride? how long were you riding for? do more situps.

just my .02 gl

Freefallman

Vec, got very little sleep the night before so that might have been a contributing factor rather than working out. I'm in decent shape but I guess there is room for improvement. Time for crunches.

jjbod1

Every brand new bike I have bought from a shop so far has helped me figure out a good set up for me "NO Charge" Thats BS on them. If it was me I would of taken the bike back and demanded my money!! I would let everybody you know at this point to steer clear from that place.

Dion Rides

YEAH! So you just bought, I'm guessing, a pretty big purchase in the form of a Stumpjumper and they're going to nickle and dime you? That's pretty lame.

I would give them a poor review on Yelp - it would get out to a lot more people, especially newbies looking to buy a bike (as they'd probably heard of Yelp before BF). They want to do a full on professional bike fitting - and you just want some pointers.

mcoomer

Ditto what these last two folks have said. I wouldn't expect them to put you on video and give you a full blown fit session but they should break out the plumb bob and goniometer and help you get your saddle to the correct position. I picked up a road bike a few years back and had the seatpost slip and bottom out while oon one of the first few rides and a shop I'd never been in before or since did that for me without complaint.

mystolenbikes

Yeah that's BS no bike shop should charge you for a set up. Unfortunately I can't help you as a fellow stumpy rider because my seat height changes every 10 mins while I am riding (ok not that often but I change it pretty often )
But if you want you can PM me and I'll give you the info of the shop I go to in Sherman Oaks, they only sell Specialized and they can't be more helpful or nicer. Whole shop has three people including the owner.

Freefallman

Yeah, well I'm bringing it in today so we'll see how helpful they are before I totally slam them. It's just that girl behind the counter wasn't too encouraging and doing the hard sales pitch. On a side note I used Leonard Zinn's method for calculating fit. He uses rather broad ranges but the frame falls within acceptable ranges. These measurements also indicate that the top tube on a large would be too long. As you can see the stem appears to be a bit short. We'll see what they tell me at the shop but I'm inclined to go longer. Any recommendations on how far you would go as these measurements seem to indicate I can go all the way to 130 if I wanted?


Measurements
Inseam: 83.82
Inseam and Torso: 144.145
Arm: 58.42
Torso: 60.325
Arm & Torso: 118.745

Acceptable Sizing Ranges (Calculations)
Frame sizing: 419 to 495.
Top Tube: 558.1 - 593
Stem Length: 100 - 136

Stumpjumper (Medium)
Frame Size: 445
Top Tube: 587
Stem Length: 90

mystolenbikes

I am 5'8" and I have the Med frame with stock stem and seat post and I am fine with it, keep us posted.

Freefallman

Same girl today but much better attitude. It may have been because the general manager was standing right there and I talked to him on the way through the door. She adjusted the seatpost up about an inch but more or less said that I had the correct setup. Additionally, she suggested that the full suspension might cause more movement and that I would need to adjust/ strengthen before it improved. However, she did concur that the stem might be a hair short but suggested that I try a small increment increase to 100mm. I'm thinking about a Thomson as I've heard they are great and due to their bling factor should have good resale value if I decide I need a 110 mm. Thoughts?

Dion Rides

You can never go wrong with a Thompson stem.

mack_turtle

this might help: My Back is Hosed.

Taj is a pro BMX freestyle rider, but his back problems are probably the same kind that anyone who rides a bike might have.

RIC0

I'm with stupid, LOL

Your probably using muscles you've never used before, keep ridin dawg.

bswiftho

I'm having a similair problem. Went from riding my entry level Trek 1000 road bike and bought a new 5.5 madone. Now when I ride I'm getting lower back pain. The shop I purchased from tried to set me up, but they mostly had mountain bikes. I don't know if the guy knew what he was doing. Going to keep trying to adjust it myself I guess. Any suggestions are welcome...

-_RebelRidin'_-

the Roadie forum would be able to help you on fitting a road bike a lot more than here.

Michael B

Different bike different angels could mean you need a different setup to your old bike. Maybe try an adjustable stem for a while