douchebagonwhlz

so now you know you're one of the cool kids. did you know if it was up anyway?

berny

I do my stretches *every* morning IN BED! Well most of them anyway. I do this as I'm warm and unlikely to 'pop' something. I can't stress enough how important stretching is.

I started racing early this year, and combined with core strength work I stretch every day, often twice a day and I plan on increasing this regime. I've recently been able to lower my TT bike bars about 40mm and flip the stem on the RR bike. I've raised the seats 10mm on both bikes. I did this in conjunction with moving the seats forward, about 12mm on the RR bike and 30mm on the TT'r. It caused me a little discomfort initially but now I'm way more aero and much stronger generally and particularly so when sprinting in the drops. (I'm currently running in the top 5 in the club pointscore)

A lower position reduces air pressure which is *the* biggest hurdle we face when riding.

Get yourselves more flexibility guys. Flip them stems and improve your riding.

crosscut

I already spin thanks to these forums. I actually spin more than most I think. With my cadence being around 90-95 during rides. I have done this since I jumped back on the bike in the late fall of last year.

Last year I did yoga but quit when I had my knee surgery and was not able to perform. I am looking at what options are best for re-introducing yoga back into my workout.

I have signed up with a LBS/coach to take a winter training class, to push me further into my training and get me ready for next spring. I just need to lose those extra LBs, to get down to my target weight and increase my power to weight ratio.

Thanks for the 411 and help. I am loving it. (god McDonalds marketing sucks)

Zouf

"Flip it" is often more of a posing thing than anything else - you rarely read "drop it" (i.e. drop the stem, remove spacers for unthreaded rigs), but always "flip it". Only 2 things that count: the drop from saddle to bars, and how your own body can adapt to such. No magic about that stem and which way it points.

CPW

Exactly.
CPW

rangerov

I just flipped my stem down, and it seems that I have got slower...

50mph

This is an awesome thread

jwilson165

my stem was already flipped when i got it. at first it felt very uncomfortable so i flipped it up again. i have a compact frame giant so the seat is up very high so my legs can extend all the way. after a while i felt too upright so a flipped it back. makes the seat look very high, but ive found that im used to the low position and can achieve high speeds, probably due to wind resistance more than anything. anyway, im keeping where it is. ill try and post a pic later.

crosscut

This is the exact thing I experienced. Flip it back, no one cares if you have it flipped if you are getting dropped on every ride. LOL. No one can see it then.


Thanks 50mph for the comment.

azwhelan

I think this is an interesting thread since one of the most popular bikes right now is the Specialized Roubaix. Besides it being carbon with all the vibration dampening stuff the big selling point is its more upright riding position. The Cannondale Synapse has the same selling point. Some pro riders are even opting for the Roubaix over the Tarmac for its more comfortable position. I've read that some believe that a more comfortable position will give you better performance than trying to cram yourself into the most aerodynamic position.

Point being flipping your stem into a positive angle will give you the same upright position these bikes offer and people are dropping big bucks to acheive.

I have a specialized stem that allows you to adjust the angle from +16 degs to -16 degs. It has been great for me. The stronger I become the more I can adjust the angle down. Check it out: https://specialized.com/bc/SBCEqProduct.jsp?spid=9870

crosscut

How do you like the shiming of the stem? So as I read it, the inside of the stem where you slide the steer tube adjusts and you place different shims to hold it in place. IS this correct?

azwhelan

I think you have the right idea. You slide the shim over the steer tube and the stem over that. You just tighten the stem itself around the shim. The base of each shim has a different angle which depending which direction it is facing adjust the stem up or down. It's a pretty smart system for someone who is still trying to fine the right fit for them. As your core gets stronger you get more comfortable dropping the angle.

crosscut

No movement with the shims? I would worry that the shims wouldn't be enough to hold it.

biker7

The guys that jump on the bandwagon don't know any better that's all and that comprises a large group...led by their cosmetic instincts to emulate racers mostly. Akin to the sports compact car tuner industry/craze selling dubbs (tires) with 30% aspect ratio or virtually no sidewall on wheels contributing to high unsprung weight...a good way to bend a wheel and jar the fillings loose in your teeth...but sure looks cool or at least they think it does. Most that know that say flip...say so tongue in cheek as many...perhaps the majority of riders here are running a + rise albeit a modest rise. Yeah there are some nasty negative rise really slammed bikes that are set up aggressive as well...ball busters or racer wanna be poseurs....a few legit guys that actually like that postion...lol but most are led by what they think looks cool at the expense of comfort. It is all about fit including steerer tube length, how many spacers etc. You can achieve the same fit on two different bikes by running opposite stem rise...no hard fast rule. On my latest bike...I have a +5 degree stem and flipped it and could ride OK on it but liked it better with + and not - rise. One comment...this is obscure bit of design lore if not evolution...the vast majority of road bikes sold are with a 0 to positive rise stems which gets the bars up a bit and is more comfortable to a recreational cyclist which most are. The reason for a positive rise in later threadless road bike stems is the relative steerer height of newer threadless versus old school threaded quilled stems with negative stem rise...threadless steerers tend to be shorter then their quilled Swan necked counterparts...less redundant geometry to create rise if you will with a threadless steerer with + rise stem. Some will understand what I just wrote and another subset will appreciate the aesthetic of old quilled stems which all virtually ran a negative rise that negated the steerer tube angle to give a vintage road bike its classic lines with stem parallel to top tube. To compensate, and some would say less aesthetic...rise is built into most threadless roadbike stems with the option of flipping the stem if the overall handlebar height is too high which it rarely is for most riders. The net handlebar height when comparing a threadless + rise stem to - rise threaded stem is about the same from top of steerer tube to centerline of handlebar with a quilled stem at mid point adjustment.
George

azwhelan

I've had no problems. The shim isn't a solid piece of metal so it allows it to compress around the steering tube when you tighten down the stem. The potential for major injury and litigation if the setup wasn't 100% would make me think specialized checked it out thoroughly.