dmb2786

if you're a newbie, you might find your body gets better after a year or so.

Humongous

well did you check the video in the OP?

dmb2786

well if a back angle of 45 degrees is a neutral position, your position might be a little aggressive. if you get a new stem, I wouldn't do less than 80 or 90.

I don't know anything.

walie

kinda looks like you need to raise your saddle a bit

Humongous

That might be because i'm leaning over too far. I'm probably supposed to sit more upright with straighter arms. I am probably taking the "don't make your arms straight" a little too far. I can easily get a 45 degree back if I sit more "proper" and I heard there was a rule of thumb that if your handlebar blocks out your front hub when you look down, your head is where it should be, which is the case for me when I am more upright.

Could this be more of a posture issue?

merlinextraligh

looking at the video, I don't think your stem's too long, by much, if any. You may just not be comfortable in a fairly aggressive position.

I'd ride the bike for awhile and see how it feels over time. and then consider whether you need to make adjustments.

And if you don't become comfortable with the position, the answer may be a stem with more rise, as opposed to a shorter stem.

Have you tried the test of whether the front axle is obscured in the drops?

umd

Ok, so the position doesn't look horrible, and it looks like your bars may be been fixed somewhat since the picture, otherwise it may have just been a bad angle. I would still rotate the bars down and move the shifters up on them, which would also effectively decrease the reach. Mostly though, I think it is just a matter of getting used to the position.

Regarding the saddle height, it's hard to tell in the video. When you clip in it looks ok but when you pedal you could use more bend in the knee. I think you are just pedalling toes down and that's making the saddle look low. One "rule of thumb" you can test is to unclip and place your heel on the pedal. You should just reach it without bending your knee, but you should not have to rotate your hips or stretch to do it.

Humongous

The bars perfectly obstruct the axle when my back is upright and arms almost but not quite straight like in this photo:

merlinextraligh

which would tend to indicate your fit is at least in the ballpark.

What was the distance from the middle of the seat to the bars on your previous bike, and on this bike?

ok_commuter

Yeah, that's a mess. And I hate those bars too.

Humongous

my other bike is a flat bar comfort bike so that would be apples to oranges.. this is my first rodie-o (see what I did there?)

BarracksSi

Yeah, it's a size too big, at least. Will your shop let you swap it? Mine did when we realized that the one they sold me first was too small; they swapped the wheels so that the smaller one didn't have a couple hundred miles' wear on its tires when it went back on the shelf.

khatfull

So , is the issue with the bars is the position of the brifters which makes one have the bars rotated all screwy to get the brifters to the right angle?

Funny, on my identical, brand new CAAD9 I think think they're in the same position. I'll try to snap a pic.

BarracksSi

Oh yeah --

If -- and I mean if -- the flat bar bike fits really well, measure it from the seat (say, where your sitbones sit) to the stem clamp on the bars. Then compare that to the CAAD9's distance from the seat to a point just ahead of the stem clamp, right about even with the base of the hoods.

If that's close, you might be pretty good after all. All of my bikes have nearly identical saddle-to-bar distance.

(looking at the vid some more)

I also kinda think that you're reaching pretty far up on the hoods. Try moving your hands a bit closer to you (only about a centimeter or two) so that the near edge of the rubber is in the middle of your palm. You should still be able to reach the brake lever with your first two fingers instead of almost all four -- you won't really lose braking power, either, since you'll be reaching below the pivot.

Side note -- Get a proper front wheel block before you wiggle your way off of the stack of magazines.

ok_commuter

Well... put the bars where they should be (adjusted a little for personal preference), then move the brifters to where you like them.

If you're not going to flip the stem, at least flip the bars.

Humongous

It was established in the same thread I posted those photos that the angle of the camera shot is what made the bars look all wonky. If you watch the video, you can see that the bars look normal1

Ok, after I did the video I did another one where I am sitting much more upright.. here's a shot from the 2nd video I did (I won't bore you with the full vid):



and here is my analysis based on your guys's info:



Seems like the fit might not be as off as I thought it might be (assuming these are in the ballpark)

Also, I like using the magazines because they provide the capability of setting the front wheel to the perfect height

umd

As I said above, they look better in the video than the picture from earlier but they are not normal. The levers are placed too far into the bend on the bars and the bars are rotated up to compensate. If placed in the normal position, your reach would be much shorter.

Humongous

UMD, here's a new, head on view of the bars/hoods... hope this gives you a better perspective:

umd

Yes, that looks better. I guess the perspective in the video is still jacked up

DScott

My guess is the fit is passable, you just need to ride alot to get more comfortable being on that bike. You look kinda stiff, not very flexible, almost like you really want to be in a comfort bike position.

Don't over-think this. Unless there's pain somewhere, get out there and go ride your bike.

Ride more, get more fit and flexible, learn to relax on the bike, and see where that takes you. It all makes a lot more sense with some miles under your wheels.

Humongous

Thanks for all the help, guys. Now I don't feel like I made a $1200 boo boo. Even if I do need to make some adjustments (hoping I won't, for a while), I'm sure I'd be fine with a zero setback seatpost and an 80mm stem like a few of you suggested.

Thanks again and this is why I'm glad to be a part of BF!

AngryScientist 

OP - i think you're doing a good job trying to help yourself, with the pics and analysis and stuff, good effort.

i agree that the bike does NOT look too big for you. dont kid yourself though, the position of a road bike is NOT natural. it takes time to get used to, flexibility to bend for prolonged periods into an unfamiliar position, and add to that putting significant effort into propelling yourself forward.

i think just about everyone who tries roadbiking after the age of 15 or 16 asks themselves " is this really how its supposed to work?" - unless you have any serious pain, i would just go pound out at least 5 - 6 hundred miles over the course of however long that takes you and revisit the fit issue.

mrbUSA

My Tarmac 58cm came with a 120 stem and I felt the same way about the hoods and in addition I believe it put more stress on my lower back. I bought a Specialized 90 and it's perfect. Looks a little peculiar but my ride has improved.

AndyK 

To me, this still seems way off. The levers should be about an inch higher up, and the bars should be rotated down. Draw a line to the end of the brake lever from the small level spot at the end of the bars - the brake lever tip should be level or a tiny bit higher than that line. Your brake lever is about an inch below the level portion of the bar.

No?

MONGO!

After seeing the video I'd say the size is fine but your posture on the bike is not, you're hunched over.

Drop your shoulders and try to straighten your lower back and ride more.
After a few hours on the bike it will feel better.

Plus the levers need moved up as, umd and others have mentioned.