Dave1978

I'm having some comfort issues on my new bike. After about 4 or 5 miles my hands start going really numb and my shoulder joints are getting sore after longer 10-20 miles rides. I'm thinking I must be bearing too much weight forward, but I don't know how to adjust my bike any better. Maybe it's just the geometry and materials of the bike or my riding position, I ride with my hands all the way down on the drops and my back nearly horizontal, probably about a 65-70 degree angle about 90% of the time. I'm wearing padded gloves but the don't really do much. I've read that the basic idea of getting a good fit on you bike is making sure your weight is evenly distributed throughout the three contact points: the saddle, the pedals, and the handlebars. Does anyone have any idea of what adjustments I should make to either/or my handlebars, saddle or my riding position? Thanks.

TejanoTrackie 

You've pretty much answered your question. Riding in that position, you're placing a lot of weight on your hands and shoulders. This is why TT bikes allow you to rest your forearms on padded supports when you are in an aero position. Touring riders usually have their backs angled at about 45 degrees to reduce weight on the hands and arms.

fietsbob

Like... Do more pushups , to strengthen the muscles that support your upper body..

caloso

Is your saddle level?

Dave1978

Not completely. It's got a slight forward dip in it. I'm ordering a saddle that wont destroy my junk and I'll try keeping it horizontal. Here's a couple pics of the bike as its set up now.

TejanoTrackie 

You should never have to tilt your saddle down like that to make it comfortable. It's possible that you've got your saddle set too high. Also, you've got a lot of saddle to bar drop, so raising the bars a bit might help, especially if you're riding on the drops most of the time.

Dave1978

That's a good idea, Ill try it. Can I raise the handle bars at the stem somehow?

seau grateau

Installing hoods will also give you a much better hand position for longer rides.

50voltphantom

Level that saddle and put some SRAM S500's on dem bars. I'll add that it's possible your bars are too narrow if your shoulders are sore. My shoulder discomfort vanished when I switched to wider bars.

EDIT: good looking bike

caloso

I am going to bet a lot of the discomfort is going to go away just by leveling (and slightly lowering) the saddle. Use a carpenter's level if you have one.

Bluechip

What everyone else has said plus you could try the dummy brake hoods from Cane Creek if you don't want to have brake levers. I've got one brake lever and one dummy hood and like it.

Noli Timere

Yeah, just remove the stem from the steerer. Put the spacer that is above the stem below it and re-attach the stem. It won't buy you a ton but it may help.

Dave1978

Done. I think that's going to help a lot. It feels better just sitting on it. Thanks.

Dave1978

Thanks, just wait till I get my new Wabis put on. I do miss resting my hands on the hoods of my old road bike, but even if I get brakes installed I'm not so sure about getting hoods. Kinda messes up the fixie aesthetic IMO. I do have freakishly wide shoulders, but I think most of the pain is from too much downward pressure. I've been contemplating getting a set of Fyxation Rodeo Pursuit bullhorns.

50voltphantom

Get some 44cm or wider compact drops is my recommendation. I rode 42cm bullhorns last year and switching to 44cm compact drops and levers was a revelation.

taras0000

Maybe post some pics of you on the bike. That will help us narrow things down quite a bit.

hairnet

+1 this thread is worthless without pics

Phil_gretz

Dave,
You should think of your balance in a similar way to how a jockey is perched on the stirrups as he rides. Weight is balanced so that he neither tips forward nor falls back on his heels. Check your saddle forward-aft positioning. It may be that your saddle is too far forward, combined with what's been described as an excessive drop to the handlebars. Maybe your core isn't strong enough to handle this position. I can't see your position on the bike, so am advising blindly here. Slipping the saddle 1/2 cm back and learning to support you upper body with your core muscles might go a long way to help you. The saddle portion at the contact point should be level.

Also, there are a wide variety of stems that can reposition your bars - but you'll sacrifice the streamlined look that's so popular...

Do you have a friend or fellow rider who you'd trust to work with you on fit?

Also, try when riding to relax your upper body fully when you're not pulling on the bars to climb or bracing to stop. Relax the neck, shoulders, and upper arms. Your hands should rest lightly on the bars, and you might practice raising your torso to unweight the hands - keeping the lightest touch. That's a stronger riding position, ultimately, anyway. Good luck.