Bike fit.

[gavroche]

Evans offer a professional bike fit for £45. It takes 45 minutes so I am considering having one on my new Specialized Roubaix. Do I need to take my shoes with cleats and bib short with me? Did you notice much difference afterwards when riding?

I planning to have it on Saturday 9th in Chester. My stepson will also have one and afterwards, we will all go for a meal in Chester with our respected wives. Should be a good day out.

 

[Drago]

Ideally, yes.

Me, no, it caused me problems.

 

[raleighnut]

Shoes yes, shorts well unless they're stuffed with 4 inches of 'Dunlopillow' not so much.

 

[screenman]

Shoes yes, shorts yes, and I did notice difference.

 

[HLaB]

Shoes and shorts were required for my fit, Evans should advise you. At the time of my first fit I don't think I noticed much but it diagnosed a leg length discrepancy which has definitely helped me in the long term. My second fit stretched me out (my first fit done the opposite for comfort and power but I think I'm more comfortable stretched out anyway) I felt more aerodynamic which more than cancelled out the loss in power and I noticed or at least felt it more. Both fits also lowered my saddle which in the medium term seems to have been positive for my knees.

 

[User16625]

Evans offer a professional bike fit for £45. It takes 45 minutes so I am considering having one on my new Specialized Roubaix. Do I need to take my shoes with cleats and bib short with me? Did you notice much difference afterwards when riding?

I planning to have it on Saturday 9th in Chester. My stepson will also have one and afterwards, we will all go for a meal in Chester with our respected wives. Should be a good day out.

45 mins for a bike fit? I recently went away and hired a different bike on different days. It takes only a few minutes for me to determine whether I need a different sized bike. A mile or 2 of riding will be enough for me to get the right seat height. What is it about bike fits that I could benefit from? Are they aimed at new and inexperienced riders?

 

[I like Skol]

I guess some people need them and others don't. Personally never felt the need as I just seem to have 'the touch' for myself and others. Have tweaked bike fit for friends and family with positive results. Just using common sense and eye has changed bikes from 'God NO!' to 'Hell YES, YES YES!' for some of them. I'm definitely no expert but if you really don't know where to start then maybe the bike fit route is for you?

 

[vickster]

If you wear a helmet, take with you as well as shoes and shorts. Best to replicate riding style and position

I've had 3, 1 Retul at a performance bike shop, two by specialist physios. The physio ones were useful, and done after surgery as part of the rehab process,the Retul one less so as he didn't understand the msk issues I have. I didn't find they made any difference to riding as that wasn't the aim, it was to avoid exacerbating injuries

I wouldn't pay money to have it done by a staff member at Evans to be honest

 

[Moodyman]

A mile or 2 of riding will be enough for me to get the right seat height.

It's more than seat height. Saddle distance from the bars, stem length & angle as well as cleat position all contribute to a good bike fit.

But I agree with you that with a little perseverance one can dial in their own bike fit pretty well. I once found that my commuter bike, which was fine for a 30 mile round trip, was agony on a 60+ mile ride. So, after a few stops and minor tweaks, I got it absolutely spot on.

 

[Fonze]

I have the same bike, Roubaix in orange, lovely bike I enjoy every single minute I'm on it !

 

[Lozz360]

Definitely take shoes with cleats. It's part of the fit. I found climbing easier after my bike fit. The only change the fitter made was to raise the seat height. After watching a number of YouTube videos advising on bike fit, I thought I had the saddle height spot on. Clearly I didn't.

 

[User16625]

It's more than seat height. Saddle distance from the bars, stem length & angle as well as cleat position all contribute to a good bike fit.

But I agree with you that with a little perseverance one can dial in their own bike fit pretty well. I once found that my commuter bike, which was fine for a 30 mile round trip, was agony on a 60+ mile ride. So, after a few stops and minor tweaks, I got it absolutely spot on.

I guess some people need the extra touch. However, based on your original post, and other peoples posts, I do wonder if I could get an even better fit professionally. For me, I find that once I get the seat height sorted, Im comfortable enough if other things are slightly askew. I've always been comfortable on a bike, even after 50 miles or so. OE saddles are a bugbear for me tho.

I dont know about stem length, but when I was hiring a bike, I found that one of the first bikes I tried, upon full steering, the handlebars were coming too close to my knees. Next size up sorted that problem out. A pro might identify more complex inefficiencies in my chosen size, but I do wonder how. Not knocking a bike fit, but I hear some of them go for triple £££s digits which seems excessive if your not trying to be an athlete.

 

[derrick]

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1VYhyppWTDc