The 5 Most Common Bike Fit Issues...and how to avoid them, Part 4
Thursday, August 12, 2010 at 7:38AM At long last, here is Part 4 of the 5 Most Common Bike Fit Issues (road bike specific). If you would like to read parts 1-3, they are available in the archives of this blog.
To review, here are the top 5 bike fitting issues:
1. Alignment Issues ("wobbly" knees/splayed legs)
2. Saddle too high or low
3. Poor cleat position
4. Saddle tilted up or down
5. Reach to the handlebars (too bunched up or too stretched out)
So, without further adieu: Reach to the handlebars, Part 1.
I should preface this discussion by stating that there is no such thing as the "perfect reach to handlebars." Of all the issues I've covered so far, this is by far the most subjective, and complex, of the lot. A professional bike fitter, no matter their level of expertise, simply can't tell you what is comfortable. There is only one person that can be the final arbiter of your comfort on a bike - you. I can certainly provide some common sense guidelines, and also let you know what has worked well for many of my clients, but it can take a bit of trial and error before your reach feels just right. Also, your reach requirements can change throughout the years. As cyclists age, it is not uncommon to want a slightly more upright position.
There is absolutely no way to expand on every aspect related to reach within the confines of a single article, so I'll have to break this into two parts. To give you an idea of the breadth of this topic, all of the following can come into play in determining whether or not you feel too stretched out, or too bunched up on a road bike:
- Core, back, and shoulder strength
- Flexibility
- Weight and girth
- Arm and torso length
- Experience/Years of riding
- Injury history
- Type of handlebars (shape, width, reach, and drop)
- Type of brake hoods and handlebar rotation (tilt of the hoods)
- Style of riding (competitive, touring, century rider, club rider, etc.)
- Stem length and rise
- Length of steerer tube and stem stack height (stem spacers)
- Saddle height and fore/aft position
- Saddle to handlebar drop
- Bike geometry (top tube/head tube length and seat tube angle)
- Saddle tilt
Is your bike too big or too small?
I covered this topic in depth in the last blog post. It is located here: How to Choose the Correct Size of Road Bike. If you haven't already read this article, I would suggest doing so. It should go without saying that if your bike is too big or small, it's going to complicate getting your reach comfortably adjusted. By the way, it's not often that I see someone with a bike that is too small. If bike size is an issue, it's usually because the bike is too long and/or the head tube is too short. Tall folks are usually the ones with frames that are too small, a problem which often goes hand-in-hand with a crank length that is too short (a topic for another day, but here is a great article by Leonard Zinn in the meantime: Why Tall Bikes Often Handle Poorly).
How do you know if your reach is a problem?
Since I just mentioned that many are on bikes that are too large, by extension, almost all the reach problems I observe and treat are ones related to being too stretched out over the top tube and/or an excessive saddle to handlebar drop. The most common complaints are pain/discomfort in the following areas: neck; shoulders, particularly in the area in the upper back between the shoulder blades; and the lower back. Lower back pain can also be caused by a leg length discrepancy, or a position too far to the rear of the bike (overworking the hamstrings/glutes/lower back). Sometimes jarring can also cause all these problems, but usually it's because you need to be in a more upright position.
The sensation that you are always sliding forward, or riding on the nose of the saddle can also be a good sign that you are too stretched. This can also indicate that your saddle needs to be tilted upwards. Please visit Part 3 of this series for a closer look at this extremely common problem.
Reach Guidelines
1. Saddle-to-handlebar drop
As general rule the vertical distance from the top of the saddle to the top of the handlebars should usually be in the range between 0-10cm (0-4"). Those who prefer a more forward position will probably need a somewhat higher saddle height to get the proper leg extension, and can sometimes be at the upper end of the range. Also, those with long arms tend to prefer a slightly greater drop than those with average length arms. At the other end of the extreme, cyclists on small frames (about 53 cm or shorter) will sometimes find that the top tubes are still not short enough for their arms and torso, will need a higher front end, and have to be at the short end of drop range to get comfortable.
2. Golden reach rule
You should be able to rest your hands on the brake lever hoods during the vast majority of your general purpose road riding. If you aren't climbing, then you should usually be on the hoods. If you are always on the tops of the bars, especially on level terrain, then something isn't quite right. Further, when you are on the hoods, your arms shouldn't be locked out straight, they should have a slight bend of about 10-20 degrees. If you compete, or do a lot of club rides, then you will probably spend a bit more of your time in the drops of the bars. Now, if you are always in the drops, then there is a good chance the bike is too small for you. The bottom line is that the hoods should be your default riding position, the tops for climbing, and the drops for drilling it on the flats and descending. If you aren't using all three positions, something probably needs to change - stem length, stem rise/angle, fore/aft position, and/or saddle height. Of course, it could be that the bike doesn't fit. I'll be discussing solutions to fixing reach problems in the next installment.
Too stretched or bunched - upper body angles
There are specific upper body angles that can also help identify reach issues. During bike fits I use a large angle finder known as a goniometer to measure a handful of upper body angles. These key measurements are as follows:
1. Shoulder angle while in the hoods
This is the angle formed by the hip, shoulder, and elbow. If this is greater than 90 degrees, it's a pretty good sign that the cyclist is too extended; less than 90 degrees would indicate a position that is too bunched.
2. Torso angle: handlebar hoods, tops, drops
This is the angle formed by the shoulder, hip, and a hypothetical horizontal line extended out from the hip over the top tube of the bike. It is really the best way to quantify how "bent over" the cyclist may be in the various handlebar positions. Torso angle has a huge impact on aerodynamics - lower equals faster, but too low can lead to lost power and discomfort. I have found that most cyclists will generally fall into one of two very broad categories:
A) Experienced/Competitive roadies
B) Newer cyclists (less than 2 years of steady riding), touring cyclists, and casual/weekend cyclists; and those with poor flexibility, an injury history, and those with a large girth (plus size bellies).
Certainly a cyclist's age comes into play, as well, but I usually find that even older cyclists will still fall into one of the two broad categories. Here's what I've found my clients have discovered to be their range of comfortable torso angles:
- Torso angle, hoods position - 33-40 degrees for A category cyclists, and 41-50 degrees+ for B category cyclists
- Torso angle, handlebar tops position- 41-50 degrees for A, and 50-60 degrees for B
- Torso angle, handlebar drops position - 18-32 degrees for A, and 35-45 degrees for B
For an excellent visual of both torso angles and shoulder angles, I found this series of photos from UK based bike fitter, BikeDynamics (scroll down about a third of the page).
Remember, these are simply loose guidelines based on my findings. Your personal comfort may dictate something outside of these ranges. Working with an experienced bike fitter who can help you discover your unique riding position is always recommended over using formulas - even mine.
Coming up in the next issue - the final installment of the Five Most Common Bike Fitting Issues...Reach to the Handlebars, Part 2.










