What goes into a well fitted bike?
The tailoring of any bike is an important first step to enjoying your ride. Many are surprised to discover just how customizable modern bikes are. While a certain frame size may be appropriate for a 3”-4” range of riders heights, other adjustments are specific to each individual. All contact points (saddle, handlebars and grips) can be adjusted for personal preference. Bicycle purchases from ReCycles Bikes come with a complementary comfort fitting. So what does this include, specifically?
Matching Proper Frame Size
The first step when getting a bike fitted is frame size. We include specific frame sizes in inches for all our bikes. No guesswork with the “Small, Medium, Large” method that many manufactures use. We find this a little too general, plus there is not always consistency between manufactures. We measure every bike from the center of the bottom bracket up to the seat collar, include this measurement front and center with each listing, and provide a Frame Size Guide to ensure you are only browsing appropriately sized bikes.
Leg Extension
Once you have the right frame size, the fine tuning begins. This starts with your saddle height, which is adjusted by pulling the quick release on your seatpost collar, or loosening the allen bolt if you do not have a quick release. Your saddle height should be such that, when sitting stationary on the seat, your toes are what support your balance. Your heals should hover 2 inches or more off the ground.
When you are riding, your legs should be just about straight at the bottom of your pedal stroke. Not so straight that your knee is locked out, but pretty close.
Balance
For some who are new to cycling and haven’t quite achieved balance in mounting/dismounting, it may feel better to have your saddle lower so that you are closer to flat footed when sitting stationary. This can be okay in the short term while you get accustomed to riding, however, your knees are likely coming up high at the top of your pedal stroke, which equals out to not only more strain on your knees, but a significant loss in pedaling efficiency.
Upper Body angle
Now that we’ve optimized your leg extension, its time to get your upper body in check. This is done by adjusting the space between you and your handlebars. The first way to adjust this is again with your saddle. This time, we adjust the saddle position forward or backward on the support rails under the seat. Not only does this move you closer to/further from the bars, it also adjusts whether your hips are closer to directly over the cranks or not, which plays a role in comfort and pedaling efficiency.
Headset Adjustments
The final stage of a comfort fitting is adjusting your hand position. Most stems have some adjustability for rising or lowering the handlebars, and rotating the bar back or forward on the stem can change your grip angle. Bikes with fully adjustable stems can offer a wide range of possibilities without changing out any components, however there is always the option of adding stem risers or swapping out handlebars entirely. (Please not that while all of our bikes come with a custom fitting, adding stem risers or swapping handlebars would be subject to regular shop service fees.)
A custom comfort fitting is complementary with every bike purchased at ReCycles. The process takes just 5-10 minutes