BBLOEHR wrote:
Darren, I am almost 39 and have gotten lower each or 5 yrs I have been in this sport, so I might re think who my fitter is if they said as you get "older" you will need a less aggressive position. I also don't think either of us is "old" yet!
You can immediately gain 7.5mm of drop switching cranks to 165 (assuming your on 172.5 now). Sounds like you have most of little details dialed (assuming good tires and latex tubes). But, position is still by a long margin your biggest asset or hindrance / most watts gained or lost with a poor vs great position.
Sounds like you on the wrong frame, so kudos to you for making that connection! First step completed. I think ultimately you are your own best fitter to truly dialed it in. But, use a great fitter to get you 90-95% there. Guess then we could have a fitter debate, lol, there are many great ones here on ST, well worth a drive or flight.
Ah, if only I had him to blame. He too suggested that I go with the smaller frame, but I thought I was being wise by being "conservative." His name is Winston Tam, his FB link is here.
https://www.facebook.com/winstontam He is enormously knowledgeable, experienced, has the tools, and really works hard. Comes out to races to to support riders and just an all around great guy. The fit was over four years ago with a bit of tweaking since then. (at his studio) I will be going back if this new bike offer comes through before I get the frame and doing a full re-working and see how it goes. As I noted, we both really felt that the new fit that's impossible for my current bike was really great. And getting to that position in part stemmed from him getting an electronic Guru fit bike that allowed him to move me around as I rode; I really liked that...we established the basic geometries and were within the "numbers," and then played around till I felt most comfortable and had good power numbers. That said, second opinions are always great ideas, but in Asia....he is the teacher of virtually everyone who does fit...so it's still better to go right to the source.
I'm on 165mm cranks, use conti gp 4000IIs, 25mm on the back, 23mm on the front. Didn't ride latex tubes in Kona this year as I had been getting constant flats on my front 404 with latex and never an issue with butyl, so I stuck with butyl for the race. (I rented the 808s actually and loved them so much I bought them for a great price.) So I will be using latex in training so that I will fee confident for them for my first 70.3 in 2018 in March.
That's what leaves me scratching my head....from my bike, tires, clothes, helmet I'm fairly solid on what I use but my watts do seem high compared to my speed. My VI was very close to 1, didn't bonk and was steady through the whole 180km, the only missed opportunity that I can see was descending Hawi where I decided I wasn't going to risk my finish for a minute or two on the descent by riding full out down.
So I'm excited to see how much I can gain if I can get into a new position. I just am not excited enough/rich enough to spend the money myself to get 5mm lower on the front. Selling a size 56 p5 frame in Taiwan would be TOUGH!
I also need to thank Everyman Jack Team. In 2015 I was coming out of the energy lab together with one of your guys. There was a team support guy on a bike who gave him a quick update and encouragement...drop this guy beside you! We both managed to pick it up, get home at just over 10 hours, and had a great handshake in the finish line. Class act, just as today and your giving me advice on what I can do with my fit. Thank you!