I have been strictly on a tt bike for a bit over a decade. I recently bought a roubaix (older one with the zerts inserts/taller headtube). I used my saddle height from the shiv (not a an aggressive position) as a rough guide to set my saddle height on the roubiax and I feel like the fore/aft is correct based on power output. I am a little in front of KOPS. Going behind that makes my back unhappy. I am getting some numbness/pain my hands. I've been messing with it after reading various fit articles on the internet and today I measured the drop from saddle to base bar on my shiv and replicated it as close as I could to the road bike and it seems worlds better. Essentially I lowered the road bike bars about 2 cm which now puts me at a slammed stem. This seems counter intuitive to everything that says raising the bars would help. Has anybody had a similar experience?
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Re: from tt to road bike [kblahetka]
[ In reply to ]
It takes a long time to adapt to a road bike from a TT exclusive position.
The tell tale that you have not yet adjusted is that you are still wanting your seat forward.
The roubaix is very high at the front so a normal bar position is slammed.
It is also short, so don't be surprised if you go chasing a longer stem.
Most tri people coming to a road position run the seat far too high, I run my road seat some 4cm lower than the tri bike (depends on how you measure this) but I also run the cleats in a different position.
The tell tale that you have not yet adjusted is that you are still wanting your seat forward.
The roubaix is very high at the front so a normal bar position is slammed.
It is also short, so don't be surprised if you go chasing a longer stem.
Most tri people coming to a road position run the seat far too high, I run my road seat some 4cm lower than the tri bike (depends on how you measure this) but I also run the cleats in a different position.
Re: from tt to road bike [kblahetka]
[ In reply to ]
Numb hands could be all about your wrist alignment. See this thread: http://forum.slowtwitch.com/...s_P6395405/#p6395405
"They're made of latex, not nitroglycerin"
"They're made of latex, not nitroglycerin"
Re: from tt to road bike [kblahetka]
[ In reply to ]
If you're used to riding exclusively on a tri bike, I don't think you'll feel comfortable on a road bike at first, even if it's perfectly set up.
If you try and choose the fore/aft saddle position based on power, you'll put it too far forward (because that's what you've trained yourself for) and if you try and set the rest up on feel, you'll get that wrong too.
Incidentally, sore or numb hands is a typical symptom of having the saddle too far forward on a road bike and from what you've said, it seems very likely that's the root of your issue. Try this: Get into normal riding position, with your hands on the hoods (not the tops). Now see if you can lift both hands just off the hoods so your weight is supported entirely by your abdominal muscles. You should not have to move your body except to raise your hands a few millimeters. It doesn't have to be easy, but you should be able to do it, at least for a few seconds. If you can't, you're probably too far forward. I'd never be able to do that with my tri bike saddle position.
IMO, If you've ridden a tri bike exclusively for an extended period of time, even a perfectly set up road bike will feel wrong at first.
Your body is not competent to judge a good road bike position when it's adapted solely to a tri bike. What initially feels right, is not necessarily a good position. You can be fooled.
Road bikes and tri bikes are different and I think it's a mistake to try and align them.
That's been my experience. I rode a road bike exclusively for a few years before I got my first tri bike. Once I'd gotten used to the tri bike I thoroughly enjoyed riding both bikes. There's no question that the road bike is more enjoyable and more comfortable for general riding IMO, but I felt at home on both.
Then in the last 5 months or so before my first IM, I shelved the road bike and rode entirely on the tri bike until the race.
Once the race was over, I was really, really looking forward to getting back out on the road bike. I headed out for my first ride on it in several months..... and it was horrible! I felt weak and uncomfortable. Everything seemed to be in the wrong place. However, I was in the fortunate position of having a bike I knew was set up just the way I should like it. So I didn't touch anything. I just got out for a few more rides and that's all it took. A week or two later, I loved the road bike again and my IM fitness had me riding it faster than ever.
Don't try and set your road bike up to mimic your tri bike. You'll ruin it. Trust that a typical road bike fit is almost certainly going to be the best fit, once you get used to it.
If you try and choose the fore/aft saddle position based on power, you'll put it too far forward (because that's what you've trained yourself for) and if you try and set the rest up on feel, you'll get that wrong too.
Incidentally, sore or numb hands is a typical symptom of having the saddle too far forward on a road bike and from what you've said, it seems very likely that's the root of your issue. Try this: Get into normal riding position, with your hands on the hoods (not the tops). Now see if you can lift both hands just off the hoods so your weight is supported entirely by your abdominal muscles. You should not have to move your body except to raise your hands a few millimeters. It doesn't have to be easy, but you should be able to do it, at least for a few seconds. If you can't, you're probably too far forward. I'd never be able to do that with my tri bike saddle position.
IMO, If you've ridden a tri bike exclusively for an extended period of time, even a perfectly set up road bike will feel wrong at first.
Your body is not competent to judge a good road bike position when it's adapted solely to a tri bike. What initially feels right, is not necessarily a good position. You can be fooled.
Road bikes and tri bikes are different and I think it's a mistake to try and align them.
That's been my experience. I rode a road bike exclusively for a few years before I got my first tri bike. Once I'd gotten used to the tri bike I thoroughly enjoyed riding both bikes. There's no question that the road bike is more enjoyable and more comfortable for general riding IMO, but I felt at home on both.
Then in the last 5 months or so before my first IM, I shelved the road bike and rode entirely on the tri bike until the race.
Once the race was over, I was really, really looking forward to getting back out on the road bike. I headed out for my first ride on it in several months..... and it was horrible! I felt weak and uncomfortable. Everything seemed to be in the wrong place. However, I was in the fortunate position of having a bike I knew was set up just the way I should like it. So I didn't touch anything. I just got out for a few more rides and that's all it took. A week or two later, I loved the road bike again and my IM fitness had me riding it faster than ever.
Don't try and set your road bike up to mimic your tri bike. You'll ruin it. Trust that a typical road bike fit is almost certainly going to be the best fit, once you get used to it.
Thanks.
I ahve a fit scheduled for next week so that should get me right and i'll just give it time to adjust.
As far as pulling my hands back I'm able to do that pretty far forward actually. So it may not be the nest indicator for me.
I ahve a fit scheduled for next week so that should get me right and i'll just give it time to adjust.
As far as pulling my hands back I'm able to do that pretty far forward actually. So it may not be the nest indicator for me.