I've just come to the stone cold decision that you can't make a 73.5 seat angle road bike into a tri frame without jacking down to a ridiculously small stem length, scooting the seat post forward, and doing all kinds of small things ,to get it do something, it just ain't going to do, at least not without some other problem popping up. I'm at a point now where I'm just thinking about going back to the road bike position with mini clip ons, using the wrist clip on, for the rest of the year and buy a tri bike in the fall. I'm training for my first half ironman, and it is pretty hilly, so I'm thinking of just scrapping the Slacker look and modified road to tri angle crap.
I've read Dan's fit piece probably 100 times. I just don't see how you can open up that thigh angle with a road bike with clip on bars, at a 73.5 angle. I see some of you guys doing this with Trek 5.2s and other road bikes riding 22-23 mph, but frankly at the 24 and up level, they are on Blades, Cervelos, Javelins, Argons, QRs, etc....etc....I don't see how you CANNOT conclude otherwise, more people passing me are on tri bikes at steep angles. I'll have a few roadies setups blow by me but they aren't going at the mach five level.
I've tried the whole spring, buying one new stem after another, flipping it over and finally getting to the correct angle on my road bike. The problem is, on a modified road bike with drop bars, you've got to slightly come up to shift, and when or if you do, lift up even a bit to shift or go up a hill, the bike is not stable on the front. Also, I still can't get my feet back to the back where I'm using hamstrings.
So, I think some of you guys are right. You should just keep one road bike and get a real tri bike with a seat post angle greater than 74 degrees.
I've read Dan's fit piece probably 100 times. I just don't see how you can open up that thigh angle with a road bike with clip on bars, at a 73.5 angle. I see some of you guys doing this with Trek 5.2s and other road bikes riding 22-23 mph, but frankly at the 24 and up level, they are on Blades, Cervelos, Javelins, Argons, QRs, etc....etc....I don't see how you CANNOT conclude otherwise, more people passing me are on tri bikes at steep angles. I'll have a few roadies setups blow by me but they aren't going at the mach five level.
I've tried the whole spring, buying one new stem after another, flipping it over and finally getting to the correct angle on my road bike. The problem is, on a modified road bike with drop bars, you've got to slightly come up to shift, and when or if you do, lift up even a bit to shift or go up a hill, the bike is not stable on the front. Also, I still can't get my feet back to the back where I'm using hamstrings.
So, I think some of you guys are right. You should just keep one road bike and get a real tri bike with a seat post angle greater than 74 degrees.