So, I picked up a 54 cm trek over the holidays to be my tri bike. Old, cheap, bottom end shimano, traditional drop style bars with an aero bar addon. I got this because it was a great deal, and wasn’t sure how much I’d be getting back into bike training.
My actual bike size (IIRC from my college racing days) is a 56 or 58. I’ve already jacked the seat tube up a ways, and move the aero bars out a bit. I still feel a little cramped front to back when over the bars, and my legs don’t feel like I’m getting full extension at the bottom of the stroke.
I don’t have the $$ to invest in a new bike, slight possibility I could get a new frame off ebay, but how feasible is it to try to get slightly longer cranks, and a longer stem? I think the seat stem is ok, even though right now it’s pulled out about 3/4" past the black “Recommended” placement.
Jeez, you can get a cheap MTB seatpost on eBay for $15 shipping included. Going past the “recommended” mark is, well, NOT recommended.
Stems can be found pretty cheap as well.
Won’t help your weight balance on the bike, but I’m thinking you’re not really at the point of caring about that right now…
Not at the moment, no. I’m waiting bit to see how much I’m going to pursue it. I don’t really need the seatpost quite that high, I’m thinking (It’s on the trainer at the moment), so when I go to the road, I’ll drop it back down slightly.
What I’m mostly worried about is how “skittish” it will make the bike. Phoenix drivers are aggressively indifferent to things in the road (Like cyclists, runners, etc.), so I don’t want anything too hard to handle.