I recently bought a road bike (Specialized Elite) and I’d like to do some tri’s with it. I bought a shorter stem and aerobars, though i haven’t installed them.
Question is: Is it worth the $250 or so to get a tri-specific place to fit me? And how do I know if they’re doing a good job? The bike feels comfortable riding, though I haven’t done more than a 40 mi ride so far.
I live in NYC. Anyone have an opinion on SBR Multisports?
i would drive 2hrs or so and see paul levine. he’s the head of the serotta school and the best fitter on the east coast (that’s paraphrased from slowman - go to slowtwitch to see exact quote). i went last year and had a great experience.
I’ll whole-heartedly second Mr. Levine. He fitted me for a new road bike last summer. Some of the best money I’ve spent in the sport - second to my new Litespeed of course!! 
Just took the first ride on my new GURU designed by Paul, and I think he did a tremendous job. If you are right in NYC he also does fittings at a studio in Asphalt Green on the Upper East Side.
You’re going to have a hard time getting aero on that bike if it is a Sequoia Elite. The geometry is very upright. An Allez or Roubeiz Elite might work a little better. Which bike do you have?
I have an allez elite. I’m hoping it should be OK to get aero on it. Thoughts?
I have an allez elite. I’m hoping it should be OK to get aero on it. Thoughts?
The Allez has fairly standard road geometry, but you may be able to tweak it. It depends on the size of the bike (the smaller frames are steeper) and your dimensions. I recently fit someone on the smallest Allez, and was able to get her in a fairly forward position with a swap of seatposts and a couple of other tweaks, but still couldn’t get the front end low enough. On a larger frame, the front end may be more acceptable, but it’s a more slack seat angle (and a change in seatposts will not change effective seat angle as much because you’re farther from the BB) so that creates a whole other challenge. You’ll probably be better off with a compromise position and using slightly shorter than normal aero bars.
JC
I bought an allez elite last year as my first bike (last year was my first year doing tris). I probably should have gotten professionally fit, but I like figuring things out myself the hard way.
For my tris Last year, I used Profile Design Aerolite Aerobars combined with a Profile Design Fast Forward seatpost. I found that with just regular aerobars, I was way too stretched out, so hence the forward seatpost. Not sure that a smaller frame would have worked for me due to my long legs. I did Sprint and Oly distance races with this combination and it worked well for shorter races. However, I was very forward on the bike and the handling was terrible, which was fine for the shorter flat races I did.
This year, I’m doing a HIM and was nervous about the bad handling due to a forward seatpost. So instead of last year’s set up, I’m trying the Oval Slam aerobar along with an Airion seat (regular seatpost). I hope the slam body position will work for me, it definitely takes some time to get comfortable. The problem I found last year in converting my allez to tri was that I was left with a bike that was not a real road bike or a real tri bike. So at least this year I’ll race with a real road bike.
Third recommendation for Paul Levine. He is a fighter for the cause. He is meticulous and serious. Also, since you have road bike, he is ideally suited for what your goals are. It will cost a few bucks to consult with Paul, but it is worth more than the price of your bike. It will provide future insights into equipment you will buy, including a new bike if you feel you need one a few years down the road. You will emerge from a fitting with him with your equipment optimized and a lot of new knowledge. Worth the trip, the time and the money.