Dear all, have you ever used the fast forward seatpost that Profile-Design produces. I bought one and would like to have some opinions about it, I need to convert my bike into a tri geometry one and would like to hear something from you.
Thanks and regards, Marcos.
I use a Thomson fast forward post on my giant carbon TCR. It screwed the balance of the bike on descents purely because the front fork was ‘twangy’ and I am of large frame (although I was willing to live with it). Recently I rebuilt this bike for criterium racing (when my Kuota became my new TT bike) but retained the fast forward post. Why ? although bikefitters may cringe I found a forward postion was better at obtaining a rapid high cadence for technical sections in a criterium. It makes my postion slightly more compact than ideal but I get on well with this in this type of racing.
My overall opinion though is to get bike fitted before you change the balance/handling of your bike by using one of these posts - especially if the bike isn’t designed to accept this kind of geometry change.
I’m not a bike fitter and I’m cringing… 
Good to see your back on smart ass form !!!
I had just finished posting on training for draft-legal races, that was way too serious and knowledgeable, needed to balance things out…
I agree…
IMO, this seat post will put you too far forward. A road bike with a 73 degree seat post is not designed to run with an effective 78 degree seat angle which this post gives you. On a road bike this puts more of your weight over the front wheel, shortens the cockpit and messes up the handling. The handling won’t be as big an issue on a strait out and back course as it will be if it is more technical.
I ran a Giant TCR with a neutral set back seat post and pushed the seat forward. Ths gave me an effective 75/76 degree seat angle “multi-sport” position which didn’t screw up the handling the way the Profile forward seat post did. This is the principle behind the Cervelo Soloist with the flip around seat post. It puts you in about the same position as I achieved on the TCR as described.
I’d sell it on ebay and get a neutral set back post. Either that or read up on the “big slam” position designed for road bikes.
Read this over. It’s an alternative on a road bike to the “multi-sport” position that I previously described.
Got to agree with most of the above - I bought the Profile post after a rash decision to try and turn my first bike (an entry levl LeMond) into a poor man’s P3. I ended up with a decent elbow angle but am perched over my front wheel and have shortened the cockpit to the point where my knees hit the pads on my aerobars if I turn sharply! Am definitely a bit more aero but considering I slow to a stop at every corner and no longer like going downhill a rethink is definitely in order.
I started off riding a road-geometry bike equipped with clip-on aerobars and a standard seatpost, and changed to a Profile forward seatpost late last year (I tried the SLAM position and it wasn’t for me). Since then I’ve changed to another road-geometry frame and kept the forward seatpost. My impressions:
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I was pretty worried about the changes in handling, and kept my standard seatpost, just in case. Before going out on the road, I spent a lot of time on the trainer, tweaking the fore-aft position of the saddle, starting with the original position of the saddle in relation to the bottom bracket (fore-aft and height), and then moving it incrementally forward. -
I found a lot more comfort in the aero position, to the point that it was more comfortable to be in the aerobars than to be on the hoods. More power while aero, too: climbing while in the bars much easier. -
The bike does handle differently. I wouldn’t describe it as twitchy or unstable, though. It took me about 100 road miles to really get used to it. You do have to be careful on steep descents over rough roads that include sharp bends – but what average triathlete (with a triathlete’s bike-handling skills) doesn’t need to be careful in that case? -
The forward seatpost is a compromise: for $30, it allows you to achieve a more forward position, while keeping your road bike frame. You are NOT converting your road bike to a tri-bike, though -- you are just trading off some handling quality in favor of a more comfortable aero position.
Was it worth the $30? Yes – for the money, the changes in handling are far outweighed by the benefits of improved position. If I had $3000 to spend, would I still get a forward seatpost? No, I’d get a steeper-angled frame.