Can anyone recommend a good road bike fitter in Indianapolis, IN? I am looking for someone who can dial in the position for a female cyclist with knee problems. The fitter should also be comfortable fitting cleats including applying wedges if needed.
Any suggestions?
I haven't been fit by him, but the owner at T3 Multisport on the north side seemed to know his shit. I think he is FIST certified. Lots of sweet Cervelos and Looks.
Vern LaMere at T3 - particularly for tt/multisport in my opinion - highly regarded. Does the custom fittings for Roark bicycles. I had a fitt session years ago and it was thorough and professional. (I ended up reverting back to my old fit style over the next year or so though.)
Ken Nowakowski -particularly for track and road - a long time track and road coach. I think he was been through the FIST certifications, etc. as well. Told me he was building a rotating table for video analysis.
Chris Wiggins at A1 Cyclery.
David k (in Indy)
Chris Wiggins @ A1 cyclery on the west side. No nonsense and will put you/her into a position that is as comfortable and/or aggressive as you want. He uses both the “in shoe” wedges and the older style Lewedge wedges that go between shoe and cleat. I prefer the in shoe personally. Call him up. You wont be forced into a “Bjorn Andersson rides like this therefore you will too” fit. It will be more of a conversation between the two of you to determine your needs/wants.
FIST certified too.
For Indy sizing/fitting experts, those are the four I would recommend calling and talking with and determining which one would best serve you.
Vern LaMere at T3 Multisport, vern@t3multisport.com
Kevin Nowakowski, probikes@spitfire.net
Chris Wiggins, wiggly@a1cyclery.com
Also,
Jeff W Frame, MS Biomechanics Lab Mgr. SICI Bike Fit Specialist Instructor Ball State University Biomechanics Lab PL 202 Muncie, IN 47306 (Lab) 765-285-5178 (Off) 765-285-8336 (Fax) 765-285-8762 jwframe@bsu.edu www.bsu.edu/biomechanics
All are very good at what the know and what they do.
Kevin S. www.roarkcyles.com
third or fourth vote for Vern. He is a great guy and knows what he’s doing. My back killed before going to him and now my tri bike is significantly more comfortable than my road bike. I am also way lower than i thought possible.
http://www.bsu.edu/common/profile/0,,7373---search,00.html
Forget the rest, go with the best!!!
See Chris Wiggins at A1. He is VERY patient and knowledgeable. I paid Vern and was not happy with the results. According to Vern I fit on 4 completely different bikes (size 54) that all happened to be in stock. I had a bad feeling so I went to Chris and he put me on the right size (52) frame even though it was not in stock. A couple of weeks after the fit, I spent well over an hour in A1’s shop on their trainer swapping saddles. He sent me home with several saddles just in case. This is a sign that he knows that I’m training a lot and can’t be running back to the shop all the time. Lot’s of people speak highly of Vern so maybe it was all in my head. Anyhoo - Go talk with them both. Ask them about their fit process. I’m confident that Chris will work with you until you are happy. Good Luck!!
Mark
Found Ken Nowakowski mentioned on a blog - its a fit cycle that can be adjusted, etc., while being used. Looks kinda cool.
http://klipschfitness.blogspot.com/2009/03/common-misperception.html
David K in Indy
+1 on Chris Wiggins and/or Ken Nowakowski.
Personal opinion - Vern’s got a good shop, good staff with shiny product and he’s FIST Certified, but there’s potentially more value and more long-term relationship with the other options.
And if you live in or near Indy - check out Circle City Multisport (www.circlecitymultisport.com) - great club and good membership discounts at above-mentioned sponsors…
Thought I’d resurrect this thread instead of create a new one. It appears that all of the fitters listed here have moved on. Any new recommendations? BGI is the primary one I’m finding on the googles. Anyone have input? Thanks!
Dave Ripley at 51 Speedshop
.
Awesome, thank you. Have you ever heard of Vector Cycle Works?
Services
Travis Rassat at Vector is active on the forum and listed in the fitter’s database https://www.slowtwitch.com/fitters/ but I don’t have direct experience with him. He’s Travis R on Slowtwitch if you’re inclined to reach out. https://forum.slowtwitch.com/forum/?username=Travis%20R
Johnathan at BlueGrass. He used to manage Nebo Ridge and did all the fittings. Lifetime fit. Need redone? No problem. Really works with you get things dialed in as you want them.
Rip @ 51 speedshop.
I’ve sent numerous people to him that went to the other fitters around town, and had problems/pain. He fixed everyone. I can’t say enough good things about him.
Ken Nowakowski is still located near Indianapolis. He responds to emails, fb messages and phone calls. https://www.probikesltd.com/
He was a great help when my tallest son was trying to figure out how to best fit a standard issue Little 500 bicycle. He has also built multiple killer sets of wheels for us. http://i65.tinypic.com/4lrl0k.jpg
Good luck.
Wow, thanks everyone. Looks like there are some great options in the area!
I have used Travis Rassat at VectorCycleWorks for all of my bikes: tri, road and mtb. My initial experience with him was a 3+ hour tri fitting session that included a functional movement screening and the swapping out of 15+ saddles. I have brought my tri bike to him 2 other times for followups and adjustments as I become more fit and flexible. Each time I visited him again I also brought another bike (road and mtb) to do a full fit on it and threw the tri bike in the studio to complete follow up. He has a ton of hardware and will do the followup mechanical work himself in house. I can’t recommend Travis enough!
I have never been more comfortable on my road bike. Ever. And literally the first mtb ride on my local 7 mile trail post fit was 2 minutes faster than my previous PR.
As I am a chronically injured triathlete, he has focused mainly on injury prevention, comfort and running power off the bike. Not that aero was an after thought, but he was more interested in giving me a stable platform to produce power and be in a position to run off the bike. While my bike splits have seen small but meaningful improvements, my run splits have improved a TON. I attribute this to a more realistic, real-world position.
Other fitters local to central Indiana are chasing aero efficiency at the cost of long-afternoon-in-the-saddle comfort. This was not my experience with Travis R. He also has a partnership with the local development team and has fit most of their squad to great outcome.
Thank you for the kind words! Of course, if you need anything, I’m always here to help.
To domingjm - I sent you a PM. Thank you for your consideration! If you would like to chat or have questions, I’m happy to help however I can.
