Raised my saddle today...

Oxygen Thief

Raised my saddle today to the height it should be(ish) Knew it was too low but my mate had my mini tool. Anyway, raised it a good few inches and riding is a lot easier on the legs and can maintain higher speeds up inclines.. Only thing is, my back aches now and my groin aches way more! And I just didn't feel all that comfortable. Will I just get used to it

bartimaeus

And I have just fitted a QR seatclamp so I can now lower mine - and possibly try some of the local downhill without bashing my b**ll**cks

Have a play with the rest of your set-up e.g. bar height, reach (saddle for-and-aft, or even bar ends for some variety of hand position)... eventually you'll find the it that's just right for you! Small changes can make a very big difference to your comfort and efficiency.

Oxygen Thief

I didn't know you could raise the handlebars?! Another thing that hurts is my thumbs, feels like their bending too much, would be more comfortable with narrower bars but then I like the extra control you get with wider bars

hoochylala

jonbonjovial wrote:

I didn't know you could raise the handlebars?!

Raising/lowering the handlebars by a combination of a shorter/longer stem with less/more rise is one option.

paulbox

Your bike may also have spacers on the steerer tube above/below the stem, you can swap these around to adjust the bar height.

dunker

i've found it's a bit of a juggle between optimal riding position and comfort. if i put mine at optimal postion for power/efficiency after a few hours it just hurts my backside and arms, but i will be going faster hehe. i like going quick but i'd rather lose 0.5-1 mph average and have a comfortable ride, so it's about 1cm lower than it should be. but that's perfect for long comfy rides

Oxygen Thief

Yeah I think I'm going to have to lower mine a bit, or get some better padded shorts!

Oxygen Thief

Still having problems getting used to this saddle height. I think ti would be more comfortable if I was to move the seat forward an inch to inch and a half so that more support was on my arse bones rather than hurting my groin area.

Is this fine to do, just move the seat forward, what drawbacks does it have?

Cheers

cat_with_no_tail

If it's hurting your groin, try tilting the saddle forward a little bit. Not so much your ars* is sliding off, but just enough to take pressure off.

Thing with saddles is that the smallest micro-adjustment can make a MASSIVE difference to the feel.

With regards to moving the saddle forwards/back, where do you naturally sit on the saddle at the moment? I find it most comfy being perched towards the back of the saddle (without being hung right off the back).

Oxygen Thief

I was thinking about ti riding home the other day and I'm sat on it quite far back like yousay, not hanging off, but with my arse bones on the best padded part! This aint that easy to explain haha. But I tried sliding forward a bit and although it was uncomfortable on the arse for obvious reasons it felt like the position was more natural fitting, so I was thinking moving it forward a bit may work? But I didn't want to move it forward if it's a bad idea. I will try tilting it forward to, but I can't see if it can be tilted forward?! No pivot for up and down movement just back and forth!

cat_with_no_tail

Depending on the saddle and post combo you have, it'll probably be fitted to the seatpost using 2 bolts, 1 at the front and 1 at the back. To tilt forward, slacken the rear bolt off very slightly and tighten the front one up a bit more.

To make mine comfy, it has to be pretty much spirit level flat (everyone is different though)

Oxygen Thief

I've only got the one screw. Think I can see how to adjust though. The hole it screws through is more of a line so can tilt and choose where to tighten screw. Just had a try and the screw is one tight f**king screw!!!!!! Will keep trying!

Cheers

Boy Lard

I was having very similar problems up until Friday.

I'd definitely suggest getting the saddle position correct for height first, making it easier for your legs, and then altering everything else to make the bike fit. I constantly felt like I had too much weight on my hands, I was getting pins and needles in my fingers, my thumbs hurt, my bottom was getting pretty sore, was getting pins and needles in my knackers. I bought some padded undershorts, and some glvoes with the gel pads in the palms, this helped a lot, but not enough. Then I started playing with bar height, saddle forward and backward and tilting it about. I got the bike much more comfortable, but in the end there was only one solution....

I went to the local LBS and bought a bike that was the right size. I now feel like I'm riding one of OCC's choppers, because the riding position is so much more upright and comfortable.

My original bike was pretty old, the geometry has changed a lot since I bought that bike. I hope you find your solution is a bit less expensive than mine, although it is nice having a new bike.

cat_with_no_tail

jonbonjovial - What saddle and post please?

asdfhjkl

jonbonjovial wrote:

I've only got the one screw. Think I can see how to adjust though. The hole it screws through is more of a line so can tilt and choose where to tighten screw. Just had a try and the screw is one tight f**king screw!!!!!! Will keep trying!

Cheers

You ride a Carrera Vulcan, don't you? Loosen off the screw and you'll be able to both tilt the bit that holds the saddle rails, and move the saddle back and forwards. Remove your seatpost from the bike and that'll give you a bit more leverage to loosen off the screw.

Oxygen Thief

Cheers lads, yeah I've been trying to get the screw loose but it's having none of it! Don't know why it's stuck. I'll keep trying and take it the LBS, see if they've got any better tools for the job. Cheers for the info, I think the tilt will solve my problems!

nikstar1

I've had similar problems. Just started to go out on the bike a lot more than before and just don't know if my saddle is in the right position. Went out yesterday afternoon and only did around 15 miles but my back is killing me today all across the lower part.

Do you think this is normal or is something set up on my bike incorrectly? Or will I just get used to riding in this position?

mackie1

nikstar1: I had the same on my new bike. Try tilting the saddle forward a bit. It made a world of difference for me.

The Barrister

I do have a bad back, but have avoided lots of aches and pains by paying attention to my setup. I rode this morning for 1.75 hours on both road and slightly technical track (about 15 miles total) and have no back pain.

Of course you have to find what's comfortable for you, but I found that shifting my seat forward or back, up or down, is necessary, depending on the type of ride. For downhill, I like to keep the seat low and further back. On the road or forest track, I move the seat forward and dip it down slightly. Unless there is a reason not to stop, I sometimes will shift the seat several times during the course of one ride since it takes no more than 15 seconds to make the switch.