What should I ask before booking a bike fit?

rodgers73

As in what questions should I be asking about their service before I agree to pay £100+ for the privilege. I'm not sure what I should be looking out for...

Thanks

optimisticbiker

Some thoughts (gleaned from my own planning...)

1/ is it a basic static fit or dynamic (i.e. do they video you to assess motion and so advise on shoe orthotics etc.?)

2/ is it 'on the bike' or 'on a jig'

3/ whats included in the price if needed: e.g. replacement stem, headset spacers, pedal extensions, cleat shims, etc. or, if extra, what do they charge?

4/ what measurements do they provide you to allow you to set up other bikes similarly

5/ references?

Wirral_paul

I can certainly recommend Richard at Pedal Precision to you. He's in Manchester - not too far from the Velodrome so not a million miles away really.

He does the video analysis and can show you in slow motion whats happening (ie a core weakness around my left hip means it moves a lot when i push on my left leg).

itchieritchie

Just thread skipping on a nice sunny Saturday.

Never been for a bike fit and often wondered about having one, so thank you for the bits and pieces above, v useful.

At the risk of being obnoxiously obvious though, shouldn't one of the first things to say be HOW you're going to be riding the bike?

So, say you take an average road bike in. You might want it to be low enough so you can get out of the wind for crits and races, if you're taking part in those. But then you don't want to be too stretched out, because you throw the odd sportive into the mix. Maybe, if the frame allows for that kind of thing, you even plan on some touring.

Yet you use the same bike for everything, simply because not everyone can afford an arsenal of event-specific bikes in the shed. So I'd say it's worth pointing out the type of riding you'll be doing so you can get set up accordingly. In this example, probably somewhere between the two extremes.

I imagine, however, that this kind of question would be asked anyway. But just my tuppence, since nobody else mentioned it...

Let us know how you go anyway...!!

mrushton

have a look at the site/blog of Steve Hogg an australian fitter. He has some interesting articles about fitting/saddles/pedals etc

kingrollo

Be very careful - I went with one of the most recommended on here - Have to say I was quite dissapointed - think I wasted £140.

If I were doing it again I would make ask:-

Is documentation available - of before and after measurements - none was for mine

a difficult question to ask - but do you get that persons full attention - or are they serving in the shop at same time.

How long will the bike fit take - and are you still charged the full price if it finishes early. My 3 hour session - was done in under 2 - but I was still charged the full price.

Be wary of shops that throw in custom footbeds - although these will make you feel better - imo they would if you brought them of the shelf -

Ask if return visits are chargeable - or what the procedure is if you require further tweaking.

rodgers73

I've been quoted £75 for a 2 hour session but they were a bit vague about what was included. I'll go back to them and ask them some specifics.

Herbsman

kingrollo wrote:

Be very careful - I went with one of the most recommended on here - Have to say I was quite dissapointed - think I wasted £140.

If I were doing it again I would make ask:-

Is documentation available - of before and after measurements - none was for mine

a difficult question to ask - but do you get that persons full attention - or are they serving in the shop at same time.

How long will the bike fit take - and are you still charged the full price if it finishes early. My 3 hour session - was done in under 2 - but I was still charged the full price.

Be wary of shops that throw in custom footbeds - although these will make you feel better - imo they would if you brought them of the shelf -

Ask if return visits are chargeable - or what the procedure is if you require further tweaking.

It's pretty obvious who you mean. For me it was a choice between the person you're talking about, or a level 2 Retul fit at Bike Science in Derby. I went to the former the other day based on the reviews on this forum and the fact that you get custom moulded insoles. The Retul fit takes precise measurements and looks more advanced, but is more expensive and no insoles are included. And if it achieves the same results with bike setup, then is it worth the extra money?

I'm much more comfortable on the bike now and I'm mostly happy with what he did - the only additionaly thing I would have wanted was a list of measurements that I could set up my training bike to match my racing bike. But that's pretty easy to do yourself with measuring tape.

You say you feel you've wasted £140 which is fair enough if that's how you feel. If you never had any pre-existing problems then I can see that it might seem a lot of money just for someone to make a few bike adjustments, even if you deduct the cost of the footbeds. On the other hand, in my case I went for it as a last resort after months of trial and error failed to eliminate the lower back ache that has stopped me from finishing more than one race and caused me agony in others. The new setup has put my back in a better position, and if as a result in future I can fully concentrate on actually racing instead of having to spend a great deal of energy mentally blocking out the pain, then it was a bargain.

rodgers73

I have one leg marginally shorter than the other. Is there something in particular a bike fit should do to take this into account?

Just so I can be sure they're doing it "right"!

Herbsman

Leg length shims.

Ezy Rider

kingrollo wrote:

Be very careful - I went with one of the most recommended on here - Have to say I was quite dissapointed - think I wasted £140.

If I were doing it again I would make ask:-

Is documentation available - of before and after measurements - none was for mine

a difficult question to ask - but do you get that persons full attention - or are they serving in the shop at same time.

How long will the bike fit take - and are you still charged the full price if it finishes early. My 3 hour session - was done in under 2 - but I was still charged the full price.

Be wary of shops that throw in custom footbeds - although these will make you feel better - imo they would if you brought them of the shelf -

Ask if return visits are chargeable - or what the procedure is if you require further tweaking.

I went into a very well known seller and enquired about fitting. I was told a bloke comes in once a week and he does this that and the other .......yeah but how much is ?............oh he has been trained by.............yeah but how much is it ?.............he shows you this and that.............yes but how bloody much does it cost :x ...................sets up a video and .............HOW MUCH DOES IT BLOODY COST !! :evil: it STARTS at £175.00

I said you have got to be joking, turned on my heels and left. £175 for starters my @rse :!: :!:

kingrollo

Herbsman wrote:

kingrollo wrote:

Be very careful - I went with one of the most recommended on here - Have to say I was quite dissapointed - think I wasted £140.

If I were doing it again I would make ask:-

Is documentation available - of before and after measurements - none was for mine

a difficult question to ask - but do you get that persons full attention - or are they serving in the shop at same time.

How long will the bike fit take - and are you still charged the full price if it finishes early. My 3 hour session - was done in under 2 - but I was still charged the full price.

Be wary of shops that throw in custom footbeds - although these will make you feel better - imo they would if you brought them of the shelf -

Ask if return visits are chargeable - or what the procedure is if you require further tweaking.

It's pretty obvious who you mean. For me it was a choice between the person you're talking about, or a level 2 Retul fit at Bike Science in Derby. I went to the former the other day based on the reviews on this forum and the fact that you get custom moulded insoles. The Retul fit takes precise measurements and looks more advanced, but is more expensive and no insoles are included. And if it achieves the same results with bike setup, then is it worth the extra money?

I'm much more comfortable on the bike now and I'm mostly happy with what he did - the only additionaly thing I would have wanted was a list of measurements that I could set up my training bike to match my racing bike. But that's pretty easy to do yourself with measuring tape.

You say you feel you've wasted £140 which is fair enough if that's how you feel. If you never had any pre-existing problems then I can see that it might seem a lot of money just for someone to make a few bike adjustments, even if you deduct the cost of the footbeds. On the other hand, in my case I went for it as a last resort after months of trial and error failed to eliminate the lower back ache that has stopped me from finishing more than one race and caused me agony in others. The new setup has put my back in a better position, and if as a result in future I can fully concentrate on actually racing instead of having to spend a great deal of energy mentally blocking out the pain, then it was a bargain.

Well that just thing i went as last resort. But pretty early on i was told that he would only be able to do much as I had a back problem. - in some ways thats fair enough - but others on here - yourself included seem to have got him to work around such problems. Where as my experience he just seemed in to much of a rush - and more worried he might miss a customer in the shop.