Finding a more upright riding position

zacherynuk

Hi,

Following a recent operation on my neck, I am finding the riding position of my Scott Scale 35 (09) a little too 'old school'.

It's an aggressive bike, but I need to raise the handlebars and generally find a more upright position putting less stress on my spine - ie looking up less

Firstly; Do you think this will ruin the bike completely ?

I don't think the stem will rise, so how should I approach this, new stem or perhaps a set of USE Atom Carbon riser handle bars (or similar 'comfy bars') or both ?

What would you recommend ?

Thanks for your advice,

Zach

PS I am 5'9" with short inside leg, bike is Scott size 'medium' - which I think translates to 17"

diy

Start with moving the seat a cm forward if yo can, then riser bar, then short stem with a riser. Lastly cut the bars down

YeehaaMcgee

If memory serves me right, the Scale is a particularly racey style setup, so I'm not sure how far you'll be able to change it really.

zacherynuk

Thanks,

I'll have a look at the seat first.

Yeah it's a very aggressive bike, hence me being a bit worried about ruining the ride - but gotta be worth giving it a go before going to the hassle of selling / buying.

Mark909

I would say that a bike with a slack head angle was aggressive but them im maybe just being pedantic.

cooldad

Mark909 wrote:

I would say that a bike with a slack head angle was aggressive but them im maybe just being pedantic.

You would be wrong, not pedantic.

timpop

cooldad wrote:

You would be wrong, not pedantic.

Indeed!
Like already said, move your saddle a bit forward. But if you get a shorter stem I'd think perhaps it's better to get slightly wider bars to help keep the feel of the bike similar. something like that.

YeehaaMcgee

Mark909 wrote:

I would say that a bike with a slack head angle was aggressive but them im maybe just being pedantic.

It depends. Some people call DH rae bikes agressive, since the riding style is agressive.
Others call XC race bikes aggressive, since they're responsive and twitchy.
That's why it's always helpful to not use such flowery poofery in your language when describing bike terms

zacherynuk

Righto, Seat position forward a touch felt odd - I think it helped but not enough - so I am going to see about getting hold of some riser bars from ebay (LBS only stocks straights! - and what's with the world suddenly getting LONG bars ? ) anywhoo, they said I could pop in and try a variety of stems if I want so may well do this after getting riser.

Thanks for all your input!

PS - I think an aggressive bike is one with short chain stays, long top tube and high angle head and seat tube angles. Especially if the steering stick is lower than the perch. I also think I am too old and broken for such geometry.

Giraffoto

As well as riser bars, don't forget you can get a stem with a fair degree of rise in it too - Hope make them in 70mm reach and 25 degrees rise, others may make a similar spec.

timpop

YeehaaMcgee wrote:

Mark909 wrote:

I would say that a bike with a slack head angle was aggressive but them im maybe just being pedantic.

It depends. Some people call DH rae bikes agressive, since the riding style is agressive.
Others call XC race bikes aggressive, since they're responsive and twitchy.
That's why it's always helpful to not use such flowery poofery in your language when describing bike terms

"...flowery poofery..." that made me laugh. But Mr McGee is correct. There are different styles of bikes which require different angles to fit the wide variety of riding we enjoy.