Reach Problems

samhedges

As I have a short torso and long legs, will I have trouble getting a road bike. Are specialized good or will I have problems with geometry. What are the problems associated with stretching for the bars and having your saddle back?

Rule74Please

How?

Reach determines bike size not leg length!!!!!

How do I know I am similar to you. from crotch to ground for me is 925mm and I'm 186cm tall. Ride a 57 cm top tube and have done since being fitted by Steve Hogg 20 years ago

samhedges

My long legs (35/6 inside leg) means you have to have the saddle far back to get your knee over toe. This means I'm even more stretched. What would the dangers or downfalls of not having knee over toe? Could I put on a shorter steerer and bars and just not worry about it?

seanoconn

SamHedges wrote:

My long legs (35/6 inside leg) means you have to have the saddle far back to get your knee over toe. This means I'm even more stretched. What would the dangers or downfalls of not having knee over toe? Could I put on a shorter steerer and bars and just not worry about it?

I've got long legs and i need my saddle pushed forward to get my knee over the ball of my foot. You should be able to get a bike to suit your geometry, or as near as. Give your back a chance to get used to the position of a road bike before you splash out on expensive shorter stems.

MichaelW

Although reach is generally measured by top tube length, there are 2 parts to this. The TT behind the bottom bracket and the TT in front. You can measure this is you drop a plumb line to the bottom bracket. A person with long legs and short reach needs more TT behind the BB and less in front . This requires a low or slack seat-tube angle.
Slack seat-tubes are generally provided on the largest size of a model. Smaller models have steeper angles.

You can improve the space for your legs by fitting longer cranks but watch out for interference with the front wheel and for cornering clearance.
If you get a bike on the small side, you can move the saddle back by getting a seatpost with more layback. This may upset the bike's balance on large bikes but on smaller ones it is fine.
When it comes to bar position, I find that height and horizontal reach are roughly interchangeable. You can move the bars back or up and it feels similar. With a smaller bike size, try moving the bars up for starters.
If all else fails, get a custom frame made. Roberts are a good port of call, they use a lug-less style so can build any angle.

defycomp2

Ride before you buy, take advice from a good shop, try the competitivecyclist website to get an idea of the size needed and in general if you have less reach go for a smaller frame. You can make a small bike bigger but it is more difficult to make a big bike smaller.

samhedges

Are there certain brands orientated towards the shorter legs/longer torso and others which accommodate those like myself with long legs and shorter torso?

defycomp2

I get on just fine with my Giant. Height says M/L. Long legs/short torso says M. Rode both and there was no contest; M it was.

samhedges

Do you rate Giant? They seem relatively unheard of in the road bike scene which seems unfair as I've always thought they make excellent bikes, are the Defys an exception? What other brands make entry level road bikes?

Down the Road

SamHedges wrote:

Do you rate Giant? They seem relatively unheard of in the road bike scene which seems unfair as I've always thought they make excellent bikes, are the Defys an exception? What other brands make entry level road bikes?

giant possibly the 3rd biggest seller of road bikes!!!!

All bikes share pretty much the same TT length. Not odd when you consider 90% of frames come out of 3 factories

Stop guessing get yourself measured and listen to what they tell you

twoshots

Get on a few bikes and try them or get a bike fit and you should be fine.

I am similar in propotions as the OP, being long legged and short bodied. I ride a 2004 Giant OCR, size Large (56.5 cm), of which now all but the frame/fork has been swapped out over time. I don't feel I can go to a smaller frame as my knees get pretty close to the handlebars up steep climbs and sometimes even just nudge the bars.

Looking at the reach issue it took me some time to get comfy, mostly due to beginners ignorance of the options I had avialable. In the end it has turned out to be quite simple for me to get comfy. I acquired the bike from the Bay of Thieves with a 135mm stem and the standard 'anatomic' drop bars. I have switched these out to a shorter 100mm stem (being careful not to go too short and make the bike too twitchy) and some shorter reach bars. All for the princley sum of £30. I also keep the seat as far forward as I can go without spoiling the look of the bike (oh, the vanity )
http://www.planet-x-bikes.co.uk/i/q/STPX3DF/planet_x_superlight_team_3d_forged_stem
http://www.planet-x-bikes.co.uk/i/q/HBPX6061SD-42-BLK-318/planet_x_road_bar_strada_shallow_drop___42_cm___matt_black___318_mm_clamp

YMMV, obviously!

As for Giant, the TCR is the mpother of all modern compact road bikes, or so I thought:
http://inrng.com/2012/05/the-ancestor-of-your-bike/

Bozman

I use the top tube length for size and i always check the geometry because like others have said, bikes vary so much. My mate has a Giant TCR and the top tube is long on that, i've got a small Focus Izalco that has a longer top tube than my medium Look, i've had a 54 Trek that was even smaller in comparison.

samhedges

twoshots wrote:

All for the princley sum of £30. I also keep the seat as far forward as I can go without spoiling the look of the bike (oh, the vanity )

I've seen bars and stems in my LBS for as much as £200, maybe even more! Where is that money actually going, surely they can't be that much better?

I was also told at my LBS that it was necessary to have the seat quite far back, at least for me because your knee needs to be over your toe for maximum efficiency. Asides from getting the most out of each stroke, why should this matter? Could it be bad for your knees?

twoshots

I think your LBS is talk nonsense, frankly. Your legs go round in circle whilst pedalling, therefore you can apply 'peak force' at any point in that 360 degree circle.

If your seat is moved forward and you adjust the height to keep the radius from seat to crank centre the same then your pedal action is the same. The change is purely an angle change in your torso as a result of rotating your lower half. A forward seat may put more weight on your arms but will also result in a more aero position. See for instance the seat tube angle difference between and road bike and a TT bike.

Perhaps your LBS was refering to something else and we are embarking in a game of Chinese whispers but it definetly doesn't not make sense on the face of it.


EDIT: this link is quite interesting and also seems to confirm feelings (see the section on 'The Fore-Aft Saddle Position' and 'What about knee over the pedal axle?'):
http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/fitting.htm