Dream bike fit. How much would you pay?

[Wahine]

Hi Ladies!!

First I need to apologize. I feel that a forum is a community and if you are to be part of a community, you need to give as well as receive. I've not given much to TE lately, and yet I'm back to ask for more from you.

Here it is.

I've recently taken a more advanced Bike Physical Therapy course. As part of my efforts to improve the services that I provide to clients I'm considering purchasing a fitting unit that would allow me to do a custom fit on someone from scratch for road position, mountain bike, time trial or triathlon. The fitting unit is not cheap. So I'm trying to find out how much people would be willing to pay for such a service.

Here's how it would go, you come in and tell me what purpose of the bike would be then I'd fit you accordingly with the saddle and/or handlebar of your choice and we'd then be able to figure out what top tube length, seat tube angle, head tube angle, and stand over would be ideal for the intended use of the bike and your personal body related fit issues. If we really wanted to geek out we could also figure out details like stem length/angle, crank length, pedal details, seat post... Keep in mind that the fit would not only be based on performance but also the biomechanical "problems" that each client presents with. For example, all other things being equal, the aerodynamic Triathlon position for customer A is not the same as customer B (even if they are the same height etc) if customer B has tight hamstrings.

Since I live in a smallish town with a very athletic population, a lot of bikes get ordered for clients without test riding. The LBS simply cannot stock and hold that kind of inventory. This would allow me to help the local athlete order a bike with confidence that the size and geometry will work for them with minimal tweaking when the bike arrives.

So my question is, how much would be reasonable to charge for this kind of service?

I have to be able to charge enough to justify the equipment purchase. So some market feedback would be really useful.

Thanks in advance.

Meanwhile, I'll try to give a little more and be a good community member.

Cassie

[luvmyguys]

My husband just visited such a fitter and paid $250 (happily) to have his bike fit to his specific body. This same fitter will charge $275 for a "new bike fit", which will give the client a list of appropriate bikes/sizes (IOW, which frames fit most naturally), and this includes fitting the bike after purchase.

If I recall, he also gives multi-bike discounts for the same rider, as well as a reduced price for junior riders.

[Wahine]

Thanks for your response. It's really helpful.

[roguedog]

Yup. About the same amount here in California. I've seen from 200 up to 350 or so. 250 is more inline. The person with 350 has a really good rep and also has PT background to address particular biomechanical pain points.

[Wahine]

I'll likely have to pay about $3000 for the fitting unit. So billing $250 per fit means I'd have to do 12 fits to recover my investment. Interesting, that's one fit per month.

Hmmmmm. Food for thought.

[Owlie]

I'd say something in the range given by everyone else, and possibly a little more if you throw in some unusual extras, like pedal suggestions (or at least what to look for).

[thekarens]

A pre fit here costs $275, and once you get the bike you bring it in and he'll set it up. It's definitely worth it.

[thekarens]

FWIW, my fitter offers a follow up for 4 weeks after the fitting. He also gives you a sheet with all your measurements.

[Wahine]

Thanks for the input ladies.

I do a lot of fitting already with people that already have their bikes and it's different process than fitting someone from scratch so they can find the bike that works best for them or have one built as opposed to retrofitting a bike they already own.

With retro-fitting, I do this both through the PT clinic where I work, in which case we can often get it paid for through insurance. I'm not sure that I could do that with the fit from scratch, but it might be possible.

I also have my own coaching company and I do fitting privately as well. I'm seeing the fit from scratch situation as being something I do more privately and not so much in the clinic.

I am planning on meeting with the local LBSs and I also plan to market to some of the custom frame builders in Oregon. I'm pretty excited about that.

I do plan on marketing myself. I'm going to make an effort to help people understand what it means to have a fit done by an experienced PT verses a bike shop fit. Don't get me wrong, there are lots of great bike shop fitters out there. And I also plan to make a big deal out of my rather extensive and diverse background in cycling.

The from scratch fits would include numbers to take away as well as a fitting session once the bike is purchased and built. Then maybe a follow-up, I'll decide about that when I decide on price.

Thanks again for all the feedback.