Quote Originally Posted by Irulan View Post
if you go too far back, you unweight the front end which is not a good thing. The "chest on the saddle" stuff is incorrect. It's all about where the center of mass (COM) is, in relation to the pull of gravity.
Look at it this way - you can draw a vertical line through my hips and feet to the ground... that's my center of mass, over my feet and pedals. If I were further back, my hips would not be over my feet, they'd be over the rear hub, and my chest would be above my feet, adn that is not a well balanced stance. You WANT your COM over your feet perpendicular to the ground.
Definitely! I have had the supreme misfortune of getting this wrong, and looping out hitting the bottom of a roll down, shredding my shorts in the process (though I did get some looks of respect when I walked into the bike shop with those shorts on afterwards).

Holy heck, though - I think this would TERRIFY me!

SheFly