new bike panic/remorse (mainly panic)

[RoadBunner]

Thanks, everyone for your opinions. Basically everyone here is saying what I think and I go back in forth between "run now!" and "this could work out!"

On the same day I rode the stock-Onix and the Trek for about 30 minutes each. I knew that as-was the Onix wasn't for me, and the Trek felt fantastic. This same-day riding was when I decided perceived value in the frame was the same, but component-wise the Onix had an advantage I could appreciate. I've also ridden both models on different days, but definitely overall spent more time on the Trek than the bike I eventually bought (I know, shoot me now).

indysteel, the new handlebars definitely brought in the reach (I love the new handlebars...salsa poco). The LBS guy showed me the stock ones and the salsa side-by side and it was pretty obvious that since the curvature started sooner, the reach was shortened. However, I am thinking the same thing you are in regards to that change should be enough if what the original LBS said was right about it being okay but not an optimal fit. Maybe there is something else going on that I'm not pinpointing.

All this talk about going in TODAY is making me panic but I'm going to hold off til Monday. The man who helped me out doesn't work Fri/Sat (I'm working right near til their closing time today) and he requested I come in Monday because Sundays are busier and he wants to be able to spend a lot of time with me. I'm sure he has a superior who has the final say if things don't work out, but I'd like an advocate there who is familiar with me.

I don't want to make the LBS sound bad because they were really very helpful and it isn't their fault I bought the bike. I do feel that the reason they don't do a very comprehensive fit upon purchase is because they have a supposed fitting guru working there who charges $150-300 for a super high-tech fit session. This rubs me the wrong way, but shame on me for not making sure I'd be getting a comprehensive fit before I purchased. To their credit, they never tried to sell me this session, either.

I've worked in a retail setting before and know that even with a no-refunds policy (and I worked at a place that made you sign saying you knew of this) loud, angry customers usually get their money back. I don't have the personality to raise such a stink, though, so I'm really hoping this will work out fit-wise or return-wise with things staying civil.

I'm going to go on Monday and hope they can dial in a fit for me then go from there. Right now, I can have a slight bend in my arms, but it is more comfortable to keep them straight. I'm not sure if this is fit or my lack of strength in this position.

I've read about that bar-obcuring-hubs thing and with my hands on the straight portion of the bars, it lines up perfectly. If I'm on the hoods, it doesn't. I searched this forum and read somewhere about someone saying you should extend you arm from elbow to fingers from the seat and this should bring you within 2 cm of the middle of the bars. I'm about an inch off from that mark now.

The Onix does come in one size smaller, but that model has 650cc wheels. The woman who originally helped me with the stock-onix thought I wasn't "that short" to warrant trying that size (I'm about 5'2").

Again, I'm new to this so am not entirely sure what to look for. Maybe the Onix does fit but is more aggresive. Maybe the Trek feels great now but I'd "outgrow" the geometry down the road.

I am totally stressing, though and this isn't fun

[GLC1968]

Don't stress! You'll get it worked out eventually. I'm sure they want you to be happy too! Waiting until Monday when he's got time to work with you is a good idea.

And just as an aside, I'm 5'4" and ride 650's on my road bike. There is no such thing as not short enough for 650's! A woman I used to ride with is taller than me (I'll guess 5'6") and she also has 650's on her bike...so it's not unheard of. As a short person who's first bike was too big and who's second bike was too small, I'd say that too small is easier to work with than too big. But now that I have 'perfect' I say "why settle?!". You'll get there!

[KSH]

I'm 5'4" and my Cervelo One has 650's on it.

Who cares if the wheels are 650's if the bike fits? The smaller Orbea that is.

[KnottedYet]

Over the weekend (while waiting for your Monday meeting with your bike salesguy) can you test ride the smaller Onix and the Trek?

[conurejade]

I boutght the Onix Dama (although Campy and not Ultegra) 3 months ago and I couldn't be happier with mine. With that being said, no matter how great the specs, if the bike doesn't fit you'll be miserable. I too would recommend trying the next size down, but whatever you ultimately decide to do, let the LBS know and see what they can do for you. My LBS bent over backwards to get me the right bike (we're still tweaking the stem length) and I think most quality LBS's want you to be happy with your purchase. After all, most of their prifit comes from accessories and your repeat business so it's not in their best interests to ignore an unhappy client.
+1 on changing the bar - I went with the Salsa Short'n'Shallow and it made a world of difference in the reach - and my ability to reach the brakes while in the drops!

The Onix Dama is an absolutely beautiful bike - if I do say so myself
For those who haven't seen it, this is mine before changing the handlebars.

[RoadBunner]

Both shops so far as I know did not have the smaller Onix. I will call and ask, though. I'll be honest here, I'd hate to go back and bother the poor Trek LBS again. They have been so good to me and I hate to keep going back. Bottom line, if the Orbea isn't the one and I can return it, I'll start at square one again then. That would likely start back at Trek, but at least then I'd have a clear conscience about taking up their time.

Conurejade it is a beautiful bike! I can't believe they don't put a smaller handlebar on it to begin with. I'm not sure of the exact model of salsas that were put on mine (they have an ergonomic "bump" in the drops which is so comfy), but I have to say they are great and I'd consider getting them for whatever bike I end up with.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

I'm not sure of the exact model of salsas that were put on mine (they have an ergonomic "bump" in the drops which is so comfy), but I have to say they are great and I'd consider getting them for whatever bike I end up with.

Both the Salsa Short N Shallow bars and the Salsa Poco bars will shorten your reach a little bit, but the Salsa Pocos shorten it most...I think by about 2cm. I switched my Nitto Noodle drop bars last year to Salsa Pocos- it did make an improvement.

[Kano]

All this talk about going in TODAY is making me panic but I'm going to hold off til Monday. The man who helped me out doesn't work Fri/Sat (I'm working right near til their closing time today) and he requested I come in Monday because Sundays are busier and he wants to be able to spend a lot of time with me. I'm sure he has a superior who has the final say if things don't work out, but I'd like an advocate there who is familiar with me.

I'm going to go on Monday and hope they can dial in a fit for me then go from there. Right now, I can have a slight bend in my arms, but it is more comfortable to keep them straight. I'm not sure if this is fit or my lack of strength in this position.

I've read about that bar-obcuring-hubs thing and with my hands on the straight portion of the bars, it lines up perfectly. If I'm on the hoods, it doesn't. I searched this forum and read somewhere about someone saying you should extend you arm from elbow to fingers from the seat and this should bring you within 2 cm of the middle of the bars. I'm about an inch off from that mark now.

Again, I'm new to this so am not entirely sure what to look for. Maybe the Onix does fit but is more aggresive. Maybe the Trek feels great now but I'd "outgrow" the geometry down the road.

I am totally stressing, though and this isn't fun

I snipped a bit -- saved stuff I was planning to address...


First tidbit is the reach -- that elbow to fingertips thing. And I don't know what you mean by the "middle of the bars" exactly. So, running out to the garage to visit MY bike (thanks for the excuse) I see that the tip of my finger nail comes to about that distance from what would be the center of the tube that is the handlebar, so I'm guessing that's where you're talking about. I also don't know for sure what you mean by "an inch from that mark." If you mean that the tip of your finger is an inch from the center of the bar, then you're not that far off that "2cm" mark -- the difference is about 1/4 inch. I'm betting they can fix that.

The stem -- my bike came with a 100mm stem. FIRST, we changed the angle of it. When I decided I should have a shorter one, as well as that angle change, my bike shop switched it out for me, putting a 90mm stem on. From what I'd seen here, I thought they came in "even numbers" -- like 80 was going to be my next step. Maybe you can have a 70mm stem instead of a 60?

To go with this reach thing -- you say that when you're on the bike, your elbows have the bend, but you're more comfortable with your arms straight. I don't remember reading about what you have been riding before this bike. I found myself "degenerating" into the straight arm position a lot at first on my road bike. I had to actively think about keeping my arms "loose."

Your bike guy wants to work with you and make you happy on this bike -- you say he wants to have lots of time for you. When I bought my bike, on a Saturday, I was told that same thing. Come back another day for more detailed fitting. Your dude has told you to come back a lot sooner than my dude: mine said ride like this for a couple of hundred miles. When we met him, we talked about my old bike, a Specialized Expedition -- upright, suspension fork and seat post. I told him what I did NOT like about it, and that I felt like I'd be happier and get more power with my butt up higher, on a road bike.

I'm about 5'3.5" and at the time weighed about 220. EVERY OTHER BIKE SALESMAN I talked to wanted to put me on a hybrid or comfort bike, even though I was saying I don't like my hybrid/upright bike. This guy took me to road bikes. I had ridden a Specialized Dolce in a 51. It was crowded. REALLY crowded. Granted, there was a lot of me to put into that cockpit. We started out looking at those, and then bike dude took me to the Allez. He had me ride a 52. This was love! It had a double crank, and I was interested in a triple, so he suggested the Roubaix. Found one of those, on clearance -- a past year, you know, in my size, carbon frame, better components, SAME PRICE. I didn't even ride it!

Bike guy said take it home, put your pedals on it (I had SPD pedals on my Expedition) and ride for a couple of weeks. He said I WOULD be uncomfortable for a while, changing position so much, and that I should build a bit of strength before we made changes. I changed the saddle almost immediately, then changed it again. Then I changed gloves, and then we changed the handlebar angle. The last change was the stem -- from the 100 to the 90. I've been really happy on my bike ever since. Oops, we added some shims in the brakes to make them easier to reach.

On the other side of the equation, I spent quite a bit of time with strengthening my body. Upper back work to help me keep my shoulders down while riding, and core work to help me hold my body up without relying so much on my hands/arms. That was harder!

Anyway, with all this -- your bike dude said come back when we can spend some serious time together to make this bike work for you. He did some things to get you started. I'm thinking that the thing to do this weekend is to ride your bike. If it's got clipless pedals on it, and you don't have shoes yet, then go find some platform pedals to get going. If it's got NO pedals, put some kind of pedals on it and ride! You'll have more idea of what isn't right -- on you and on the bike -- after a couple of rides, I think.

BUT

Ride to enjoy your new bike. Don't ride for speed, or great distance (it's remarkable how many miles you can put on while tootling around in a subdivision. one night we rode abou 15 miles without ever being more than about half a mile from home) You'll find out what needs fixing without focusing on problems. Sounds like your boyfriend rides, and if he comes with you, he probably knows things like how to tweak your saddle at least, and probably carries tools. (not that he'll be able to make it truly comfy if it's like sitting on a brick, corners up)

Feel her handling, feel how your legs feel, how her gearing works, etc. When your shoulders start to hurt, think about putting them down and relaxing your arms, and think about holding your body with your body. Notice what only you can/need to fix too, and give the bike a break on that part.

Oops, I'm supposed to be at work in twelve minutes! Better get a move on!!!

Karen in Boise