Pointy toes?

[aicabsolut]

Grog said it well.

Everyone has a slightly different riding style. I tend to drop my heels more than average, and of course there are people who ride a bit more toe-down. The general rule of thumb is that at 6 o'clock with your foot in a neutral to flat position (with clipless pedals this can be slightly heel up), you want around a 30-35 degree angle in your knee. Those who have more heel drop will want to have the knee less straight under this test, because on the road, the extra drop in heel will straighten the knee more. Some people who ride more toe down may want less or else they'll feel like they're bottoming out on the pedal stroke too early.

There are still extremes that should be avoided, and it sounds like you're getting there. When your saddle is too high, despite your ankling style, you will start to rock your hips on the saddle to be able to reach the pedals instead of sitting squarely on your sitbones. You may also find that you're losing power, particularly on those hills. Finally, you are putting yourself at risk for injury from hyperextending the knee.

Your saddle position should maximize comfort and power output. This can vary a little bit with terrain. For example, I will raise my seat a couple of millimeters when I'm doing a lot of flat riding to make it easier to enlist all the muscles in my legs evenly, since I will be in the same position for most of the ride and not dropping my heels as much. Still, that is only a couple millimeters different from when I am doing some climbing.

What has prompted you to continue raising the saddle?

[soprano]

What has prompted you to continue raising the saddle?

When I got the new bike in March, I hadn't done any significant riding in about 6 years; mostly before that I'd lived in a rural area and never really had to deal with cars. Now I live in an urban area with lots of stop-and-go traffic. I had the saddle much lower at first so I could easily put both feet down. As I've become more confident and regained better balance skills I've been able to move the saddle up. Guess it's time to stop!

Nice to hear that I'm just out-thinking things (as usual). The bike is quite comfy otherwise.