3rd bike adjustment

[tricat]

This is the third time I`m going to the shop to have my bike fitted correctly. The first time I brought my road bike along since it fits me perfectly. The store owner did some measurements and then set my triathlon bkie up similar to my road bike. I brought it back a second time for another adjustment. Well, again it`s still not fitting correctly.

1) My front toe hits the front wheel when I turn
2) the handlebars are two inches to low - this is why I cannot reach the brakes easily and have to ride on the hoods.
3) This store owner is an ironman athlete and is very knowledgeable so I can`t figure out why it`s taking so many adjustments to get the bike right.

I`ll keep you posted. Hoping he gets it right this time as I have my second triathlon this weekend.

tricat

[bouncybouncy]

i thought the toe hitting the wheel is normal???

maybe he is too shy to come right out and hit on you...this is his way of keeping you coming *back for more*

[SadieKate]

Toe overlap has nothing to do with how the bike fits you unless you have your cleats waaaay out of adjustment. It is the geometry and design of the bike. Besides, how much of the time are you doing tight turns?

Your statement about the brakes is confusing. You can reach the brakes from the hoods but not from where else? Do you have extra levers on aero bars? Perhaps being a tri-bike, the bars should be that low. Are your aero bars clip-on and sit above the bar so he might have the bar set low on purpose?

Do you mean the stem is too long?

Tri-bikes don't fit like road bikes at all. They're weird beasts.

[RoadRaven]

I think that your toe touching the wheel is not normal... anything touching the wheel apart from the ground sounds damned dangerous to me
check your bike frame size, or where you sit on it
Or check your foot position when you turn...

[emily_in_nc]

I think that your toe touching the wheel is not normal... anything touching the wheel apart from the ground sounds damned dangerous to me check your bike frame size, or where you sit on it
Or check your foot position when you turn...

With a short enough top tube and large wheels (650c or 700c), toe overlap is inevitable. I have a bit of it on my 650c-wheeled bike w/19.1" top tube, and I've almost fallen a couple of times (but from a dead stop, in parking lots, would have been no-speed falls) because of it. My Bike Friday (20" front wheel), Terry (24" front wheel), and mtb (longer effective top tube because of flat bars) do not have the problem. It's a function of geometry; once the effective top tube gets short enough (below ~19.7"), it's near impossible not to have toe overlap unless you have tiny feet or smaller-than-normal wheels.

The dangers of toe overlap are much debated; some think it's not a big deal at all, others think it's extremely dangerous and would never ride a bike with it; while a third camp (which I am in), think it's something to be aware of and be careful about but not to panic about - just be careful if it's something your bike has by virtue of its design. It's something only smaller people (I'm 5'2") have to worry about...

Emily

[SadieKate]

The dangers of toe overlap are much debated; some think it's not a big deal at all, others think it's extremely dangerous and would never ride a bike with it; while a third camp (which I am in), think it's something to be aware of and be careful about but not to panic about - just be careful if it's something your bike has by virtue of its design. It's something only smaller people (I'm 5'2") have to worry about...

Ditto, I only have overlap on my road bikes but I'm not riding them on singletrack so who cares? I don't even notice it.

[RebeccaAnn]

My toe overlap problem comes when I switch bikes and forget that there will be toe overlap on the road bike (700c). The hybrid, with 26" wheels, doesn't cause a problem and if I don't ride the road bike often enough I forget to avoid toe overlap! You just train yourself not to have your feet in the wrong place during turns. I'm spending lots of time on the hybrid this year, pulling a trailer, and I'm out of practice on the road bike. So far no falls, I'm just annoyed with myself.

The problem with the brakes sounds nasty--please let us know how the fit goes!