Maiden Voyage/Ride-Pic

[Catrin]

Good luck, Catrin.

Can I ask where on your hands it hurts? Your fingers? The meat of your palm? Are you experiencing any residual numbness after you're done riding?

I normally agree with Jonathan that you should get about a number of miles on your bike before a full fitting, but that assumes that you are not in actual pain in the meantime. My hands have, unfortunately, not been the same since last year. In an effort to figure out a good set-up and in a foolish belief that I could overcome the pain, I did some long-term damage to my hands by continuing to ride the bike. I share that with you not to scare you, but to caution you against pushing it if the bike doesn't feel good.

The worst pain is in the meat of my palm between the thumb and forefinger - not quite sure what to call that - and it extends to the base of my thumbs on the inside of my palm. My LHT is currently back at the LBS while they confirm that the correct parts were shipped with it - it sounds like they may not have included the proper levers...but will know more tomorrow.

I hear you on being stubborn about overcoming pain - which I also tend to do. I do have a very light touch of arthritis in my hands already so am trying to be smart about this. If the current fitter can't fix things - then I will call Johnathan when I have his fee saved and explain the situation to him. As much as I love the bike, it won't do me or it any good to try and ride it under the current setup. If I have to move to mountain bars and trigger shifters to take care of this then I will...but that isn't my first choice

[Mr. Bloom]

catrin: Right here on TE, the PI Gel Vent:
http://www.teamestrogen.com/prodPI_8587.html

Note the difference in padding compared to yours.

Remember, you want your frame to support your weight, not your soft tissue.

[Tri Girl]

Totally off topic here, but I like your new name, Mr. Bloom!
Glad you're still around!!

[Catrin]

catrin: Right here on TE, the PI Gel Vent:
http://www.teamestrogen.com/prodPI_8587.html

Note the difference in padding compared to yours.

Remember, you want your frame to support your weight, not your soft tissue.

Thanks for the link - I wasn't sure if we were talking about the same gloves. I think once we get the fit of my levers/bar correct that will go a long ways to taking care of the problem. I did focus on keeping my weight back on my saddle rather than the bars (I did think of that) - but of course with that too-large stretch for my hands it is hard to say what else might have been involved. There may, or may not, have been numbness - my hands were hurting so badly that I really could not say.

Thanks again - and I like your new name

[lph]

I love your photo, Catrin, you look sooo happy! Beautiful bike too.

[Catrin]

I love your photo, Catrin, you look sooo happy! Beautiful bike too.

As painful as my hands were, I loved the bike! I posted the following in another thread, but just to make it easy here is what I learned from my LBS:

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I am happy to report that apparently Surly included not only the incorrect levers, but the incorrect bars with my LHT build! (happy in that it is an easy fix). My fitter, who is a very tall/large man, said that such large levers would give even him problems! He was not surprised to hear that my hands were cramping at all. So he is contacting Surly to have them ship the correct bars and levers.

That doesn't mean that I won't have to focus on posture, but I knew something else had to be going on - the pain came too fast and too strong.
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edited - I misunderstood what I was told - the bars that Surly sent were indeed the correct, compact bars. It turns out that those bars are still a little large for me, so my LBS is replacing them with a slightly smaller set of bars - going to 38cm bars. There were two different issues and I had combined them

[Catrin]

catrin: Right here on TE, the PI Gel Vent:
http://www.teamestrogen.com/prodPI_8587.html

Note the difference in padding compared to yours.

Remember, you want your frame to support your weight, not your soft tissue.

I've ordered these - thanks for the tip! They are a little expensive, but seem to be a good idea. Now I just have to wait, with impatience, to get my bike back!

[Mr. Bloom]

I've ordered these - thanks for the tip! They are a little expensive, but seem to be a good idea. Now I just have to wait, with impatience, to get my bike back!

Yes they are expensive...and sometimes I've found them difficult to get. While fit is the first priority, these will likely help as well!