Having a hard time adjusting...

[Kerry1976]

When they fit you, make sure that they don't change up your saddle fore/aft position (rails) to compensate reach. One of the biggest mistakes when it comes to fitting..

Cheers !

Thanks! They checked it but said what I had was perfect. The only thing with the saddle changed was making it level.

[marni]

Yep, I took my guys some home-made fudge between Christmas and New Years

I thought about beer, but wasn't sure how that might be considered...fudge seemed a safer choice.

Yes, it can be chancy but my daughter is a home brewer and I usually have a 6 pack of something interesting hanging around so if she has extra, I treat them and the ones that drink are always asking about her and what she's brewing or hinting habout how much they would "love it if she would just brew a few more of those excellent........"

I am more prone to take in baked stuff, but around the holidays or if they have really gone the extra mile......

[lawnchick22]

Besides going and having a "professional" fit, are there some quick and easy rules of thumb regarding bike set up?

[indysteel]

Besides going and having a "professional" fit, are there some quick and easy rules of thumb regarding bike set up?

Here's a good primer on bike fit:

http://www.peterwhitecycles.com/fitting.htm

[Kerry1976]

Update, so here goes. I thought this would be an expensive fix, so now feel really dumb that I put it off. The new stem and labor cost a whopping $32. And of course I got back the original stem so I can put it back on for when I sell the bike in the future.

I haven't ridden it yet with the new (shorter) stem, but look forward to doing so this weekend. I am in "running mode" now - training for a half marathon. For right now, biking is my "not running" (aka cross training) activity.

I also got a saddle bag for my bike, but it doesn't fit due to the wide seat posts on my Brooks. I'll have to keep looking.... so, back to the LBS to return it. The owner wasn't certain it would fit, so he won't be surprised to see me yet again.

Thanks again, everyone, for the wise advice.

[Kerry1976]

Glad to hear it worked for you.

There are special saddle bags that work with Brooks saddles. Usually a little $$, but so pretty!

Tonight I purchased a cheaper alternative from Etsy.com. I should receive in the next week or so. I'll let you all know how it works. The pictures show it being used on a Brooks, so I'm confident. Regardless, the cost was so little that I'm not concerned if it isn't exactly right.

But in the future, I will probably splurge on something nicer like some of the bags I saw on Wallbikes website.

[Kerry1976]

First ride on fully adjusted bike on trainer. As a summary - the LBS swapped out the stem for one significantly (like half) shorter and added a spacer to get the handlebars a little higher. Made a world of difference. Had my strongest ride yet.

[zoom-zoom]

Yay!!!