New bike; fit question?

[SlowButSteady]

I'm not exactly a "new" new rider, but I've just done my first bike upgrade after two years.

I'm 5'2" (barely) and have been riding a Trek 1000 WSD 43cm with 650c wheels.

I just bought a Giant OCR A1 W. It's their XS frame. I think it's 47 cm and the wheels are 700c.

Fit at LBS by a young-enough-to-be-my-daughter woman who maybe enjoys chatting more than she does fitting bicycles.

I've ridden it four or five times, medium short distances (16-20 miles). I can't tell if my problem is the saddle, the adjustment of said saddle or the length of reach/stem length.

It's putting way too much pressure on my woman parts. If I really bow my lower back and straighten my elbows in effect pushing myself up and away from the handlebars, it puts the pressure on my sit bones where it should be. If I relax my arms and back to a natural-feeling position, the pressure goes right back onto the girlie stuff and I'm soon squirming uncomfortably.

Also, when I'm at maximum knee extension, my leg/foot extend in front of the vertical, and I'm wondering if this is normal.

The frame geometry on these bikes is different. Trek has a more or less horizontal top tube and the Giant's top tube slants.

So should I take it back to the LBS and see if they can adjust it for me? Do I need a new saddle with a cutout? Current saddle is more or less horizontal, which is about what I like. Tipping the nose of the saddle down might relieve some pressure, but I don't want to feel like I'm sliding off.

[mimitabby]

yes! take it back! you sound like the bike is not set up for you correctly.
a new saddle might help, but more like changing out parts in the headsets to get the handlebars closer/and/or/higher

good luck

[Eden]

the effective top tube is longer on your new bike - and especially since you get comfortable when you straighten your elbows, I'd think that it might be a bit too long for you. You may be able to put a shorter stem on it, but definitely get a good fit on the whole bike. It sounds like its not properly set up for you anywhere...
both bikes are "43cm" bikes, but the only thing that measures is seat tube, so I'm thinking your sales person just gave you the size you had without taking into consideration that the Giant has a more compact geometry compared to your Trek. A w2xs may have been a better fit for you, but is still longer than your current bike. If you can still trade it in, maybe think aobut talking to someone more knowledgeable about fit to make sure you have the proper size and trade it for a smaller one if you don't.

*edit* - you may not be able to get a smaller size.... looks like the 2xs is only available in the OCR3 - humph, it always annoys me that they don't think small people might want a high end bike

[DirtDiva]

It sounds as though you need to move your saddle forward. If you are having to push yourself back to get your sit bones on the widest part of the saddle, it must be too far back. Moving the saddle forward a bit will also help with the knee-over-pedal-spindle thing. A shorter stem and/or one with more rise would certainly help with reach to the bars. I don't think the sizing of the frame will be too far out (I'm 5'3" and used to have an XS OCR3 that I wouldn't have wanted any smaller), but you DEFINITELY need to take it back to the shop and get fitted properly!

[sundial]

Yes, please take it back to the shop and see if they can help fine tune the fitting. You might need a shorter stem too so you can sit a little more upright.

[michelem]

*edit* - you may not be able to get a smaller size.... looks like the 2xs is only available in the OCR3 - humph, it always annoys me that they don't think small people might want a high end bike

Interestingly enough, the TCR Composite W, TCR A W, and TCR W come in xs, as well as the OCR 1 & 3 W, and the FCR 1, 2, & 3 W. Why the OCR AO W doesn't come in 2xs is beyond me - it seems kind of random which ones do and don't. I do notice that they got rid of the OCR Composite W this year. It had full Ultegra and came in 2xs. None of the women's bikes have full Ultegra this year. ???

For me, at 5'2", it came down to a Giant 2xs and a Specialized women specific frame in the 47cm size. The Specialized won out, but both fits felt good - just something about the Specialized felt better to me (can't put my finger on it though). So, it sure doesn't seem right that a 43cm Trek and a xs Giant would be that close . . . ??? I did swap out the stem for an 80mm, the handlebars for 36cm, and the saddle for 130 (narrowest - although I kept the same model).

The best money I spent was on a comprehensive fitting on a fit cycle. I highly recommend taking your bike in to a professional bike fitter to see if there is anything that can be done to improve the fit, and if there isn't, find out what size you need and trade that Giant in for the right size!

[Eden]

Are you sure about that? from what I can see on their web site the TCR Composit only goes to xs - only the lowest end bikes of each range appear to come in a 2xs.

I also have the smallest Specialized frame - the eff top tube is shorter than ANY of the Giant bikes, which may be why it feels better to you. What it came down to for me was that it was pretty much the only non-custom high end bike that came in my size (this was in the 06 model year) so they've definitely won my loyalty.

[michelem]

Eden,

This is from the TCR Composite W webpage: http://www.giant-bicycles.com/en-US/...en/1245/29290/

color Composite / Gold
size 2XS*, XS, S, M *650C wheels
frame fomulaOne Composite, Compact Road Design
fork fomulaOne Full Composite, Alloy steerer
handlebar Alloy Women's Anotomic Bend and drop, 31.8mm
stem Race Face Cadence
seatpost formulaOne Composite
saddle WTB Deva Team
pedals Crank Brothers Candy C
shifters Shimano ST-R700 STI, short reach
derailleur Front: Shimano Ultegra Rear: Shimano Ultegra
brakes Shimano 105
cassette Shimano 105 12- 25T, 10 speed
chain Shimano 105
cranks Shimano R700 compact, 34/50
bb Shimano external
rims 700C = Mavic Aksium 650C = ?
hubs 700C = Mavic Aksium 650C = ?
spokes 700C = Mavic Aksium 650C = ?
tires Michelin Lithion 700x23c

P.S. I edited my previous post before I saw yours. We probably hit send at the same time or something . . . I love my Ruby too.

[Eden]

ah - I was looking at the Geometry pages - the TCR Composit does not list 2xs under geometry, so now I wonder which is correct.....

[michelem]

I think they just messed up the Geometry page, 'cause this page shows the XS geometry for that bike:

http://www.giant-bicycles.com/_uploa...TCR-C-W-08.pdf

Regardless, I am disappointed that they've downgraded the components on the women's bikes this year.

[rij73]

Sounds like you might need a few changes. Saddle with a cutout could help, but you probably also need the handlebars higher/closer. When the leg is fully extended, the pedal is generally in front of the bottom bracket, so that part is nothing to worry about. However, things certainly need changing!