Along with fun and festivities, MEC Bikefest is a hub of knowledge where cyclists new and old can make connections and get the information they need to pursue their passion. Proceeds from this event will be donated to our non-profit partner,
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Liberty Village
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
Monday, May 3, 2010
Cycling 101 Tips: #6 Your Interfaces
There are three main interfaces with your bike. 1. the Saddle 2. the Handlebar/grip 3. Pedals. I already talked about cleats so we can skip that.
Saddle
New riders like to find the widest most comfortable saddle (with the most padding). Just like they were sitting on the couch at home. Imagine wedging something really wide between your legs for hours and trying to walk around? not comfortable and neither is it for cycling. the idea of the saddle is to help provide a base of power for cycling and to help control the bike when not sitting on it. A wide saddle will interfere and eventually chafe. The other concept is the plushness of the saddle. The more padding that swishes around the more bunching and pressure points that this can cause on other areas. but to have a tiny racing saddle that is made of carbon fibre might be asking too much. So a reasonable width that will support your sit bones and allow free movement of your thighs is what I am talking about here. A sufficient amount of firm padding (hard in the store with your hands; but after miles on the road with your butt on it will make a huge difference)
Mountain bikers change their riding position a lot due to terrain so they can afford to have a more "comfortable" saddle. i use the WTB Speed V and the Laser V Team. And the WTB saddles are relatively cheap. my Speed V is an all synthetic saddle. I have found that regardless of the "love channel" or V-grove or cut-out in the middle of the saddle that it makes no real impact for me (your mileage may vary)
The Sit Bones play a vital role, the whole concept of cycling hinges on our ability to "toughen up" our sit bone area. Basically, this is the deadening of nerve endings where the sit bone area contacts the saddle. Doing then and then keeping them "dead" is what makes us able to ride more. How do we do this? First we ease ourselves in and then continue to ride, even for short periods to keep the pressure on those places. If you've been off the bike throughout the winter, your body will have to re-adjust all over again. This is not necessarily a bad thing; but it must be planned for. You may have to ride ever 2 days, since the next day would be very tender. You could also go the brute force route and just ride a 2hr ride 2 days in a row to help with the "deadening" of the nerves in your sit bone region.
On my road bike I have a Fizik Arione. It's nice and long and has long rails to accommodate a wide range of fore-aft positioning.
Women specific saddles are shorter and wider due to physiology.
Handlebars
Mountain bikers have thin palmed gloves to avoid bunching and pinching so some nice grips that afford grip and a level of comfort is nice; but too thick and you cannot get a full wrap of your fingers around the bars and you could easily lose grip when going over rough terrain. There are some that like ergon grips, they provide a nice flat area for your palm. some argue that the ergon grips reduce the amount of mobility you have on the bar when changing hand positions (like when you descend behind the saddle).
Road cyclists get a bar width that matches them first and then get tape to wrap around it. A cheap amount of extra padding is to get a second wrapping of tape. The hoods on the bars should be comfortable for both top of hood riding; but also allow you to reach the brake lever when in the drops. There are also gel pads that you can get to put under the tape to help alleviate pressure. But at the same time look at how you are leaning on the bar, maybe put more of your palm pad on or use the webbing in your hand more. Remember you should change position every so often.
Saddle
New riders like to find the widest most comfortable saddle (with the most padding). Just like they were sitting on the couch at home. Imagine wedging something really wide between your legs for hours and trying to walk around? not comfortable and neither is it for cycling. the idea of the saddle is to help provide a base of power for cycling and to help control the bike when not sitting on it. A wide saddle will interfere and eventually chafe. The other concept is the plushness of the saddle. The more padding that swishes around the more bunching and pressure points that this can cause on other areas. but to have a tiny racing saddle that is made of carbon fibre might be asking too much. So a reasonable width that will support your sit bones and allow free movement of your thighs is what I am talking about here. A sufficient amount of firm padding (hard in the store with your hands; but after miles on the road with your butt on it will make a huge difference)
Mountain bikers change their riding position a lot due to terrain so they can afford to have a more "comfortable" saddle. i use the WTB Speed V and the Laser V Team. And the WTB saddles are relatively cheap. my Speed V is an all synthetic saddle. I have found that regardless of the "love channel" or V-grove or cut-out in the middle of the saddle that it makes no real impact for me (your mileage may vary)
The Sit Bones play a vital role, the whole concept of cycling hinges on our ability to "toughen up" our sit bone area. Basically, this is the deadening of nerve endings where the sit bone area contacts the saddle. Doing then and then keeping them "dead" is what makes us able to ride more. How do we do this? First we ease ourselves in and then continue to ride, even for short periods to keep the pressure on those places. If you've been off the bike throughout the winter, your body will have to re-adjust all over again. This is not necessarily a bad thing; but it must be planned for. You may have to ride ever 2 days, since the next day would be very tender. You could also go the brute force route and just ride a 2hr ride 2 days in a row to help with the "deadening" of the nerves in your sit bone region.
On my road bike I have a Fizik Arione. It's nice and long and has long rails to accommodate a wide range of fore-aft positioning.
Women specific saddles are shorter and wider due to physiology.
Handlebars
Mountain bikers have thin palmed gloves to avoid bunching and pinching so some nice grips that afford grip and a level of comfort is nice; but too thick and you cannot get a full wrap of your fingers around the bars and you could easily lose grip when going over rough terrain. There are some that like ergon grips, they provide a nice flat area for your palm. some argue that the ergon grips reduce the amount of mobility you have on the bar when changing hand positions (like when you descend behind the saddle).
Road cyclists get a bar width that matches them first and then get tape to wrap around it. A cheap amount of extra padding is to get a second wrapping of tape. The hoods on the bars should be comfortable for both top of hood riding; but also allow you to reach the brake lever when in the drops. There are also gel pads that you can get to put under the tape to help alleviate pressure. But at the same time look at how you are leaning on the bar, maybe put more of your palm pad on or use the webbing in your hand more. Remember you should change position every so often.
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