As the premier provider of professional bike fitting in Melbourne, we learn a lot from our clients and have a lot of stories to share. One important thing to consider is that bike fits are for everyone, not just professionals. We all have something to gain from focusing on our position and equipment with a professional for a few hours and looking for ways to ride stronger, longer, and in greater comfort. Here are a few people that have had fits with us...
Justine M. - Female, 51yrs old.
Road biker with six+ years riding experience.
Bike: Liv Giant road bike
As Justine was increasing her time on the bike, advice from friends was telling her that a bike fit would be a good investment. She was not experiencing any major pain or discomfort, except for a little stiff back on longer rides. Her husband got her a gift card from us to spend on a bike fit and we scheduled her in.
"I found the whole process well-organized and professional, asking specific questions and history prior to the physical fit. Adjustments were made several times [on the Guru machine] until we got it right. I purchased a new saddle and footbeds [arch support] which has made my subsequent rides more enjoyable. I felt comfortable asking many questions and found the whole fit very interesting. I would recommend Urban Pedaler to anyone wanting a bike fit"
We found during the pre-fit assessment that Justine had significant arch collapse under load and that her original saddle did not support her sitbones properly. Her saddle position was optimised to give her the most power, the reach to the bars adjusted slightly for comfort on long distances, we added arch support for better hip-knee-foot alignment in the pedal stroke and with a new saddle she was all better.
____________________________________________________________
Tim Mcbride - Male,
Road biker, indoor cyclist, and aspiring Ironman with 6+ years experience
Bikes - Cannondale Supersix and a Trek Speed Concept triathlon bike
Tim has about 5 years experience, road riding exclusively and has plans to embark on a couple triathlons leading into a Half-Ironman in the next 10 months. During lockdown he took up Zwift and indoor cycling. He started experiencing some discomfort in the saddle, numb hands and cramps in the feet. He decided to hit up Dr. Google for solutions. Recommendations to get a proper bike fit kept coming up so he googled bike fitting and found us.
"When I got home [after the fit] and put the bike on the trainer I noticed that I no longer get numbness in my hands and I'm far more comfortable in the saddle; so the reasons I went to get a fit were solved. The overall experience has given me a lot more knowledge about proper fitting. I would say that a bike fit is essential to anyone experiencing discomfort. The team at Urban Pedaler are experienced and helpful and I would highly recommend them." - Tim
A couple months later he came back for a complimentary follow up appointment after his first event and we worked through some challenges with his hamstrings after long periods in the drops. He's now upgraded to a proper triathlon bike and has come back to get a Triathlon fit which is an evolution of his road bike fit that adapts to his new bike and specific triathlon position. We will continue to offer Tim advice and assistance as he evolves in his riding and his equipment changes.
_________________________________________________________
Mick Scott - Male, 55 yrs old
Mountain biker, indoor cyclist, gravel and a bit of road riding,15 yrs experience
Bikes: Cannondale Fsi hardtail, Scalpel dual suspension, Supersix road bike and brand new Topstone Carbon Lefty gravel bike
Mick is a long time mountain biker who started with the Otways Classic in 2008 and leans towards endurance mountain bike events including: 70x 6hr races, 5x 12hr races, and 1x 24hr solo and a regular in the Vic Enduro series. He also has been a regular leader of the Urban Pedaler Wednesday Lysterfield Nightride for eight years and running. His new gravel bike will be replacing his hardtail for his main training bike.
I looked into getting a bike fit because one of my riding buddies had observed that both of my feet were pointing about 3 degrees to the left when pedaling and I was having pain in the inside of my left knee and lower back. I had got a bikefit about 6 years ago for my dual suspension bike and the end results were that I felt better on the bike and produced more power. Bikes and equipment have changed and I’ve also gotten a bit older so I needed another fit. I have had 3 rides since the bike fit, I can honestly say from my first ride I have had no knee pain whatsoever and my back has been fine. I’m sure if I have any concerns with anything I can book a follow up and the guys will sort it out for me. Overall the whole experience of the bike fit was a very enjoyable process, so I could not recommended this highly enough. - Mick
