Operation Ötztaler Cycle Marathon: Part 2 - Bikefitting
Many building blocks form the foundation for success on the long haul. An important one is the riding position. Sitting on the bike for ten hours or longer is a challenge in itself. Staying efficient until the end and facing the mountain with a powerful pedal is key, especially in the Ötztal Cycle Marathon.
Because, as we all know, the hammer comes at the end in the form of the Timmelsjoch. That's why Joe, who is preparing for the Ötztaler Cycle Marathon with TOUR, visited the bike fitting experts from Radlabor in Munich at the beginning of January to take stock.
Joe doesn't have any major complaints and is apparently sitting well on his bike. But there are always small problems. For example, Joe is not entirely happy with his shoes. "My feet are wider than normal. That's fine for a few hours, but then they start to burn," he admits.
He also broke his hip in a fall in 2014, which has lingering effects; one knee occasionally gives way, and his pedalling performance is not quite balanced either. His power meter shows that his left leg produces a few per cent less power. Joe also has a small question mark over his saddle and would like to try other models.
But first his bike goes under the laser. Bike fitter Uli Plaumann meticulously measures Joe's BMC. The saddle and hand position are recorded with millimetre precision and fed into the bike lab's database. The data is part of the inventory at the start of the bike fitting. Then Uli measures Joe's body. She feels the joint gaps, marks them with a felt-tip pen and marks the points with the measuring laser. The precise recording of the body data enables a comparison with the database and an initial recommendation for the seating position.
The comparison with the database shows the set seating position as the golden mean for a marathon bike. Not super-flat, but still sporty, so that there is plenty of pressure on the pedals. Another result: Joe's legs and arms are longer than usual for his height.
Ötztal Cycle Marathon - Good basis
The fitter then clamps the bike into a Smarttrainer and asks Joe to pedal it in his usual position in front of the measuring wall. A permanently installed video camera films his movements from the side. The background has a sophisticated grid that makes it easy to visually detect small deviations in position in all directions. Uli gives short, clear instructions on how Joe should step, looking at him from the side and from the front.
Joe sees himself on the monitor in front of him. "Watching yourself pedalling can be quite revealing," says Uli. After a few minutes, she gets a first impression: "The position is basically good, but I still notice a few things." She notices that Joe is sitting a little too far forward on the saddle. His legs are a little too stretched, his calf is too tense and the angle of his foot is too wide. "You're sitting too far back and therefore too high," says Uli to Joe.
It calls up the recorded seat data on the screen in front of the bike. We see the measured saddle and handlebar coordinates. The line below shows the recommendations of the Radlabor algorithm. It suggests moving the saddle one and a half centimetres forwards and shortening the seat length by 2.3 centimetres. The seat height should also be reduced by 5 millimetres. The machine and the consultant recommend similar measures.
Measurement technology is used to assess the saddle. The saddle pressure measuring foil from Gebiomised records the pressure distribution in the sensitive contact zone and processes the measurement graphically. "The saddle doesn't fit at all," the expert comments on the measurement image, "because the sit bones are not loaded at all." Instead, the saddle pressure is mainly absorbed by the soft tissue at the edges of the perforated saddle.
New saddle
Judging by the harsh judgement, Joe's riding experiences with the saddle were not so bad, after all he rode the Dolomite Marathon with it. But the measurement confirms what Joe already suspected. "The saddle is too narrow and falls off too quickly at the edges, which means you're stuck in the hollow at the front," analyses Uli and advises a wider model, as the measurement of Joe's sit bones showed a distance of 12.5 centimetres - above average for a man. An extra centimetre is added for the bent-forward racing bike position. The saddle should therefore be 14 centimetres wide. Uli recommends a corresponding step saddle from SQlab.
Using a line laser, we also see that Joe's legs don't walk exactly straight up and down, his knees deviate sideways. Uli suspects the cleat position is the cause and asks Joe to walk up and down barefoot. She then readjusts the angle of the cleats so that the toes are now pointing more outwards.
Another aha moment: Joe's feet are a good 1.5 centimetres wider than his previous insole. "I've tried a lot of shoes," reports Joe, "but there hasn't been one that fits properly yet." The bike lab doesn't stock shoes, but Uli advises him to try the extra-wide range from Lake.
With a new saddle that is slightly lower and further forward - Uli reduces the seat length a little more than suggested by the algorithm - and repositioned cleats, Joe takes a seat on his racer. Uli instructs him on how to sit on the SQlab saddle: "You have to slide backwards so that the sit bones are really supported. Memorise the position, preferably by feeling it with your fingers; your bottom should be flush with the saddle." In the beginning, Joe should always make sure that he is sitting far enough back to use the saddle efficiently. "After a period of familiarisation, you will automatically sit correctly," the fitter reports from her own experience.
In the new position, the legs remain looser and the calves are less tense. Uli advises not to angle the foot too much; the angle between the foot and lower leg should not be more than 95 degrees. The pressure measurement film shows that the new saddle is doing what it should: Now the sit bones carry the load. For long distances such as the Ötztaler Cycle Marathon, Uli advises a rather thin trouser pad, then the firm saddle can provide the best support.
The fitter is happy with the new position - except for the brake handle position. "The wrists bend a little because the grips are too low," analyses the expert. The solution: the grips are moved a little higher so that the handlebar curve merges flat into the brake lever. This also allows Joe to sit a little more upright.
Stone by stone
The procedure of measuring, analysing and adjusting took around an hour and a half, including detailed explanations - all in all a well-oiled process. The result: Joe now sits a little lower and shorter - and on a new saddle. "I feel comfortable like this and I'm already looking forward to the first climbs with the new position," he says. Uli wants to find out after two weeks whether the adjustments have had any effect. In any case, the adjustment has given us the confidence that we can tick off the position issue for the Ötztaler Cycle Marathon. So the next building block can get our full attention: Episode three will focus on nutrition.
Operation Ötztal Cycle Marathon
Summary of the fitting
- Cleats: Heels rotated inwards
- Recommendation for new shoes
- Saddle exchanged
- 6 millimetres less seat height
- 2.7 centimetres less seat length
- Brake levers mounted higher
