thank you Art. I owned a 56cm Trek 1000 last year and even with angled-up
100mm stem it seemed a bit too long for me and I could never ride in the
drops (beyond 20-30 seconds?). Even on 56cm bike the bar seemed low but
could it have been because it was a bit too long for me?
Yuri: There's nothing wrong with using a stem shorter than 100mm (normally
called 10cm), and it's quite possible (even likely) that you may need a 56cm
Madone in order to get the handlebars high enough. The key is the drop from
seat to handlebar, and, naturally enough, on a 56cm the minimum drop is
going to be 2cm less than what can be accomplished on a 54cm.
The main reason for going to a smaller size is to keep the top tube length
in check, but this really shouldn't be guesswork. Where is the shop in this
process? How do they handle fits? If it's the sort of place where it's up to
the customer to decide what fits best, you might look elsewhere. There
should be somebody at the shop who knows more about fitting a road bike than
you do, and if not, as I said, keep looking. Getting properly fit is going
to be the biggest factor in determining how much you enjoy riding a bike.
So I am inclined to try 54cm. If I subtract my inseam (83cm) from overall
height of 173cm, it would mean torso length of 90cm, less head+neck,
right? Does this number lead to a preference - 56cm or 54cm Madone frame?
Unfortunately there are no 54cm test rides in Madone so I am going by
process of elimination here......
You don't have to ride a 54cm Madone to test the fit, as the Trek 5000, and
even the less-expensive road bikes (1500, 2100 etc) all have
nearly-identical geometries.
--Mike-- Chain Reaction Bicycles
www.ChainReactionBicycles.com
"Yuri Budilov" wrote in message
...
"Art Harris" wrote in message
ps.com...
Yuri Budilov wrote:
\
Top tube length should be determined by your torso and arm length. It's
not related to leg length.
Try riding the 54cm frame and the next larger size, and see which feels
better. The 2.5-inch clearance you mention is not unusual by today's
standards, although I personally prefer less. Just make sure you can
get the bars high enough.
thank you Art. I owned a 56cm Trek 1000 last year and even with angled-up
100mm stem it seemed a bit too long for me and I could never ride in the
drops (beyond 20-30 seconds?). Even on 56cm bike the bar seemed low but
could it have been because it was a bit too long for me?
So I am inclined to try 54cm. If I subtract my inseam (83cm) from overall
height of 173cm, it would mean torso length of 90cm, less head+neck,
right? Does this number lead to a preference - 56cm or 54cm Madone frame?
Unfortunately there are no 54cm test rides in Madone so I am going by
process of elimination here......