Bike Fit #3, Bike n.5

Like busses as they say ... you wait 5 years and then 2 bike fits come along in as many weeks! But why so soon, when the Venge fit was such a success just a few weeks ago?

Yes, bike n.5 has been acquired. Having made it known to my cycling buddies that I may be in the market for something more suitable to ride next year's Time Trials, I was pointed to a couple of cycle buy and sell FaceBook pages. Deja Vu the Venge purchase, as what should appear on my screen during a random browse ... a Specialized TT bike. It was not the new Shiv with the eye watering 5 digit price tag but a model I had not previously come across. It was a bike frame called the Transition, and advertised for not only a "come and buy me" price hard to ignore, but more amazingly it was for sale in North Devon and in my size!

25th August 2019 bike n.5

The die was truly cast. Another day trip west was planned and the outcome mirrored that experienced with the Venge almost 4 years ago, I handed over the crisp notes in payment and loaded the bright red, Specialized Transition Pro into the bike transporter!

Being a total TT bike novice, in the extreme, I didn't dare test drive it; to have fallen off would have been very bad form! So, the first thing I had to do .. well after renewing the bar tape, fitting some pedals and changing the saddle .. was to get a proper bike fit and thus back to Tony at Tribe Cycle Solutions I went.

When I had my first ever bike fit, the technician confirmed that on a flexibility scale of 1-10, I was probably close to zero, therefore, getting into a most unnatural superman position, while pedalling at the same time, felt as alien to me as the visitor from Krypton must have been to the people of Smallville!

At least, however, I now know how this craft should be flown and my plan now is to hit the turbo as many week day evenings as possible through the winter in a vain attempt to mould myself into the personified TT superman, I need to be to ride this thing faster than the Venge in next year's events. Oh my!

Bike Fit #2

It's hard to believe that it was 5 years ago that I had my first and only bike fit. This was the day that I picked up my new shiny Specialized Tarmac, bike n.3, from the Bike Shed in Exeter. My cycling and riding position has improved considerably since then and on reflection, I probably need another fitting as my body has taken on a more pro cycling form .. in my head anyway!

But this was not the reason for me heading over to Tribe Cycle Solutions in Bovey Tracy last Friday with Clive, my fellow Pedaller and recent time trial coach. The shots of me participating in the recent local TTs, sitting in a way more like I'm out on a gentle Saturday club run than in the aero tuck required of a time trial, has made me think of purchasing a dedicated TT machine or at least look to convert my Venge into one. The visit to Tribe was therefore to assess the suitability of the Venge and fit my self into a more aero position for the 2020 season.

After a day's pure bike pampering in a sweaty room behind a quite idilic cycling cafe on the edge of Dartmoor, I now have the Venge in a much more, power, aero and comfort maximised setup. Since I purchased the Venge, it has always been a challenging bike to ride; so stiff, so compact and skittish. Now I feel I have the measure of it and may be will save the ££££ in upgrading or purchasing a new and give 2020's TTs a blast with this new setup.

You'll have to keep tuned to see if this happens, or whether the n+1 card is played, as I can't believe it's close to 4 years since bike n.4 joined the family!