Effect of height on ability to ride a road bicycle?

Bruce W.1 said:

Does a person's height affect their ability to ride a road/touring
bicycle?

I know a short guy (about 5' tall) that would enjoy riding with our
group, but he's concerned about his height being a disadvantage. He's
in good physical condition and not overweight.

On one hand a short person has less weight to push. On the other hand,
the world is relatively larger. The constant here is wheel size (27"😉.

Does a person's height affect their riding ability?

Thanks for your help.

Cycling is one of those great sports where size isn't really an issue.
People of all sizes can be good, and certainly can enjoy cycling.
Cardio-vascular fitness and weight are much more significant for a
cyclist's ability to maintain a given speed.

If you live anywhere that is particularly hilly our mountainous, your
friend would probably have a distinct advantage over larger folks, and
if you live somehwere flat, he won't be at a particular disadvantage,
and will be able to draft if neccessary.

In the hills it's power-to-weight ratio that matters. This generally
favors smaller and thus lighter folks who, while flat terrain is a
question of power to frontal area and thus wind resistance. This tends
to favor larger and heavier (muscle mass, not fat!) folks who generate
much more power but only have marginally more resistance.

5" is short but not abnormal. He'll need to make sure he gets a bike
that fits well, but that shouldn't be too difficult. In the beginning
it will be conditioning that is his weak point. He should not think
this has anything to do with his size. It is just from being a
beginner.

Cycling is a sports where he as a small person has the potential to
dominate particularly in the hills in ways that may not be possible in
other sports where larger is better.

Joseph

Quoted message said:

5" is short but not abnormal.

for Tom Thumb.

Bruce W.1 said:

Does a person's height affect their ability to ride a road/touring
bicycle?

I know a short guy (about 5' tall) that would enjoy riding with our
group, but he's concerned about his height being a disadvantage. He's
in good physical condition and not overweight.

On one hand a short person has less weight to push. On the other hand,
the world is relatively larger. The constant here is wheel size (27"😉.

Does a person's height affect their riding ability?

Physiology does matter at championship levels, but not at recreational.
5' may be on the shorter sized for a guy, but not for females and there
surely are many bikes right for them or for younger / shorter males who
are serious about competition.

Like all of us, bike fit is vital for him and conditioning will be his
first and only high hurdle (that he doesn't make for himself). Just make
sure his frame and components fit him well. If you stick this guy on a
54 cm bike and figure to lower the seat enough to let him reach the
pedals, he'll me miserable. You'll also be doing a disservice to your
buddy. Give the guy a reasonable shot at success and you may find that
he's found his lifelong sport.

-paul

Paul Cassel said:

Quoted message said:

5" is short but not abnormal.

for Tom Thumb.

I hope nobody reads this out of context...

Quoted message said:

5" is short but not abnormal. He'll need to make sure he gets a bike that fits well, but that shouldn't be too difficult.

Well, 5" would definitely be a problem! But even at 5 feet, the biggest
problem is going to be finding a small enough frame that doesn't have
a weird geometry. A frame with 650c wheels would be an option, but that
has drawbacks as well, in limited wheel/tire choices.

But a short rider shouldn't be at a disadvantage when riding, except
possibly when descending or riding into a headwind.

Art Harris

dvt said:

Bruce W.1 said:

Does a person's height affect their ability to ride a road/touring
bicycle?

I know a short guy (about 5' tall) that would enjoy riding with our
group, but he's concerned about his height being a disadvantage. He's
in good physical condition and not overweight.

Quoted message said:

The shortest TdF rider was 5'2". There's no reason to expect that a 5'
guy would be at a significant disadvantage to a taller rider, all else
being equal.

All else being equal, a smaller rider would be at a disadvantage to a
larger rider. "All other things being equal" means equivalently
proportional conditioning, body fat ratio, cardiovascular capacity,
etc. The larger person will have a bigger engine and put out more
horsepower, more than offsetting the greated air resistance. It's that
simple. The smaller person will not begin to have an advantage until
the road goes significantly uphill.

I would say let the guy ride and see how he does- he might make up for
his size with better conditioning than at least some of the others in
the group- if he is able to ride with everyone else on the flats, it is
essentially because he is proportionately stronger. Be prepared to cut
him some slack, if he needs it and will accept it.

He might want to look into a bike that is built extra lightly to take
advantage of his lighter weight, if he hasn't done it already.

Bruce W.1 said:

Does a person's height affect their ability to ride a road/touring
bicycle?

No.

Quoted message said:

I know a short guy (about 5' tall) that would enjoy riding with our
group, but he's concerned about his height being a disadvantage. He's
in good physical condition and not overweight.

On one hand a short person has less weight to push. On the other
hand, the world is relatively larger. The constant here is wheel
size (27"😉.

Does a person's height affect their riding ability?

No.

Quoted message said:

Thanks for your help.

YW.

Quoted message said:

dvt said:

Bruce W.1 said:

Does a person's height affect their ability to ride a road/touring
bicycle?

I know a short guy (about 5' tall) that would enjoy riding with our
group, but he's concerned about his height being a disadvantage. He's
in good physical condition and not overweight.

Quoted message said:

The shortest TdF rider was 5'2". There's no reason to expect that a 5'
guy would be at a significant disadvantage to a taller rider, all else
being equal.

Quoted message said:

All else being equal, a smaller rider would be at a disadvantage to a
larger rider. "All other things being equal" means equivalently
proportional conditioning, body fat ratio, cardiovascular capacity,
etc. The larger person will have a bigger engine and put out more
horsepower, more than offsetting the greated air resistance. It's that
simple. The smaller person will not begin to have an advantage until
the road goes significantly uphill.

Joseph already mentioned the fact that smaller, lighter riders are at a
disadvantage in some situations. And that larger riders are at a
disadvantage in other situations. In the long run (i.e. many rides in
varying conditions), the net effect will not be significant.

--
Dave
dvt at psu dot edu

My wife is 5' 105lbs and is quite a strong rider. Especially fast on assents
and remarkably fast on decents with a great tuck on the aerobars. On the flats
she gets a great draft from everyone, and no one wants to draft her🙂 Well
actually they do as she is quite attractive, but I try to discourage that🙂 In
a pace line she can keep up with much stronger riders as her drafting is much
more complete than most of ours. When leading the pace line her turn is usually
short as the guys want to go faster, so it works out well

The problem with a small light rider is that their bicycle weight is a much
higher percentage of the overall weight of rider and bike.. About the only way
you can reduce the weight of the bike for a smaller rider is the frame and
wheels, as everything else is the same. I weigh 185lbs, and we can only get her
bike less than a pound lighter than mine. You can obviously use the lightest
frame and wheels you can find as small light rider can't hurt them no matter
how they ride.

I think that 650C wheels are definitely the way to go. It keeps things in
porportion and helps the toe-front wheel overlap problem. This small a frame
for men might be a problem as the smaller women's frames are ususaly set up for
longer legs and shorter torsos, whereas most shorter men have the opposite
condition.

Their is a wide selection of both wheels and tires for them as they are quite
popular with tri's and time trialists. I have found a great selection and
prices better than 700c's on eBay. She always carrys two tubes on the road, but
as Jobst pointed out in another thread you can use a larger tube if necessary.

Hope this helps, Bob

Bruce W.1 said:

Does a person's height affect their ability to ride a road/touring
bicycle?

I know a short guy (about 5' tall) that would enjoy riding with our
group, but he's concerned about his height being a disadvantage. He's
in good physical condition and not overweight.

On one hand a short person has less weight to push. On the other hand,
the world is relatively larger. The constant here is wheel size (27"😉.

Does a person's height affect their riding ability?

Thanks for your help.

Bill Sornson said:

Bruce W.1 said:

Does a person's height affect their ability to ride a road/touring
bicycle?

No.

Quoted message said:

I know a short guy (about 5' tall) that would enjoy riding with our
group, but he's concerned about his height being a disadvantage. He's
in good physical condition and not overweight.

On one hand a short person has less weight to push. On the other
hand, the world is relatively larger. The constant here is wheel
size (27"😉.

Does a person's height affect their riding ability?

No.

Quoted message said:

Thanks for your help.

YW.

Do the math: see what happens to the volume of muscle or lung capacity
when you increase all three dimensions by 20%.

It's not really fair to suggest that a shorter person, on average, is
not at a physical disadvantage with taller people unless bicycling
uphill, where they do have a special advantage. For a given heart rate
they will not be able to put out the same watts, and their riding style
should aim to take advantage of their strengths, on the hills, and
minimize their disadvantages, by drafting when not climbing, as was
implied in the first response to the OP. It _does_ affect their riding
ability, both positively and negatively.

dvt said:

Joseph already mentioned the fact that smaller, lighter riders are at a
disadvantage in some situations. And that larger riders are at a
disadvantage in other situations. In the long run (i.e. many rides in
varying conditions), the net effect will not be significant.

Actually he _didn't_ say that smaller lighter riders are at a
disadvantage in some situations, although it was implied if you knew
how to read between the lines. What I am trying to do here is clarify
the effect of height. What I took away from this thread until I butted
in is that the shorter person doen't really have anything to be
concerned about, when, in fact, there may be issues. It is better to
understand what those issues are in advance and be prepared for them
rather than pretend they don't exist and will just even out in the long
run. The possibility that it might even out in the long run doesn't
mean that it will even out on any given ride.

The poster who discusses riding with his wife has some good practical
advice on how to deal with the differences.

Quoted message said:

Actually he _didn't_ say that smaller lighter riders are at a
disadvantage in some situations, although it was implied if you knew
how to read between the lines.

I disagree. Here is the quote:

Quoted message said:

[riding on] flat terrain is a
question of power to frontal area and thus wind resistance. This tends
to favor larger and heavier (muscle mass, not fat!) folks who generate
much more power but only have marginally more resistance.

--
Dave
dvt at psu dot edu

In article said:

I disagree. Here is the quote:

Quoted message said:

[riding on] flat terrain is a
question of power to frontal area and thus wind resistance. This tends
to favor larger and heavier (muscle mass, not fat!) folks who generate
much more power but only have marginally more resistance.

There's big difference between height (the original question) and weight.
For example certain tall skinny Tour de France racers are fantastic climbers,
but terrible on the flats and downhills.

Bruce W.1 said:

Does a person's height affect their riding ability?

With proper frame size selection, no. A bike that is a poor fit will
hinder the rider regardless of their height.
--
Typoes are a feature, not a bug.
Some gardening required to reply via email.
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In article <[email hidden]>,

Art Harris said:

Quoted message said:

5" is short but not abnormal. He'll need to make sure he gets a bike that fits well, but

that shouldn't be too difficult.

Well, 5" would definitely be a problem! But even at 5 feet, the biggest
problem is going to be finding a small enough frame that doesn't have
a weird geometry. A frame with 650c wheels would be an option, but that
has drawbacks as well, in limited wheel/tire choices.

_ A surly long haul trucker in the shorter sizes comes with
559 wheels. Sounds ideal for this rider IMHO. Lot's of
choices there for touring compatible wheels and tires.

_ Booker C. Bense

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dvt said:

Quoted message said:

Actually he _didn't_ say that smaller lighter riders are at a
disadvantage in some situations, although it was implied if you knew
how to read between the lines.

I disagree. Here is the quote:

Quoted message said:

[riding on] flat terrain is a
question of power to frontal area and thus wind resistance. This tends
to favor larger and heavier (muscle mass, not fat!) folks who generate
much more power but only have marginally more resistance.

but it was obscured by this:

"and if you live somehwere flat, he won't be at a particular
disadvantage, and will be able to draft if neccessary."

Like I said, I wanted to make sure everyone here was communicating.

C said:

There's big difference between height (the original question) and
weight. For example certain tall skinny Tour de France racers are
fantastic climbers, but terrible on the flats and downhills.

True. My original post, which was disputed by someone else, said this:

dvt said:

There's no reason to expect that a 5' guy would be at a significant
disadvantage to a taller rider, all else being equal.

Your contention is covered in the "all else being equal" phrase.

The rhetorical wrangling in this thread has tired me out.

--
Dave
dvt at psu dot edu

Quoted message said:

Bill Sornson said:

Bruce W.1 said:

Does a person's height affect their ability to ride a road/touring
bicycle?

No.

Quoted message said:

I know a short guy (about 5' tall) that would enjoy riding with our
group, but he's concerned about his height being a disadvantage.
He's in good physical condition and not overweight.

On one hand a short person has less weight to push. On the other
hand, the world is relatively larger. The constant here is wheel
size (27"😉.

Does a person's height affect their riding ability?

No.

Quoted message said:

Thanks for your help.

YW.

Do the math: see what happens to the volume of muscle or lung capacity
when you increase all three dimensions by 20%.

It's not really fair to suggest that a shorter person, on average, is
not at a physical disadvantage with taller people unless bicycling
uphill, where they do have a special advantage. For a given heart rate
they will not be able to put out the same watts, and their riding
style should aim to take advantage of their strengths, on the hills,
and minimize their disadvantages, by drafting when not climbing, as
was implied in the first response to the OP. It _does_ affect their
riding ability, both positively and negatively.

Oh, [censored]-[censored]-ee-doop. I've known more than one "bantam rooster"-type guys
who kick ass on bikes. Math, watts, VO2s be damned; fit is fit and strong
is strong.

OP: tell your friend he'll do fine on group rides.

Sheesh.

In article <[email hidden]>,
[email hidden] says...

Quoted message said:

Does a person's height affect their ability to ride a road/touring
bicycle?
I know a short guy (about 5' tall) that would enjoy riding with our
group, but he's concerned about his height being a disadvantage. He's
in good physical condition and not overweight.
On one hand a short person has less weight to push. On the other hand,
the world is relatively larger. The constant here is wheel size (27"😉.
Does a person's height affect their riding ability?

5' is not a problem. Just make sure they get a bike that is the right size for
them.
------------
Alex