More upright riding position.

I don't have any advice for you but I'm just glad to know I'm not the
only person with this problem. I've been riding for just about 5 years
now and my neck bothers me after every ride. I've tried practically
every adjustment you can make on my bike to change my position ...
But the only position that feels "right" for riding is the one that
bothers my neck the most! lol
Maybe I just have a pencil neck! LOL

thetodd

cr113 said:

My neck bothers me when I ride. I have a Gary Fisher Sugar med (17in?)
bike. I'm 5' 10" and I have to put the seat all the way up so the
handle bars are relatively low. I added a delta stem riser and this
helps but now the the bars feel too close, high enough, but too close.
Plus the extender is fairly heavy. If I were to buy another bike, what
could I choose to get a more upright riding position?

I was thinking that a 19" frame might work. If I bought a 19" bike it
would have a longer head tube so the handle bars would be higher, but
the cockpit distance would also probably be too far. But I could
replace the long stem with a short stem to reduce the length without
reducing the height. I think this would only work with a non Gary
Fisher bike since Fisher bikes come with short stems already. Would
this be a good idea?

Todd Day said:

Maybe I just have a pencil neck! LOL

http://tinyurl.com/n47sm

--
o-o-o-o Ride-A-Lot o-o-o-o
www.schnauzers.ws

I used to ride a Fisher (SuperCal and Zuggrat) and I had the same
problem. I also used the riser to help the problem. It did help but to
really fix the problem I switched bikes. I ride a Jamis Dakar XLT and
it does put you in a more up-right riding position. The pro's of the
Jamis is my neck and back don't hurt anymore and the con's of the Jamis
is my climbing is not a good as it was with the Fisher. The trade off
of comfort to climbing is worth it.

cr113 said:

My neck bothers me when I ride. I have a Gary Fisher Sugar med (17in?)
bike. I'm 5' 10" and I have to put the seat all the way up so the
handle bars are relatively low. I added a delta stem riser and this
helps but now the the bars feel too close, high enough, but too close.
Plus the extender is fairly heavy. If I were to buy another bike, what
could I choose to get a more upright riding position?

I was thinking that a 19" frame might work. If I bought a 19" bike it
would have a longer head tube so the handle bars would be higher, but
the cockpit distance would also probably be too far. But I could
replace the long stem with a short stem to reduce the length without
reducing the height. I think this would only work with a non Gary
Fisher bike since Fisher bikes come with short stems already. Would
this be a good idea?

"but the cockpit distance would also probably be too far. But I could
replace the long stem with a short stem to reduce the length without
reducing the height."

congradulations, you just described "genisis geometry"

on my sugar, I use a Salsa Moto Ace stem, it is short (70 or 80 mm) and
has a 30' rise, which results in a much more up-right position. this
does make the front end a little light on climbs, but you get used to
it. you could also replace the riser bar with one with more rise for
better fore and aft adjusment.
or trade it in on a santa cruz superlight.

also make sure the seat is not up too high

Your bike is WAAAAAAY to small!!!!!. You will never get comfortable.
Try a 19 or 20" bike and report back.

Per cr113:

Quoted message said:

I added a delta stem riser and this
helps but now the the bars feel too close, high enough, but too close.

Are you using flat bars? If so, switching to risers (I think 1.5" rise is
about the max for "real" bars) on you next (larger...) frame may help because it
gives you the ability to fine-tune the cockpit length by rotating the bars fore
and aft.
--
PeteCresswell

as the OP said he was 5'10" but didn't mention l=inside leg
measurements unless he's a freak I'd say 17" is spot on, a 20" would be
waaaay to big.

Check the geometry from various manufacturers, not all increase the
headtube length with frame size. Fit some riser bars/ higher rise stem
/ spacers under your stem next time.

cr113 said:

My neck bothers me when I ride. I have a Gary Fisher Sugar med (17in?)
bike. I'm 5' 10" and I have to put the seat all the way up so the
handle bars are relatively low. I added a delta stem riser and this
helps but now the the bars feel too close, high enough, but too close.
Plus the extender is fairly heavy. If I were to buy another bike, what
could I choose to get a more upright riding position?

I was thinking that a 19" frame might work. If I bought a 19" bike it
would have a longer head tube so the handle bars would be higher, but
the cockpit distance would also probably be too far. But I could
replace the long stem with a short stem to reduce the length without
reducing the height. I think this would only work with a non Gary
Fisher bike since Fisher bikes come with short stems already. Would
this be a good idea?

Your neck is directly connected to your shoulders. As your arms
fatigue, your neck will soon follow.
One place to look is at your bars. They may be too wide for you. Some
alternate hand positions provided by bar ends may help too.
A part of the solution is based on consciously keeping your arms and
shoulders relaxed. Correct bike geometry would help this, but you still
need to be aware of your body. Are your arms locked? Is your neck
drooping between your shoulders? Are you stiffening up when you're
about to take a hit, or loosening and absorbing?
/s

Scott Gordo said:

cr113 said:

My neck bothers me when I ride. I have a Gary Fisher Sugar med
(17in?) bike. I'm 5' 10" and I have to put the seat all the way up
so the handle bars are relatively low. I added a delta stem riser
and this helps but now the the bars feel too close, high enough, but
too close. Plus the extender is fairly heavy. If I were to buy
another bike, what could I choose to get a more upright riding
position?

I was thinking that a 19" frame might work. If I bought a 19" bike it
would have a longer head tube so the handle bars would be higher, but
the cockpit distance would also probably be too far. But I could
replace the long stem with a short stem to reduce the length without
reducing the height. I think this would only work with a non Gary
Fisher bike since Fisher bikes come with short stems already. Would
this be a good idea?

Your neck is directly connected to your shoulders. As your arms
fatigue, your neck will soon follow.
One place to look is at your bars. They may be too wide for you. Some
alternate hand positions provided by bar ends may help too.
A part of the solution is based on consciously keeping your arms and
shoulders relaxed. Correct bike geometry would help this, but you
still need to be aware of your body. Are your arms locked? Is your
neck drooping between your shoulders? Are you stiffening up when
you're about to take a hit, or loosening and absorbing?
/s

Also, try taking the visor off your helmet. (Two assumptions there.)
Sometimes that little "looking angle" makes a big difference in terms of
head position.

Bill "not responsible for any skin cancer resulting from this post" S.

Sorni said:

Also, try taking the visor off your helmet. (Two assumptions there.)
Sometimes that little "looking angle" makes a big difference in terms of
head position.

I did that several years ago and you're right it does make a big
difference. I now have a helmet that fits better so I leave the visor
on. The key is whether you can see your visor when your helmet is on.
If you can see it, it is forcing you to tilt your head up more than
necessary.

Andy R. said:

I used to ride a Fisher (SuperCal and Zuggrat) and I had the same
problem. I also used the riser to help the problem. It did help but to
really fix the problem I switched bikes. I ride a Jamis Dakar XLT and
it does put you in a more up-right riding position. The pro's of the
Jamis is my neck and back don't hurt anymore and the con's of the Jamis
is my climbing is not a good as it was with the Fisher. The trade off
of comfort to climbing is worth it.

I'm way past trying to maximize performance. I need comfort all the way!

spademan o---) * said:

as the OP said he was 5'10" but didn't mention l=inside leg
measurements unless he's a freak I'd say 17" is spot on, a 20" would be
waaaay to big.

I wear pants with a 30" inseam. I don't really know if that is normal
for a 5' 10" person or not. All I know is that when my seat is properly
adjusted, it is about a half inch below the max line on the seat post.
It's basically all the way up. That doesn't seem like a good thing to
me. I'm raising the seat up a foot but there's no similar adjustment on
the handle bars. Also I think my arms are short for my height.

"cr113" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

spademan o---) * said:

as the OP said he was 5'10" but didn't mention l=inside leg
measurements unless he's a freak I'd say 17" is spot on, a 20" would be
waaaay to big.

I wear pants with a 30" inseam. I don't really know if that is normal
for a 5' 10" person or not. All I know is that when my seat is properly
adjusted, it is about a half inch below the max line on the seat post.
It's basically all the way up. That doesn't seem like a good thing to
me. I'm raising the seat up a foot but there's no similar adjustment on
the handle bars. Also I think my arms are short for my height.

I have the same issue, 5'9" and 30" inseam. I went to a large frame and it
help considerably plus I got the advantage of not going OTB as much.....I
just wish it would have helped that time in December.....

Gary

You know little of bike sizing or have fallen into the "low 'bars are
racer cool" camp. For comfort the bars need to be level or slightly
below the saddle. I am 5'10 or 11 and a 17" bike would have my neck
and shoulders scrunched and all the weight would be on my hands. The
smartest thing would be to go to a well stocked bike shop and try
different sized bikes of the same maker.

"cr113" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

My neck bothers me when I ride. I have a Gary Fisher Sugar med (17in?)
bike. I'm 5' 10" and I have to put the seat all the way up so the
handle bars are relatively low. I added a delta stem riser and this
helps but now the the bars feel too close, high enough, but too close.
Plus the extender is fairly heavy. If I were to buy another bike, what
could I choose to get a more upright riding position?

I was thinking that a 19" frame might work. If I bought a 19" bike it
would have a longer head tube so the handle bars would be higher, but
the cockpit distance would also probably be too far. But I could
replace the long stem with a short stem to reduce the length without
reducing the height. I think this would only work with a non Gary
Fisher bike since Fisher bikes come with short stems already. Would
this be a good idea?

Best advice you've gotten so far, imo, is to go try out other
configurations. 17" sounds a little small, and whether you have a long or
short stem, riser or flat bar, etc., all depend on your riding style, frame
size, including top tube, inseam length, torso, typical ride terrain. For
example, a shorter stem will often set you more upright, less apt to go OTB,
but you'll lose some control on steep climbs without weight over the front
wheel.

I guess my recommendation is find somebody really sharp, like a good bike
mechanic who's been riding and <gasp> even racing for several years, and
have him (or her) look at you on the bike and give their feedback. I can
often tell intuitively when something looks right, and when it doesn't, and
I don't know anything.

CDB

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Quoted message said:

You know little of bike sizing or have fallen into the "low 'bars are
racer cool" camp. For comfort the bars need to be level or slightly
below the saddle. I am 5'10 or 11 and a 17" bike would have my neck
and shoulders scrunched and all the weight would be on my hands. The
smartest thing would be to go to a well stocked bike shop and try
different sized bikes of the same maker.

That's what I need to do. I need to get scientific about this. I'm
going to ask the shop if I can rent or borrow some different sized used
bikes to test.

I really want to try a 19" bike and put a shorter upward angled stem on
it. I'll bet that would work.

Dont be too quick to go shorter. On a larger bike use what you have and
see if you can get the bars about as high as the seat. You dont want
to shorten the reach unless necessary. Riser bars help a lot