Sandy said:"Harry" <[email hidden]> a écrit dans le message de :
news:[email hidden]...
Quoted message said:I have two questions:
1) Is there a seatpost that would enable me to move my saddle forward
some 3"? My present seatpost has a slight setback and changing to a
straight one would gain me only about 1".
2) What might be the consequences of riding like this for a limited
time, say up to 6 months?
Harry -
How did you get this bike in the first place ?
We purchased the bike from a "reputable" tandem dealer. Why do I say
"reputable?" Imagine that you would have to travel hundreds of miles
to find the _nearest_ bike store that had any bikes at all. And that
the dealer (and you) know that the next closest dealer is a whole
day's drive away. And that you don't even know anyone personally who
rides a bike and that you haven't ever seen a bike in your city. And
that the last time you rode a bike was some 30 years ago. And that the
dealer's inventory of bikes that "fit" you (remember, you need to have
the bike fit two people) is limited to a "basic" model of $2000, and
the next one at $3500, and the next one at $5000 and so on. Oh yes, he
even has a demo (for highly experienced tandemists only) which retails
for $12,500.
This particular dealer regularly goes to Interbike, is active in the
tandem discussion groups, has a web site, has been in the business a
couple of decades, has his own 30+ page print catalog, and often has
his name mentioned when one asks, "Where can I go to purchase a good
quality tandem in (fill in the blank) part of the country?" So, for a
newbie like me he sounded like a reputable dealer. The fact that he
sold us a bike which is a gross mismatch for us indicates that someone
like me, with no experience, ended up with a dealer who apparently was
more concerned about profit than the needs of his customer.
Quoted message said:
I read several replies, all of which are trying to be helpful putting you in
a good position where the three points of contact will fit you.
But the bike is terrible for you, and you know it. The idea of having a
bike is to enjoy riding it, not to do a Rube Goldberg and achieve
theoretical goals. You're never going to enjoy time on this bike, not even
with all the possible accommodations. Where your body is on the bike, given
all these substitutions, is still going to be a disaster in terms of actual
use. Maybe you could dedicate it (still doubtful) to a home trainer.
So, AMHA, stop wasting your money on gimmicks and non-fixes. Talk to your
personal Santa Claus (perhaps yourself) and spring for something that fits
properly. We all would rather see you with a smile on your face, rather
than yet another gimmick to tinker with. Really - it's about having fun.
You are absolutely correct: the bike is a terrible fit and I've
recently realized it. However, we have spent a sizable sum of money
(at least sizable for our modest budget) on this bike and we had
expected that it would provide us with many years of pleasure. The
realization that we can't make this bike work for us has been rather
painful - and not just physically.
At this point I'm not even sure how to progress. A custom built tandem
will probably set us back a minimum of $4000 - and we won't even be
able to ride one that fits prior to purchasing it! And since it would
be a custom sized frame for a rather oddly proportioned captain, the
resale value (if we make another mistake) would be zilch. Regardless
of how far we're willing to travel, no one will have a tandem (or
single bike) that we can test ride which will fit us. Hence my initial
question about what I can do to ride this present bike as comfortably
as possible while I try to figure out what to do.
HarryB
