Perfect. This is typical measurement called “Saddle Setback” and exactly how I do it.
This does assume the same saddle is used for both bikes. If there is a different saddle, the functional location may differ a bit fore-aft depending on what I call your “home” position actually on the saddle.
This may be fine, but introduces a possible variable if the Bottom Bracket differs between the bikes. Likely going to be within 5mm or less difference, so ok.
But I recommend measuring from the center of the cranks to the saddle, along the center of the seat post to keep bb to saddle the same (again, assuming same saddle).
The other variable is the crank length, so if they differ at all, that may need a change up or down as a result.
Overall, that is a nice way to do it. The other half of the issue is reach and drop to the bars. But for most sessions, they can differ a fair bit without negatively impacting the training.
Yup, looks right to me.
One thought, make sure to use the “FE-C” if there is more than one option. It is usually the most stable connection mode.
Thanks. To answer your other point, 175 cranks on both but again small differences in measurements. I’ll just do some additional measurements (e.g. bb to seat) and adjust by feel, this week its looking like I only need to ride inside today and possibly tomorrow.
and if doing over I’d go for the e-motion rollers with floating fork. Because I think that provides even more realistic side-to-side seat motion. Haven’t been on the trainer in 8 months, will let you know if tonight’s ride changes that thought process.
Did an hour last night and happy I bought the InsideRide for my Kickr. That and using RGT in sim mode to virtually ride a course (Leuven Belgium). Next time I’ll take Zwift for a spin.
Interestingly Kickr/InsideRide with Erg/TR and my butt starts hurting after 45 minutes even when periodically standing every 5 minutes.
Sim mode is soooo much better than Erg. Even without the freely moving back wheel of rollers, using sim mode again makes me want to keep the current setup.
I need to DL RGT Cycling with their latest changes and give it a go. I keep reading some good comments about the riding and racing. I tried it maybe 2 years ago, and it was good in a lot of ways. Their 1st person view is awesome and the more realistic rendering meshes with my past in sim auto racing.
With difficulty set to 100%, just like in the real world hitting 9% on climbs during a recovery interval (130-16W target) were ‘check your ego at the door’ moments I prefer the new ‘only one app required’ approach but you can also use phone as controller. Looks like they rotate the free courses, yesterday it was Leuven, Templehof Airport, and Iron Horse Durango. Today Durango is premium and Cap Formentor has taken its place. Like the price for premium.
I have Ultegra R8000 cranks on my road bike (q factor of 146mm I believe) and XT cranks on my new Cutthroat (q factor of 176mm).
I sometimes get knee discomfort on the road bike that usually goes away if I really focus on form. I’m guessing if I’m getting a little lazy maybe there’s more lateral movement or something. This can happen even on shorter trainer rides.
On the other hand, I’ve ridden up to 2 hrs on the Cutthroat with wider cranks (same saddle height and seat position) and haven’t had a single knee issue.
I’m tall at 6’5" and use a 155-160mm saddle so I’m a little bigger than the average rider. Could q factor weigh into potential knee discomfort? I figure I could be a good candidate for Favero Duo Shi pedals with the additional q factor they require…but I promise my question isn’t only about justifying new bike stuff
Depending on the pedals / shoes you have, the first thing I would review is the lateral placement of the cleats on your road shoes.
If it’s not already the case, move the cleats on the road shoes to the inner most width setting (while preserving all other settings like rotation and fore-aft placement).
This will effectively shift your feet wider, to something closer to what you might have on the Cutty. Just remember that the basic rule that any change to the shoe/cleat leads to the opposite when clipped in and you will be good.
Additionally, if you need wider lateral spacing (officially called “Stance Width”) on the roadie, you can consider adding pedal washers between the pedals and your cranks. Depends on the pedal and crank, but you can commonly install 1 or 2 washers per side to gain several more mm’s of width. You just want to make sure that you have sufficient thread engagement between the spindle and crank.
Those can be a quick and cheap test, to see if further investment in wider pedal spindles may be beneficial.
Let us know what you find out. From my experience, stance width doesn’t matter for a ton of people, but for the ones where it does, it can make a BIG difference.
When I did have a bike fit maybe 5 months ago, the fitter did move the cleats all the way in to widen my stance. He never mentioned washers or needing pedals with extended spindles, but the primary reason for that fit was to try and sort out some toe pain issues. I don’t know if I mentioned the knee issue because it’s more or a discomfort or annoyance rather than a major issue if I can concentrate on my form.
I’ll give the spacers a try. If that doesn’t work, I might try some cheap spindle extenders but they seem to be 20mm each (on Amazon anyway). I can play with the cleats to get a similar stance and see how that works. I’ll do all this on the trainer just in case.
I have a bike fit which outside works perfectly and leaves me feeling fine after multi-hour road rides. However when transferring that same geometry to my indoor trainer I am offten left with a recurring saddle sore in the same spot and a lower back which tightens up after a few weeks of 3-4 sessions per week.
I suspect the lower back issue to be a consequence of poor core strength and possibly an excessive anterior pelvic tilt.
I have a few proposed ideas and checking in with the great and the good here for any advice/feedback/thoughts:
To renew my focus on strength training
To ride with some light lumbar support to encourage a neutral position, possibly only until I get stronger
Whenever a difference in experience exists between the same bike in 2 cases like this, it’s useful to identify any and all variables, which I think you have hit on for the most part. I do have one consideration that may relate to the low back issue, but it’s a guess.
I recommend that people try their indoor setup with the front axle a bit higher than the rear axle. The lack of motion, and any “pushback” that we experience as a result of wind resistance when outside leads to a different loading of our body on the bike, even if we have the “same” level axles as outside on a regular road.
As such, lifting the front end is a hack to replicate a bit of the weight distribution shift we get from wind resistance. Try as little as 0.5" [12mm] to over 1" [25mm] in some cases. I think I am closer to 0.75" [18mm] at the moment and it still feels good vs higher deltas I have run in the past.
I think the strength training is a win in any case and worth it no matter what. And I am all for a rocker, to promote some motion, shift in saddle pressure, and maybe make standing more comfortable to do more frequently. I firmly believe many of the indoor cycling ills we have is purely from locking into a seated position for far too long. Even without a rocker, standing should be done regularly IMO (like a break every 10 mins at a minimum).
I prefer the new ‘only one app required’ approach but you can also use phone as controller. Looks like they rotate the free courses, yesterday it was Leuven, Templehof Airport, and Iron Horse Durango. Today Durango is premium and Cap Formentor has taken its place. Like the price for premium.