Professional mountain bikers have known for decades the benefits of a proper bike fit. It’s worth the extra time to make sure that your bike and body are perfectly matched. We have bike fitters that are legendary, mostly because they are current or former racers themselves and understand every nuance of the bike fitting process.
Jans Expert | Park City, UT | Photo: Ross DownardWhat’s the difference between a “race fit” and a regular bike fit? A race fit is geared towards someone who trains and competes frequently and is willing to sacrifice a bit of comfort in favor of a more effective power transfer from body to bike. That said, we don’t like to put riders in a box. We simply give you a customized fit to match your specific needs.
When you walk into the Jans Fit Lab, the first step is to get to know you, as a rider. What are you looking to do: Enduro racing, serious uphill grunts or highly technical races laden with rock gardens and tight switchbacks? How much do you ride? Next, we assess your flexibility. Our bike fitters simply want to know where your body is coming from, so we can determine the proper alignment of your bike to your body.
Before you get on your bike, we ask you to walk around so we can look at your feet and determine whether you walk toe-out or toe-in. This dictates rotationally how we set the cleat. If you walk toe-out, we will rotate the cleat so it lets the heel come in. The foot needs to be in a neutral position to alleviate any knee or ankle problems.
Our bike fitters then measure your metatarsals to determine the center of your foot. Starting with the first metatarsal, we make a mark on the ball of your foot and then slope back towards your little toe until we determine the middle of all five metatarsals. Then we set the cleat on your bike shoe, centered over the bulk of your foot.
Next we have you hop on the bike to see how it feels. The idea is for your pedals to have equal degrees of float after the cleat has been positioned. We’ve found that riders clip in easier after having their cleats aligned properly. It’s more of a natural movement since you’re not searching for the cleat.
Seat position is comprised of three elements: seat height, fore and aft of the saddle and levelness. In combination, these factors affect everything from leg extension to proper knee alignment. If not dialed in correctly, you won’t have all the power that you should.
Using a plumb bob, we’ll determine a starting point for the fore and aft of the saddle and then adjust the seat accordingly. Next, we level your saddle to ensure that your sitting bones are on the fattest part of the seat, giving you the most efficient pedal stroke and skeletal support. Sitting too far back means you use too much hamstring while sitting too far forward means you use more of your quads
Once the seat position is set, we determine the reach and height of your handlebar. Again, a trusty plumb bob hung from your elbow, shows us the location of your elbow in relation to your knee. For XC racers or when the course is not as technical, hand position is usually set to the same height as the saddle. More technical racing requires a hand position above the saddle so the rider is even more upright for more efficient climbing and faster descents.
We adjust handlebar position using three key adjustments: spacers, bar rises and stem length. Since steer tubes on new bikes include two-to-three spacers under the stem, we can adjust your handlebar 3 – 4 centimeters, depending on your needs. To ensure riders are properly positioned, we often move these spacers in combination with changing the handlebar itself. Last, we check the stem length which dictates your reach on the bike. If necessary, we help you choose a stem which is shorter or longer to ensure your optimal reach.
Shift and brake levers on your bike can be adjusted to make shifting and braking smoother, faster, and more efficient. Your fingers are an extension of your arms, so the shift and brake levers should be set at a level that allows you to hold the grips naturally. Our goal is to make it comfortable for riding on the grips so that you’re not straining when shifting or braking.