A Good Bike Fit is MORE Important Than a Good Bike!

Most of you know how much I believe in a good bike fit. When I ran my studios in North Texas, I actively recruited Craig Fulk of Dynamic Bike Fit, to place a small studio in my East Dallas location. Later, when he opened his own retail space, I referred people to him, and still do.

  

We can add Bruce Hendler’s AthletiCamp location in Folsom, California, to this list. He’s that good.

A “Bike Fit First Philosophy”

Walking into Bruce’s location, it immediately felt like a Home away from Home. Bike Fitters of this level of professionalism are a truly rare breed. The Clinic had a small lounge area, a Therapy table, a Garmin Display (OH I LIKE THAT!!) and a space for measuring feet for custom footbeds. Just past that is a Retül Müve Fit Bike with a highly precise and technical SRM Scientific Crank mounted on it. The main stage includes what I’ll call a Müve ‘Lazy Susan’, where you place your bike, on a trainer, and it can then be rotated on an axis so that cameras and Infra-Red Lasers can measure more than just one side of a cyclist’s position on the bike. In the corner is Bruce’s desk and Command Center, with over 4 dozen different saddles, each with its’ own width, pitch, and padding depth/hardness.

Finally, on the far wall, there’s a Gas-Exchange Analyzer, which is used to perform Graded Exercise Tests.

Basically, for me, it’s a Nerd’s Paradise. Bruce and I speak the same language.

“Fit First Philosophy” means what it says; you want a cyclist to be the Commander of their Craft. It doesn’t matter what color it is or what parts are on it. If the bike performs under the cyclist’s control as an extension of their senses, then this is Zen in Motion. We all love expensive bikes. But it’s the rider that makes them move. Hence, LOCOMOTION.

Bruce – The Fitter

Conversation with Bruce is easy. He’s incredibly knowledgeable about fit, about how Humans need to be a part of the machine that is a bicycle. A good fit is about comfort, control, cornering, and confidence. I believe it is more challenging to achieve a good bike fit on a Mountain Bike, but Bruce absolutely delivered. We spoke about hand pressure, foot numbness, the ‘Simian’ Grip that good shoes and inserts can mitigate and absolve. Bruce had me perform some fundamental, basic, balance and plyometrics (I SUCK at this stuff), and then assess my torso and legs for any imbalances or length discrepancies. We spoke about my on-and-off sciatica, stretches that can help relieve this, and good old basic postural observations. All this time, we were discussing common friends, equipment, the state of cycling, and more.

Bruce is a coach, as well as a fitter, with decades of experience. Good Fits lead to better physiology. They compel people to ride more. I honestly believe that we would have more cyclists, riding bikes for more reasons, more often, if they were given the quality bike fit of the type that Bruce provides.

A Bike Fit for a Mountain Bike

 

My abbreviated history with mountain bikes is as such: I had an epiphany on a mountain in Scotland in May of 1992. It was literally a ‘Bolt from God’ moment, and in that moment, I decided to pursue life as a cyclist and cycling coach. Six months later, I moved to Bozeman, Montana, hired a coach, became a coach, and ran a Mountain Bike Development team. I left mountain biking in 2000 when I ran a Velodrome development program, and did not really return until about 2012, when I married my wife, Tracy. We rode for recreational purposes, and in 2019, when given the opportunity, we moved to Reno, Nevada, to a house on the side of a mountain that is teeming with mountain bike trails.

For three years, I rode a 2012 Trek Superfly 100 that was a size too small, and had ‘East Coast’ Geometry. I literally rode it into the ground, with over 400 hours a year on the frame. In 2022, I purchased an Intense Sniper T Pro, size LARGE, and placed 165mm cranks on the bike.

But something was ‘off’. The bike was slower. My hands were continually going numb. This affected me on climbs, singletrack, and descents. It was awful. I tried different bar widths, different grips, even old-school bar ends, to no avail.

Then, as you know well, we moved…. twice. Then it rained for 3 months straight. I literally have not been on my mountain bike more than once since October. It was time for a fit, so I can actually ENJOY THE RIDE.

The Bike Fit Process

Getting a proper bike fit is truly an hours-long affair. My fits are intentionally thorough; they usually take 3-6 hours. I bring water and snacks, just in case. Unless I’m taking photos, I almost always put away my phone.

Bruce takes a Holistic approach. He uses the Retül sensors, which are placed on both sides of my body, and then runs the software for the initial assessment. He had me remove my shoes and socks, and then step on an instrument that measures my pronation and supination on my feet. After a brief discussion, we both agreed, based on the information provided, to measure and install footbeds in my shoes. Once back on the bike, the effect WAS IMMEDIATE. The pedal stroke felt different, and my lower half was already in better alignment for propulsion and control. Bruce then moved my cleats around, based on the Retül information provided, and we ran another test. BOOM. More power, more control. He then slid the seat forward, shrinking my wrist-elbow-hip angle. YES! Again, even more power, more control, more comfort.

But the biggest issue for bike fit on this bike was the numbness in my hands; a palsy that was affecting everything. It’s mostly in the left palm, and I believe it is left over from a collarbone that broke and was allowed to set without surgery in 2005. It’s about 2cm shorter than normal.

We ran tests. Then We talked and reviewed each change. We altered grip angle, used the seatpost adjuster, played with the cleats on my venerable SPD’s. We tested each change for 2-5 minutes at a time. Sometimes a change requires a backup or reversal. Not in this case. That’s testament to Bruce’s insight and experience.

The One big Move that made the most difference was when Bruce removed the stem cap and LOWERED my stem height by 10 millimeters. He then added resistance…. and EVERYTHING BEGAN TO FLOW. The Bike Fit was working! My angles began to resemble the position on my road bike, ever so slightly. Pedal stroke evened out, my back became flatter, and power delivery rose. But most of all, MY HANDS DID NOT GO NUMB.

We rode like this, at about 225 watts, for almost 30 minutes. Bruce queried me about every two or three minutes, all the while, checking my posture on the Retül Motion Capture System. Finally, he asked if I’d had enough, and I agreed.

He’d solved one of the most crippling, vexxing, handicapping problems for me on my new mountain bike. After almost a year…. I was now, COMFORTABLE.

Real World Testing

Here, I need to be honest. It took several weeks for me to get out to a trail that was worthy of the bike and the fit. I’m new to Sacramento and Auburn, and the lower altitude has me feeling different types of dirt and traction always require about 20 hours of tuning for air pressure, shockwiz, and what I call “Whipadilling”, which is a sort-of ‘6th Sense’ that comes from understanding how to read a trail, pick a line, shift, brake, raise or lower your seat, etc. I had not ridden the mountain bike since October, and finding time, as well as agreeable weather, after the fit, took some work.

I got one good ride in about two weeks after the fit, maybe 90 minutes, and all I can say is, “WOW!” No hand pain. Because of the position being slightly lower and more forward, my visibility was a bit more limited, but that was not why I was tenuous on the trail. The bike felt like an extension of my body. It felt more grounded. I could steer from my hips and obliques. THIS gave me time to look up further, decide on a line, and then take it. It was not adequate time to commit to all the nuances of modern XC mountain bike suspension tuning, but that’s another discussion for another blog post. Mainly, NO HAND PAIN. ELBOWS were relaxed and ‘Piano’. There was no numbness.

I’m going to try to get out to Tahoe soon and tackle climbing the Flume Trail later in the Summer, and I’ll learn more about the fit at that point. But for now, MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.

I cannot WAIT to ride the mountain bike again.

CONCLUSION

Someone once said that the bicycle really was not ‘invented’, instead it ‘evolved’ with the onset of Humans and the Industrial Age. We’ve watched bicycles change from Velopeds to Big Wheels to Safety Bikes. Specialization has occurred, with the onset of Uprights, Road Bikes, Hybrids, Mountain Bikes, Cyclo-Cross, Gravel, Track and Time Trials. ALL of them need a bike fit. I’d even argue that cycling would be MORE prevalent if we had started with bike fits from the beginning!

I’ll be revisiting Bruce in the future, as I continue to ride the mountain bike and my road bikes. My body will change. My needs will change. The equipment may change. Take a ‘Fit First’ Philosophy and get a Bike Fit. THEN, honestly, pay someone like Bruce to help you find the best bike for your needs, dependent upon the BIKE FIT. Hence, ‘Fit First’. You’re not going to look down at your bike when you’re riding it. Color doesn’t matter. FIT, COMFORT and PERFORMANCE stemming from this comfort will yield MILES of SMILES for HOURS and YEARS to come.

Thanks for reading, and ENJOY THE RIDE!