FelixFinch

Hello all,

Hoping some more experienced riders can help me on this.

I recently purchased a Cervelo S2 from LBS as they had a great deal going. I plan on using the bike for club rides, short triathlons and hopefully an ironman in 2016.

I have problems with elbow, neck and upper back pain which a physio thinks indicate a nerve issue. I do exercises at the gym with lots of contraction/ pulling together the shoulder blades and generallly not allowing myself to slump forward when sitting or standing helps a lot.

The very experienced guy at the store sized me on a 56, but I still have some doubts and wonder if a 54 would have been better. I did ride both on their indoor setup and the 54 felt more cramped, but on the other hand I feel a bit stretched on the 56, although this might just be because I have not ridden anything other than a spin class for a while.

The guy said I have long legs and arms for my height...

I was sized 5 years ago by another store on 54cm specialized allez.

These are my measurements:

Actual Inseam 84 Cm
Trunk 62.5 Cm
Forearm 35 Cm
Arm 66 Cm
Thigh 57 Cm
Lower Leg 54 Cm
Sternal Notch 145 Cm
Total Height 175 Cm

My armspan /ape index is also a few more cm than my height at around 178cm.


Competitive cyclist recommends 55 - 55.4cm top tube for a 'competitive' or 'Eddy' fit.

I note that Cervelo specs put the 56 frame at 56.4 cm - a full 1cm above the upper range, whereas their 54 is almost 54.5cm, only .5 below the lower point of that range.

full details of the 'competitive' fit:

Top Tube Length 55 - 55.4 Cm
Seat Tube Range CC 54.4 - 54.9 Cm
Seat Tube Range CT 56.1 - 56.6 Cm
Stem Length 11.2 - 11.8 Cm
BB Saddle Position 77.8 - 79.8 Cm
Saddle Handlebar 53.1 - 53.7 Cm
Saddle Setback 4.2 - 4.6 Cm
Seatpost Type Not Setback


Any thoughts appreciated! I would like to strike a balance between comfort and power/speed. My issues haven't stopped me riding/running (yet) and I hope that continued gym work will improve matters, and maybe even building strength on the bike.

The other consideration is that at some point I hope to fit clip on bars. I'll be less able to achieve a 90 degree angle on the larger frame, but my elbows tend to give me problems at tighter angles so keeping them at more than 90 degrees is probably better. For example sometimes my elbow 'locks' and hurts a lot if I carry a heavy shopping basket with my arm bent, but if I hold it with a straight arm it's not really an issue.

Any thoughts from experienced people very much appreciated!

LGHT

I had a bike fit recently after having neck and upper back pain and the solutions was a different stem angel to take all the pressure off my back. I'm sure 1cm of TT is definitely something a good fitter can work around. Worse case scenario drop the coin and get a full RETULE fit.

oldroadie48

Go with the size that does not make you feel stretched out. If you are too stretched out it will take more neck and shoulder muscle strain to look up the road.

AnthonyG

I'd recommend that you start off by fitting a stem that's 1cm shorter than what's currently fitted. Changing stem length to dial in a fit is to be expected. Try this first before contemplating anything more expensive.

Anthony