Ergonomics.....or Doesn't anyone know how that seat posts actually can be adjusted?? ??

[DJ Bill]

Lately I have been on an exercise program to get back into shape (Yeah I know, round is a shape but the doctor doesn't like it..). I've been walking a bunch, as where I am staying is right next to the Albany NY Pine bush trails which is really a nice place to walk. I have also started to walk at the Mohawk River bike rail/trail in Niskayuna (fantastic smooth paved path that runs for miles and is just begging for a group ride to be held there)and here is where I have noticed something troubling.
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It seems nobody has their seats high enough and the knee angles I see on every day exercise riders are just all wrong...I saw a kid the other day whose knees at the top of the pedal stroke were almost to his chin. Adults, especially ones on Walmart mountain bikes, seem to also favor this bent knee stance....I was always taught that your leg was to be straight out at the bottom of your pedal strokes to be the most efficient, and more importantly, to prevent injuries..

All the Spandex wearers are riding properly fitted bikes, but I would bet 75 percent of the other folks are riding bikes with seats several inches too low, or bikes that are simply too small for them. Is it ignorance of how to fit a bike or lack of tools or ???Most newer bikes have quick adjust seats that a lever tightens up so I just don't get why people aren't doing it. I do know some of the BMX riders tend to only use the seat when resting, and are standing to pedal, but that isn't the case here...

Part of why I am noticing this is I injured my right hip by overuse too early in my exercising, and I couldn't even ride a bike for weeks....Walking was pain free but I couldn't pedal. I don't have any bikes left here where I used to live that are rideable yet so I have to borrow my bud's Specialized Crossroads.. Yesterday I thought I'd try it on the path and see if I could ride again.....I ended up raising the seat to the max the seatpost allowed and was able to pedal for a 7 mile ride......Today there is a little pain but more just from the exercise than from straining it. I will probably take another week off before riding again, and go back to walking my 3-5 miles a day for now if I can keep it up, but it was nice to be able to ride some and know the body was healing. I miss my cruiser bikes but I don't know If I could handle pushing that much weight around right now..(That is part of the reason I am trying to lose the pounds.)
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I also see a lot of customs that force the rider to have an unnatural stance....the low seats that are almost on the back fender appear to be the worst.. They look really cool...but at what cost when riding? Or aren't they being ridden enough to really matter what the ergonomics are??

Ok, I'm getting off my low seated soapbox now...carry on. :banghead:

On a related topic...Are any of you rat rodders local to the capital district and are there any events in the area?

 

[tonygameboy]

I know what ya mean and the other issue is the LBS isn't sizing their customers. My town has one LBS and I see new Treks all over the place and most the riders look so uncomfortable. Now they could of bought it used or online but how they can't tell it's the wrong bike I don't know. All my bikes are built to keep me sitting upright (except my MTB) but when I see a 6ft guy on an obviously small bike it makes me cringe.


I LIKE BIKES

 

[LukeTheJoker]

I thought the leg almost straight was only with road/racing bikes, MTB's etc, usually have the seat a bit lower as you are out of the seat more and it provides more room to absorb big bumps while standing?

As for bikes built for style only (most of the bikes on here) it is more about looks than ergonomics...

Luke.

 

[raggedjim]

I have a tall, skinny, goofy looking Electra Amsterdam I ride when I know I'll be riding a lot, but mostly I ride severely cramped and uncomfortable bikes.

Good luck with the riding and do what makes you happy! Rg

 

[tonygameboy]

I have a tall, skinny, goofy looking Electra Amsterdam I ride when I know I'll be riding a lot, but mostly I ride severely cramped and uncomfortable bikes.

Good luck with the riding and do what makes you happy! Rg

I'll be in the same boat as soon as my stretch cruiser is done.


I LIKE BIKES

 

[Raoul Dude]

Even today, a lot of misinformed people still think that you're supposed to be able to sit on the saddle (on every style of bike) and touch the ground with both feet. (Google "bicycle seat feet on ground" and try not to laugh at the results -- even on some road bike forums!)

That may be the correct fit on some cruisers, and it was apparently the "right" way to fit a muscle bike when I was about eight years old, but it seems like very few people got the memo when the first road bike craze happened in the 1970's.

I just ordered an extra-long layback seatpost from for my newest cruiser -- it's great to cruise around the neighborhood with the seat a little bit low, but when I find myself on a long ride it's a lot easier to get home with my seat up where it belongs!

 

[El Jefe]

I ride mine with the seat all the way down, mostly. But I dont put a lot of miles on it at one time. I think it looks better. But on the ride home, I raise it up to make it easier to get ip the hills.

Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using Tapatalk 2

 

[Wildcat]

My knees hurt after riding in a low position. The correct seat height is where your legs are almost stretched out completely. I like the crank forward bikes that let you stretch out and plant your feet on the ground. With a laid back seat post on a cruiser frame, you can almost get there. For photos, the old bikes ratted out always look better with the seat all the way down, but for rides need the seat raised.

 

[whitefiretiger]

I cant even count how many people i see every day riding small or not adjusted bikes.
I think most people have never been informed on how to size a bike or how to position a seat.
At the bike co-op we are non stop telling/showing people how to check if a bike is the right size.
Unfortunately most of the population seem to ride big box store bikes and just buy a bike they can afford & or think looks cool.
I often ride bikes that are "too small" for me (mostly because big cruisers are not common) but with a layback seat post and or a banana seat I can ride without killing my knees. I also run 8"+ riser bars on everything so I can set upright so I don't hurt my bad back any more (plus they look cool).

Come to think of it everybody used to tell me I rode with my seat too high because I couldn't put both feet flat on the ground when on the seat. Lol glad I didn't listen to them.

 

[Bicycle808]

When I'm riding a bike for "performance" reasons, I tend to have the seat high enough to give me almost full leg extension, minus a few degrees of bend at the knee to keep from overextending the joint. On cruisin' bikes, I tend to have them set up so my knees a bit bent, moreso than on a road bike, but still high enough to keep things comfortable if I'm sitting and pedaling at a good clip. The saddle is definitely higher than a lot of pics on this site, but it doesn't look like my mtb. I tend to ride road frames on the larger side of the spectrum, b/c I find that most comfortable. My road bikes tend to show about the same amount of post as my cruisers, for whatever that's worth.

I think that bikes with a very slack seattube, like my Worksman INBs, old Schwinns, and this Trailmate I recently picked up, you end up siting more behind the cranks so what you lose in height, you almost regain in setback. Obviously, having a laid-back post will exaggerate this effect.

I have a Schwinn Scrambler BMX that has a few inches of post sticking out, but I feel like a running duck if I try to sit and pedal on that thing. I'm usually standing up on that one, whether I'm pedaling or coasting.....

I think, in the end, you need to find a compromise that works for you. If you're a slave to "fashion" (which, at this point, is a pretty dubious term in regards to slammed seats on cruisers; just my opinion), you will suffer in terms of comfort and "performance", such as it is on an old-tech, heavyweight cruiser. If you run the post as high as you would on your mtb, though, you'll look like a toolbag and you'll likely bend your seatpost. For me, I try'n play it like Goldilocks and pick an intermediate seat height that is "just right"....

-rob

PS- if you're rolling on a 26" cruiser, and you're an adult male of average height, you're on a frame that's too small for you. Those were designed for kids. I ride them anyway, but having anything approaching a "pro" fit on an old cruiser is difficult, even if you have a rare bike with the "tall" 20" seat-tube....

 

[DJ Bill]

I'm 5'10, with a 30 inch inseam, sorta short legged. I have to have the seatpost slightly higher than fully straight on my downpedal leg, mainly so as to not reinjure whatever I did to my hip joint. Once it is fully healed up I will probably drop the seat a bit. In any case I need to lay off the bike riding and continue with walking for now, which kills me......especially when I walk on a bikepath and could have traversed a lot more ground in the same time.

Lots of good posts on this thread...Maybe I need to bring my tools to the bikepath and offer free seat adjustments.. That would raise some eyebrows I bet.

I have noticed most of these maladjusted seats are on Huffy and new Schwinn and the other bikes you see in the big box stores. At least so far I haven't seen any borks...

 

[Bicycle808]

Borks rule the school. I think, after BO9, we need to have a Bork Build-off. See who can build the hottest one. Maybe see about organizing a bork drag race, too.....

 

[whitefiretiger]

Lots of good posts on this thread...Maybe I need to bring my tools to the bikepath and offer free seat adjustments.. That would raise some eyebrows I bet.

I have noticed most of these maladjusted seats are on Huffy and new Schwinn and the other bikes you see in the big box stores. At least so far I haven't seen any borks...

Lmao I'd love to see somebody on a busy bike path offering free seat adjustments.
Maybe find a cardboard box to take and use as a station lol.

So true its mostly junk bikes I'd say most I see are NEXT, Huffy, Schwinn, Mongoose or other badged up big box bikes (most are by Pacific bicycles from what I've seen).
Don't see many higher end bikes that need adjusted but it does happen (guessing bought used).

 

[Bicycle808]

My favorite set up is the 5'2" guy on the early-80s 63cm roadbike with the bum bars and he's got the seat slammed entirely but he still can't reach the pedals right... We have dozens of DUI-victims like that out my way.... You usually hear their chain squeaking before you see'm, coming down the pike reallllll slow...

 

[whitefiretiger]

I have only seen that with kids riding adult bikes; would be funny to see a full grown man riding like that.

That reminds me I've been seeing more adults riding their kids 20" bikes to the store/ gas stations so they don't have to walk half to a mile in the summer heat.

 

[Ldog33]

If you are under 6-2 then there is no way you are riding my Ruff porucho. I basically lie down on the bike, and let me tell you, it's not very comfortable on rides over 3 miles. This bike is all form over function the way I have it setup. Sure is cool looking.
Then there is my friend who has about 15 bikes, old cruisers, etc.. But he also has a 7 which is custom fitted to his body. He states its the most comfortable bike he has besides one of his old cruisers.

 

[clamdigger]

In addition to what DJ Bill describes, I see a lot of adults riding mountain bike shaped objects wrongly.Always barely moving while struggling to pedal uphill in high gear. For me,seat height for almost full leg extension gives a more powerful stroke,and results in less arthritic flare-up.

 

[Nagant]

You usually hear their chain squeaking before you see'm, coming down the pike reallllll slow...

LOL! When I read this part I immediately thought about Debo riding his cruiser bike down the street in the movie Friday. It had a creaky squeak as e pedaled. Then Smokey and Craig hiding all their valuables so they don't get robbed.

 

[schwinn boy]

Whoever buys either of these probably won't notice anything wrong

 

[patman73]

some people can't get over the cross bar on mens bike so the wouldn't raise up their seat to high , they may be afraid when they stop that they will fall over !