Many of our clients look forward to similar experiences: a new Trek Domane, as ridden by Fabian Cancellara, or a GPM10 training camp, covering some of the same roads as this year’s Tour. I celebrate these opportunities, but more troubling is the desire that many of us have for emulating the position and posture of the professional peloton. Let’s accept it, we’ve all tried to ‘look like a pro’ at some point in our cycling ‘career’.
I spent many years idolising the long, low position that has been favoured by professional cyclists for generations. I even sought out frames that would facilitate this fetish; short head-tubes, long top-tubes and extended, negatively orientated stems to get the front of the bike as low as possible, whilst I sat imperiously on a narrow, sparsely padded saddle.
Association Does Not Mean Causation
I analysed and deconstructed the professional’s approach to the sport, in an attempt to learn from and emulate them. Unfortunately, I fell into a trap; I identified an association and assumed causation. That is to say, I assumed that because the pros ride their bikes long and low, that must be helping them to ride fast and far. However, as I began to ascend the ladder of elite cycling and later studied the performance of riders objectively, I came to learn that, often, the truth is quite the opposite.
Many of the positions I admired did not result in optimum performance, even if I could adopt them. For me and likely for many professionals, whilst their position and posture on the bike worked, to some degree, it did not help them to realise their full potential. I’d always assumed that professional riders had all aspects of their training and riding dialed and tuned to maximise performance. How else could they achieve such incredible feats of speed and endurance?
Genetic Freaks
Now, I don’t want you to get the wrong idea. Increasing numbers of professional cyclists are embracing evidence-based training methods, individualised nutrition plans and technological innovation. However, for many elite and professional cyclists, this approach represents the exception, not the rule. My bubble burst when I came to the realisation that the reason that many professional cyclists were so good was not down to scientific training and optimised biomechanics. In contrast they were, in the nicest way possible, genetic freaks - endurance monsters, who simply used their huge capacities to overcome all kinds of obstacles, and succeed, without bothering to even think about getting them out of the way.
It turned out that some of the professional cyclists I longed to emulate were very much like American cars. Their mechanics were outdated, the suspension was rubbish, aerodynamic qualities were questionable, but they had enormous engines. Their motors were so big, that they could power over any surface at incredible speed, blast through boulder sized cobblestones, poor biomechanics and still get across the line first. Unfortunately for me, where the professionals were blessed with turbo-charged V8s, I had a 4-cylinder and no amount of suspension lowering or tinted windows would get me to the Tour de France.
Grin And Bear It?
Most professional riders are incredibly genetically gifted. They combine this with hard work and tenacity, to ride to the top of the sport. Some riders optimise everything to reach this pinnacle. Others are happy with their level and choose not to change their position, because there doesn’t seem to be a good reason to; if it isn’t broke, why fix it? For other riders, their tolerance to pain is so high, that they simply grin and bear it, and still get the results. After all, professional riders aren’t getting paid to have a nice time!
For us mere mortals, who ride our bikes for fun, who are often time-limited, with lower pain thresholds and have engines that need all the help they can get - we need to look at every legal opportunity available to us. It was the realisation that I needed to get the most out of my motor that lead me to CycleFit, to begin optimsing my biomechanics to improve my performance. As an aspiring professional rider, getting a professional bike fit resulted in tangible gains in comfort and performance. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough to land a good pro-contract, but today, whilst my stem may have a couple of spacers underneath, I’m more comfortable than ever and get more out of myself, in my limited training time, than I thought was possible. Similarly, my clients, whilst taking time to come round to the idea of stems ‘flipped-up’ and slightly longer head-tubes, consistently report being able to ride faster, further with less effort.
Headset Spacers: The Devil's Work?
The ‘pro look’ starts off with an assumption, that headset spacers are the devil’s work and that your saddle should be as high as possible; herein lies the problem with trying to look like a pro, for professionals and amateurs alike! The answer is to make the bike fit the rider, not force the rider to fit the bike. At Stephen James Cycles, with our CycleFit process, we start with a blank canvass, learn as much as we can about the rider, design a position and advise on posture, so that the cyclist can achieve their personal goals, even if the resulting position doesn’t conform to an aesthetic tradition. However, if your heart is set on slamming your stem, I have some simple advice: get a custom frame with an appropriately sized head-tube and/or start a regular and rigorous stretching routine!!
We may not be able to able to make you look like your favourite rider, but we will do everything we can to help you get the most out of yourself and the bike, achieve your goals and enjoy this wonderful sport.
This article first appeared at stephenjamescycles.co.uk
