When legendary aerodynamics expert and bike fitter John Cobb agreed to let me stop by his Tyler, Texas fit studio, I tried to subtly warn him.
“My coach calls me Mongoose. And not because I like snakes.”
My proportions, while great for swimming, can make finding an aerodynamic position on a bike pretty darn difficult. Luckily, John and his crew were up for the challenge!
My bike fit started at 9am at Tyler’s finest swimming hole. I thought it was a little odd to start a bike fit with a swim, but once I laid eyes on the pool, I wasn’t about to object!
Fifty meters of outdoor, saltwater, 80 degree perfection. Throw in some fish and I could have been in Hawaii. I joined John’s Kona-bound assistant, Seth, for a few laps before drying off and heading into the fit studio.
Chatting with John and Seth before the fit
The big numbers in bike fitting are “stack” and “reach.”
My goal was to spend some time on John’s fit bike, figure out my ideal stack and reach numbers, and then make adjustments to my current bike to get it as close as possible to those perfect numbers.
The actual fit process was INTENSE. I spent time walking, running, sitting, standing. And to figure out how my position changes as I fatigue, John and his crew had me riding my bike on the trainer for what felt like hours! I was a sweaty mess to say the least!
Eventually they moved me from my bike onto an easily adjustable fit bike. This is when the magic really started as John and Seth made changes to the fit bike until I was in the best possible position. Once they had those measurements, they translated them to my bike and voila!
Before long, things were looking much better! But I was far from finished! Seth and I hit the pavement so I could test out the new fit on the open road. I was a little nervous at first (I’m so low, I can practically lick my front wheel), but the new fit didn’t feel nearly as scary as it looks. I didn’t notice any loss of control, even on descents. If anything, I’m more comfortable since I’m a little more stretched out.
MAJOR Thanks to John, Seth, Jeremy, Ginger, and everyone at Cobb Cycling for taking on my challenging dimensions and helping me out in a BIG way! I know my more aerodynamic fit is going to be a huge help when I’m headed into those Kona winds next month!
I also have to extend a HUGE thank you to Andrew Shanks and everyone at all3sports.com for getting my TriBike Transport bound race bike shipped out to Texas so the Cobb crew could help me get it all set for Kona. And to genius bike mechanic Allen Heaton for doing a little fine tuning once I got back to Atlanta. Being a professional triathlete really does take a village!
Ready for the Queen K!
