In this issue:

• A Note from Kevin
• Upcoming Events
• Feature Article – Getting Old is Not for Sissies
• BikeTech Help Desk
• Kevin Recommends
• About KGS Bikes and Kevin

A Note from Kevin

Kevin Saunders

Welcome to “Perfectly Fit,” our newsletter which is designed to help you get the most out of an active, cycling lifestyle. I have a team of pros from all over the world that will help me provide you with great info and a place for you to find out what you want to know. Your feedback is so important and we will make a place for you to be heard.

I had great ambitions to have a video intro for this issue but was called out of town and am writing from the beautiful mountains of Albuquerque.

Our main article talks about the issues we all face as aging cyclists. I discuss how Growing Old is much better and different than Becoming Old!

Our BikeTech Help Desk has a question about gear inches and what in the world they are, plus we have a great question on the humble handlebar stem.

Don’t forget to visit our blog as new stuff is posted there almost daily. It is easy to subscribe to the blog so you can get updates sent to you.

Thanks again for letting me share with you a little about cycling. I respect your time and will strive to continue to make it worth it.

Upcoming Events

These days I am hard at work designing bikes for so many of you it keeps me close to home. I am looking for triathlons and running events to photograph and meet more of you in your element. Let me know if I can help photograph your event as I love seeing you folks doing your best.

Every positioning session is an event and one which you will find most valuable. Don’t forget lead times in these custom bikes. With six to eight week deliveries, you need to factor that into your purchase plans so your season can be best utilized for success.

Feature Article – Getting Old is Not for Sissies

Mr G shows us that 70 years young is great for cycling. Photo: Cold Iron on Flickr

I have been riding bicycles a long time and see great cyclists and incredible individuals from As the spring bicycle buying season is arriving, I am getting more folks telling me that their bike used to fit and now they have issues. Almost all are over 35. I’m not surprised and here’s why.

There is a physiological change around 35-40 years of age where the body doesn’t respond to injury or fatigue the same way. Recovery is compromised, over-use injuries start happening and life is different. This explains why many professional athletes have careers that end during this time period who are subjected to extreme stress. Football, basketball, professional cycling at the elite level, you name it, many folks “retire” about this age.

KGS Bikes is all about helping people “not” retire from an active lifestyle and as such, is heavily involved with education. The big problem in cycling is the worship of the bike. When your positional needs become more pronounced, you defend the bike. I maintain that your positional needs didn’t change. What did change, however, was your ability to tolerate being in a less than perfect position.

Since history has a way of repeating itself, let’s discuss a time in bicycling when these issues weren’t prevalent. This time was the late 1970′s and before. That period and today is separated by two significant differences. The first is the basic “performance” position has changed. Eddy Merckx rode a bike with a much more relaxed seat angle plus higher handlebars than are present today. In fact, most cyclists had their handlebars at or near saddle height, allowing the comfortable use of the tops, the brake hoods and the handlebar drops for hand positions. These bikes were designed to be comfortable and efficient in the mountains over stage race courses that could average 130 miles. Hard efforts were possible and recovery was easier.

The American Criterium style of bike design changed all that in the early 80′s. I was a full time bicycle racer at the time and I completely bought into the concept. I raced short criterium events and wanted my handlebars as low as possible. When I dropped the bars and moved the saddle forward, I was comfortable all-out, but anything less than a 100% effort was not fun. I started having saddle problems too!

The second big difference from bikes then and now is the change from quill stems to the threadless stems available now. Back then, it was very easy to raise the handlebars a bit if too low. Now, if the fork steerer is cut, you are out of luck.

Some side benefits to this are the massive improvement in saddles and in cycling shorts. Back in the day, saddles didn’t need a split and the chamois in shorts was not that good. Today, many problems have been fixed, yet people still have chronic back pain, saddle pain, neck pain and numbness in the hands. The culprit is the basic design of current bikes and the way they are marketed.

A professional bike racer who is competitive these days will have a much different body type than one in Eddy Merckx’s day. 15-25 lbs of upper body weight is now missing from the physique of these modern athletes. What that means is the steeper seat angles will in fact work for the modern pros. It only presents a problem when bikes are marketed to the rest of the world as one that is “just like” a bike ridden in the Tour.

People have the perception of quality as tied to sponsored athletes and sponsors know this. They will pay exorbitant sums to rock star athletes for the endorsement power that they wield.

Here is an example of this phenomenon. I got an email recently from a cyclist who has positioning problems on a Cervelo. She asked me to fit her on the Cervelo and one of the conditions that I was constrained to, was that she was keeping the Cervelo regardless of what her true position dictated. Her complaints were low back, neck, hamstring and a few others. She is already using a short stem which is at the highest position possible. Knowing that she will most likely need to move her saddle aft to improve her balance and power, there will be a bigger problem with the reach and drop of her handlebars. I had to regretfully decline to take this person’s money because I couldn’t improve her position without changing anything.

This is another example of my analogy to the fable, The Emperor’s New Clothes, as so many of us defend the bike when in fact it is us who need a better position. This is possible with a properly designed custom bike and with some select semi custom bikes, but unfortunately, most bikes are not designed for the riders who purchase them. What I find the most interesting is the fact that the bike industry has little to no incentive to change. As long as bikes are sold as impulse buys with known flaws, people will continue to buy them and have the never ending quest to make them right, buying part after part, fitting after fitting, and all the while having frustrating and painful rides.

Knowing that many of these bikes are still very expensive, the Texan saying, “A ten dollar horse and a fifty dollar saddle” applies. No matter what you do or what parts you buy, if the bike frame is not capable of supporting the components in a way that your body likes, it isn’t right for you. All I ask is that you consider accurately why you ride the bike you do. Is it because it is right, because it is wrong and you now can’t afford to make it right, or are you riding it because it is cool and the pain you suffer is just part of the mystique of ownership of that brand? Whatever your reasons, it’s ok. Just continue to challenge as willful ignorance won’t help your sore back or your ability to improve as a cyclist.

Growing old is not for sissies. It does have the word “Growing” in it, however. I believe that this is much easier than “becoming” old, which is much more passive. While we can’t stop growing old, we can stop becoming old. If you really look into why your body needs what it does regarding a bike, you will be surprised what you missed all this time.

Until next time,

Kevin

President

KGS Bikes

BikeTech Help Desk

One turn of the cranks, see how many inches you go! Photo, Kevin G Saunders

Kevin,

I am trying to choose between 650 and 700 wheels on my new custom bike and I vaguely remember you saying that the gears need to be different. I also read about “gear inches” and wonder if this is what you are talking about?

BTW I have a triple chainring on my cranks and 8 speed gears on the back of my current bike.

Jolene

Hi Jolene,

Great question. You are realizing that the wheel size has a relationship to the gearing. What gear inches means, is how far the bike travels in inches with one revolution of the cranks or pedals. A bike in a lower gear will not travel as far with one pedal revolution and a bike in a higher gear will travel farther with the same one revolution.

Here is the equation: Gear Inches = Chainring teeth / cog teeth, x wheel diameter in inches. Most gear charts use 27″ as a nominal diameter, but you can get much more accurate. The best way is to do what is called a “roll out” test.

To do a roll-out test, you need to be on the bike with the tires aired up to the correct pressure. Have someone help support you and simply start with the valvestem of the rear tire at the lowest point and move forward exactly one revolution. The distance you travel from “stem down” to “stem down” is the exact circumference of your rear wheel when you are on the bike.

Knowing the circumference you can determine the diameter. For instance, my roll-out is 82.51 inches (2096 mm). If you take 82.51 / Pi (3.14159) you get 26.26″. This is less than the 27″ nominal but is more accurate for the 700/23 wheels and tires on my bike.

How does this help you as a cyclist? Well you now can determine the lowest and highest gears with any combination to compare apples to apples. You will see that 650 wheels are smaller and that your gearing will change based on wheel size. You will also see that compact gearing can usually substitute for a triple chainring which makes the bike simpler and lighter.

For now, go to Sheldon Brown’s Online Gear Calculator. I am in discussions to put one on the KGS Bikes site but Sheldon has a very good one.

Kevin

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Example of a threadless stem with spacers. Photo: Kevin G Saunders

Hi Kevin,

I see a lot of short stems and long stems, and some of them turn up or turn down. What is the difference and why should I care other than how it looks?

Missy

Hi Missy,

The handlebar stem connects the handlebars to the fork steerer tube. While that is obvious, it holds the handlebars in a specific position, in front of the fork steerer tube and either above or below the place where the stem clamps to the steerer tube. Back in the old days, (the 80′s and before), stems all looked the same. They looked like the number 7 and one part grabbed the handlebars and the other stuck into the inside of the fork steerer tube and was held in place by an expansion nut. This provided lots of adjustability but water was able to get in and cause rust, plus the stems were not stiff at all.

When the threadless headset was invented, stems were created to clamp directly to the fork steerer and spacers were used to get it at the right height. The upside was, the bike had a more “finished” look and the stem was stiffer. The downside is that adjustability drastically shrunk.

Now that the stem had to put the handlebars in the correct position and be held in place by spacers, the challenge became, “How do we keep the traditional look of the 7 stem?” Stems were produced with the traditional downward slope, but soon people realized that the stem could be flipped and turn up, giving more adjustability to the location of the handlebars.

Some bikes are now designed so an upturned stem is used and I in fact do so regularly. The rise or fall of the stem and it’s length still put the handlebars in the best place for the rider to reach, but there is more to the story.

If you already have a bike and don’t want to change the frame to make it fit, many people use all sorts of different sizes and shapes of stems to facilitate fit. What they may not know, however, is the fact that stem length is partly responsible for the way a bike steers! If the stem is too short, the steering is “quickened’ and requires less input to steer. This also reduces feedback from the road making cornering more difficult. Sometimes when a custom bike is designed that needs a super short stem, we change the head angle and slow down the steering, so when the steering is quickened by the short stem, things even out.

There is much more to this subject, but suffice it to say, a stem is not just for looks. Thanks for asking.

Kevin

Kevin Recommends

Go ahead! Give them a tri! Photo: Kevin Saunders

We only recommend products, services or companies that we have actually tried or worked with personally. A recommendation, like a reputation, is very important and we do not take this responsibility lightly. The following links are to our friends at the Cooper Aerobics Center in Dallas. Dr. Kenneth Cooper is considered “The Father of Aerobics” and has put together a group of world class companies that have a direct impact on us as cyclists and as professional people:

• Cooper Complete- We have arranged for 10% off anything you buy from Cooper Complete if you put “KGS” in the coupon link and then “recalculate”.
• Cooper Clinic- The world renowned Cooper Clinic is starting to create medical exams and services aimed at professional adults who ride bicycles.
• Cooper Fitness Center- The Cooper Fitness Center has a special strength training introductory program for cyclists.

These links are to our frame builders and other providers that make KGS Bikes the premiere fitting studio and cycling boutique in the world:

• Co-Motion Cycles- We’ve long enjoyed a reputation for building tandems that simply handle better.
• Guru Bikes- Our approach is based on combining the best of both worlds: cutting edge technology delivered by hand and with an old school attention-to-detail.
• Kirklee Bicycles – KirkLee is an up and coming great framebuilder from Austin. We are very excited about the quality and performance they bring and are proud to offer KirkLee frames as part of our KGS custom bicycle options.
• Parlee Cycles- Simply put, PARLEE frames are the best built and best riding carbon fiber frames available today, at any price. They are functional works of art.
• Red Licorice Events – The “Sweet and Twisted” team that promotes Austin’s best athletic events. KGS Bikes is an ongoing sponsor of triathlons produced by our friends Erin and Leilani and we are thrilled with the relationship.
• River Place Country Club – This is our Austin address where we can meet in person to define your custom bike. We arranged with the folks at River Place CC to rent space on an as needed basis to offer a quiet focused environment to determine your ultimate bicycle position and then design a custom bike around that position. The New York Times describes cycling as “the new golf” and River Place CC recognizes that they can offer more than golf to the active lifestyle advocate.
• Sem Custom Paint- Dave Sem is the best extreme detail painter in the world.
• Serotta- Only Serottas have the extensive engineering of our proprietary Colorado Concept tubing design. It’s the foundation behind the unique ride of each and every Serotta.
• Source Endurance- They are teaming with us to provide physiological testing, data analysis, training consultation and long-term coaching. They have two state-of-the art labs, one in Austin and one in San Marcus. We are proud to recommend them and invite you to check them out.
• Tacx- Home of the Fortius Virtual Reality trainer. This is the trainer component of our “Ultimate Spin Bike”. Tacx also makes many other fine products. KGS Bikes is an Authorized Tacx Testing Center.
• Topolino Technology- Our wheels embody this ethic: A fundamental redesign of wheel construction to take advantage of extraordinary materials with amazing properties, yielding a wheelset that performs like no other.
• Zinn Cycles- For more than a quarter of a century, Zinn Cycles have been working to make cycling more enjoyable for customers, and that commitment remains at the heart of everything they do.

About KGS Bikes and Kevin

KGS Bikes Studio interior view

KGS Bikes is known around the world as the premiere bicycle fitting studio and cycling boutique. Kevin Saunders, President, has over 25 years experience in bicycle fitting and high-end bicycles. He also has a broad knowledge of anatomy, structural engineering and industrial design. In addition to fitting services, KGS Bikes sells bicycles from Parlee, Serotta, Zinn, Co-Motion, Storck and Guru. They also feature Lew wheels, custom shoes by Rocket7 and the best available components from around the world. Visit kgsbikes.comfor more information, including beautiful photography of the bikes carefully created for their owners.

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KGS Bikes- 16611 Huebner Rd. – San Antonio, TX 78248 – 210-849-2501