7 bike fits – Dec 4-5 Clinical BikeFit Pro Green Level Education 2010

Brook -
Left 5 degree varus 1 VV1
Right 10 degrees varus 1 VV1 & 1 Cleat Wedge - 20mm pedal spacer

Terri -
Left 7 degrees varus 1 ITS wedge
Right 0 neutral 1 ITS wedge

Tucker -
Left 9 degrees varus 1 VV1 & 1 ITS wedge - 20mm pedal spacer
Right 10 degrees varus 1 VV1 & 1 ITS wedge - 20mm pedal spacer
Plus – Superfeet

Jeff-
Left 4 degrees varus 1 Cleat Wedge
Right 7 degrees varus 2 Cleat Wedges

Anna
Left 16 degrees varus 3 Cleat Wedges – ½ longer spindle
Right 19 degrees varus 4 Cleat Wedges – ½ longer spindle

Dena
Left 18 degrees varus 2 Cleat Wedges & 1 ITS
Right 19 degrees varus 2 Cleat Wedges & 1 ITS

25 total Wedges – all varus
3.6 wedge per cyclist – slightly below average
4 – VV1 Cleats were used (SPD users)
6 – ITS Wedges were used = 24 percent of total wedge use – higher than average
15 – Wedges used were Cleat Wedges
7 fits = 14 feet – all feet needed wedges
5 feet needed longer spindles (3 of 7 cyclist would not fit properly with most pedal systems)

Not enough Cleat Wedge

Not long ago we talked about pedal wear and how to see if more wedges are needed. We mostly focused on Look style pedals because for that system you look more toward the pedal for signs of wear. Here is a Speedplay cleat with Cleat Wedges and yet it was not enough. How can you tell? Look at the wear mark which is shown more on the out side (lateral part) of the cleat. If the fit is even between the shoe/cleat/pedal you will not see uneven wear like this.

This foot clearly does not want to be flat and needed just one more Cleat Wedge. Note ITS (In The Shoe) wedges do not always help this situation. This foot was a great example to compare ITS vs Cleat Wedges. No matter how much ITS went inside this shoe the foot did not meet the pedal flat until we went with Cleat Wedges. If you are unsure which wedge to use your odds are significantly better if you use Cleat Wedges only.

BikeFit Pro Education class Dec 4-5

Picture - Jeff Fulford PT from Loma Linda, CA

Notice the Specialized saddles near the bike – we showed several models of the saddles throughout the class using the "SWITCHIT" which will be available soon. In the meantime if you would like to see the SwitchIT in action now visit Woodinville Bicycle. Mike Rabas the owner of Woodinville Bicycle also visited the class for an hour to talk about bike shop relationships with clinicians. Woodinville Bicycle is a Specialized dealer.  

Lastly a big thanks to Superfeet who supplies us with the world’s greatest over the counter insoles for all shoes, especially cycling.

4 Bike Fits Nov 14 & 15

Students - Richard Raley and Thomas Cody
Instructor - Tony Corke

David
Left 17 degree varus 3 varus CWs
Right 22 degrees varus 3 varus CWs

Tom
Left 12 degrees varus 3 varus CWs
Right 15 degrees varus 3 varus CWs plus 2 LLshims
Added Speedplay extender plates

Cory
Left 2 varus CWs ½ longer spindle
Right 1 varus CW ½ longer spindle

Beth
Left 1 V V 1 Varus Cleat 1CW
Right 1 V V 1 Varus Cleat 2 CWs

Total Varus wedges 20 – average # of wedges per fit = 5

Wider stance or longer spindles would have been more but one fit was on Keos and the stance could not be properly addressed

No - ITS wedges

Are your numbers similar? If not why?

Back in the day

 – Big Meat Cleat Wedges by A Gear Higher were often viewed as something no one needed….. and what was up with the crazy name. Well I guess it went with the crazy people at the time. Sort of seems like how a genius can be viewed as being a whack job and all of a sudden one day becomes accepted, admired and perhaps even changes the world.


Today most top fitters realize the Cleat Wedge is not only something almost every cyclists could use but actually NEEDS.

Wow! What a journey.

In the 1990s we launched the Cleat Wedges and In The Shoe Wedges – Big Meat and Sole Power. Today they are simply Cleat Wedges and ITS Wedges.

We actually pitched these products to a company by the name of Specialized. Although they did not go for it at the time it was the only large bicycle company that showed an interest. They actually saw past the crazy name and realized its worth. I am sure there will be more on this company later.

In the meantime here is a list of just a few companies that actually purchase products from us today.
Boulder Center for Sports – Dr Andy Pruitt
Serotta (they just featured one of our mutual dealers "Get A Grip" in their newsletter)
Retul
Fit Kit
CycleFit in the UK
And many many more.

8 Bike Fits – Oct/Nov, 2010

Jason
Left 11 degree varus 1 ITS & 1 CW & 1mm washer
Right 9 degrees varus 1 ITS & 1 CW
Cindy
Left 11 degrees varus 3 varus CWs - plus one degree wedge under big toe
Right 16 degrees varus 3 varus CWs
Gary
Left 6 degrees varus 3 varus CWs & 2mm washer
Right 16 degrees varus 3 varus CWs
Shawn
Left 9 degrees varus 2 CWs & 2 heel wedges varus (-1/8 spindle)
Right 21 degrees varus 4 CWs & 2 heel wedges varus (-1/8 spindle)
Kim
Left 15 degrees varus 1 ITS & 2 CWs varus
Right 16 degrees varus 1 ITS & 2 CWs varus
Eric
Left 10 degrees varus 2 varus CWs
Right 10 segrees varus 2 varus CWs
Harley
Left 10 degrees varus 1 ITS & 2 varus CWs
Right 14 degrees varus 1 ITS & 2 varus CWs
Dave
Left 15 degrees varus 1 ITS & 2 varus CWs
Right 16 degrees varus 1 ITS & 2 varus CWs

Total wedges installed = 44 (all varus, 40 CW & 4 ITS) average number of wedges per person 5.5
4 heel wedges were used but not tallied in the total
No Leg Shims or Stacks
6 of the fits displayed wider left stance width

Do you use a similar amount of wedges? If not do you know why?

LOOK - under the front toward the inside

A small wear mark. Are you looking here to see the uneven wear?

general re-cap

4 Bike Fits Auburn AL - October 8th

Average # of wedges required was just over 2 per foot.

Left 2 varus Cleat Wedges - 1 single stack
Right 2 varus Cleat Wedges
Left foot lined up wider than right

Left   2 Varus Cleat Wedges –
Right 3 Varus Cleat Wedges, 2 LL shims (3mm) and 1 single stack
Left foot lined up wider than right

Arrived with 2 BG shims per foot
Left   2 ITS Wedges
Right 2 ITS Wedges
Compared BG shims and ITS wedges back and forth – cyclist preferred the feeling of the ITS Wedges.
Need to add a Cleat Wedge or two (if two then reduce the ITS by one). Cyclist was using Crank Brothers cleats and pedals and we did not have a shoe shield to be able to put a Cleat Wedges under the sheild.
Stance width was about equal

Left  2  Varus Cleat Wedges
Right 2 Varus Cleat Wedges
Slightly wider left stance

3 of 4 cyclists displayed wider left stance
ITS was preferred in back and forth comparison.
2 cyclists required a shim

Do your fits compare to this?

Connection of Excellence – for the feet!

Super is right!  They aren’t the world-leading insole for nothing.  Their cycling insole has features beyond most people’s understanding.  Built into the design is more thought and energy than any insole on the market.  This includes a heel support with a slight varus tilt- perhaps the most overlooked part of the foot in bike fitting today.  Superfeet also had the insight to design their insoles to work perfectly with the world’s leading in-the-shoe wedge, BikeFit ITS.  Super indeed!

What can we say the Best working with the Best!

Nice FIT!

Cleat Wedges - rumor has it something "Big" is coming soon

Biomechanics of Human Gait “When the Feet Hit the Ground…..Everything Changes”

I had a treat today of being able to sit in on a couple courses about feet. I was quite surprised to see some of my own information/literature referenced. The kicker happened when the instructor held up a Cleat Wedge and an ITS Wedge – without hesitation she said the Cleat Wedge is most likely the better solution for most feet…...I had to say to myself I agreed. After all we have known that for years.

With that…..drum roll…….it looks like a Big One is coming on board with that same idea/solution. I hope I am not jumping the gun as I have not seen it myself but I believe real soon Cleat Wedges will be reaching an entirely new world.

Stay tuned.

BikeFit Pro Brother Russ on Cross Fit

As we transition into cross season I asked Russ Stevenson to share a couple considerations for us during a cross fit:

"Relative to a road bike - I consider a slightly shorter stem. This will help move your body mass off of your bars a little more. You want the front end to be loose and free, no pressure. Leaving your stem the same as your road could work if the head angle, rake and trail were all much more slack; but that all depends on the bike. I would never tell someone to use the same stem as their road bike if the bike was super steep….. that's a crash waiting to happen.

I would also consider lowering your saddle 5mm or so. The simple on/off the bike aspect warrants that alone...not to mention that in cross the effort is short and very hard. The rider’s body tends to hover on the saddle, never really sitting static like on a road bike. Add in the bumps and obstacles and the body mass is continually up and down on the saddle. Lowering the saddle allows more room to move and absorb shock...which all means a more stable, calm bike.

…..ok and this too... bring your hoods up, especially if you are running a deep bar. Having the hoods flat like many road bikes opens the rider up to sliding forward when things are sketchy. The higher hoods let your hands sit more comfy and take shock better. Look at all the pro's, they all run their hoods sky high. With a compact bar curve, you could flatten them some but still higher than a road bike.

Two hole Cleat Wedges are not always the best for Cross racers with the constant mounting and dismounting. One BikeFit brand only ITS (In The Shoe) wedge may be considered and of course a good insole are the way to go. I have been happy with Cycle Soles as my choice for insoles."

Russ Stevenson - BikeFit Pro - 2nd at this years Elite Road Nats and is a top Cross Racer

Contrast this with another view
http://velonews.competitor.com/2010/08/news/velonews-training-center-how-should-a-cyclocross-bike-fit_136539

And from Mud and Cowbells http://www.mudandcowbells.com/blog/2010/8/31/bike-fit.html

Don't forget to consider the NEW VV1 cleats for SPD compatible pedals!

From our recent clinicians class

A photo from our Clinicians class May 15 & 16

Our most recent clinicians BikeFit class hosted by EastSide Sports and Rehabilitation included Jeff Gray from Superfeet, seated on the left. Kristen Disbrow, PT is working on the Saddle as Kit, Director of Education holds the saddle.

Remember our ITS Wedge “ InSide the Shoe Wedge” is designed to work perfectly with Superfeet the world leading insole for all activities. Give the combination a try and see the results.

Orthotics - where is the value?

Last week I met with Anthony who called the office looking for someone to fine tune his bike position as he kept experiencing knee pain in spite of a previous bike fit. Interestingly enough is that he recently got a new set of orthotics and was instructed to do so for his cycling shoes every year.....to address his knee pain. On his last visit to the doctor's office, the saddle height was changed (+5mm), however the 9 year old issue of knee pain still persisted. I was skeptical about tackling this fit because he had been to a Bay Area doctor that helps many cyclists with the fit issues and he had seen by one of the Bay Area's most experienced fitters (and most expensive) both of whom could not solve his issue. Furthermore this bike fitter also taught at Serotta's SICI ... the pressure was on!



As you can see in the photo knee over tow alignment was completely off and neither the doctor nor the previous fitter measured his feet with the FFMD (http://bikefit.com/docs/FFMD.pdf ) or a similar tool! Once I saw his initial position on the bike I knew I had my work cut-out for me.
With a 17 degree and 9 degree (L/R) varus measurement and one knee tracking to the inside and the other outside of the toe line I was glad I had my Speedplay pedal kit available. His tracking was so bad on the right leg that the laser did not even come close to the patella and his knee was not stable at all throughout the pedal stroke. In addition Anthony displayed lot of inward heel rotation which had forced him to install 20mm pedal extenders a few years back. Lastly Anthony rides Specialized BG shoes which should help with their varus built into the sole ...
After close to 2.5 hours of work these are the major changes made to Anthony's fit:
Right Shoe: 2 ITS wedges, 4 cleat wedges, removed the 20mm pedal spacer and set him up with a + 1/4 pedal and moved the foot as far in as possible.
Left Shoe: 2 cleat wedges, a 3mm leg length shim and -1/8 pedal.
Seat position: brought seat forward about 8mm
Hoods: moved R & L hood inward about 10 degrees.
Handlebar: moved handlebar up a few degrees so the hoods/bar created a straight line/contact area for a more neutral wrist position!
Since Anthony was going to go for a ride the following day I gave him a few pointers in the event he would experience some discomfort with the extreme (but necessary) changes made. We are not always sure how the nervous and muscular systems will respond.

Here is what he had to say after the first ride:
"The bike fit is amazing. My bike has never felt this comfortable under me. I had no knee pain. It's the first time in a long while that my speed was entirely dictated by leg fatigue, instead of in part by knee pain. Thank you so much for an excellent fit.
My buddy and I did about 33 miles around Old La Honda, Skyline, and Page Mill. Came up to about 3400 feet of climbing. We pushed pretty hard."
The moral of the story is threefold: never be afraid to tackle a bikefit that was previously done by published experts in the field, never assume that an orthodic is the correct way for someone to adjust fit issues and use as many wedges as needed to get the tracking under control.
I have also realized that many BG shoes I have fitted in the last few months do not appear to have the varus tilt that is claimed. I am still wedging the BG shoes as if they were just plain neutral shoes; maybe their manufacturing tolerances are off because I certainly cannot explain the need for some many wedges on a shoes that supposedly is built to account for 1.5mm of varus tilt.
During my follow-up visit this week we will attempt to remove the custom orthodics and ride with the cycling specific SuperFeet ... Stay tuned!
TOTAL WEDGES USED: 8
Andrew

An ITS Wedge story - question 3 from post below

3) Should I cut your product to the proper size? I have a size 43 shoe and I am using the uncut 10 - 11 size ITS wedge. I am kind of afraid to cut them because I am getting a great result now. Will they work better if cut?


Phil,


In general, the size 10-11 will work for most people that have a 43 shoe size. However, your guide should be where the ball of the foot is located on top of the wedge. If the ball of the foot is behind the thickest area, you would need the next larger size wedge.  The opposite of this would be where the ball of the foot is in front of the thickest part of the wedge. If this is the case, you may need to trim the front or get the next size smaller ITS wedge.

You were happy with results thus far. So, I can understand why you might not want to cut them. Because of your honest and thorough feedback we will be glad to send you an extra set of the original orange ITS wedges to do with as you please. We will also throw in some cleat wedges because the cleat wedge is almost always preferred. Specialized does not offer a cleat wedge…yet!

An ITS Wedge story – skipping to question number 4

 from an ITS Story below 
4) I noticed on your website you endorsed the Specialized BG saddle. What do you think of the Specialized BG footbed insoles. Are they better than the cycling Superfeet. I use Superfeet in my shoes and sneakers. I like them. But I went with the BG insoles because of the metatarsal button thing.

Phil,
At BikeFit, we have had good luck with the BG saddles and often recommend them. I was able to consult on some saddle designs ten years ago. The company had some distractions, though, so you did not see a lot of them in the market. Some of the features I helped with input on at that time are similar to some of the things you see in the BG Saddles today. We really do like to let people know about products that work well in helping them find more comfort so you will hear us talk about Specialized saddles.

Our experience is not just limited to saddles. For example when it comes to foot beds/insoles we’ve also had good luck with other companies like Superfeet. Our ITS wedge is designed to fit perfectly with them. I have not had/seen any issues with the BG insoles. I have seen a few people switch but most have stayed with the BG insoles if they already had them. If they feel good, stick with ‘em.

Compare for yourself

I get a lot of questions about Steve Hogg and why he suggests the BikeFit Wedges and Hogg Shims.

The link to the article below has been sent to me a few times. First – Steve Hogg does not work for us. We are friendly and have agreements and even some disagreements (but not about what you would think we might disagree about). We do sell his Leg Length Shims.

We at BikeFit have been working with the foot/pedal interface a long time and have been addressing things that are still often over looked in bike fitting. We have refined our approach to this area and are more than willing to show others how we do it. Our information is not considered confidential, it is for all to see and use. You may forward and or print our emails and share our tips with anyone. I ask if you make money off it you remember us…that is all.

Why does Steve go further and why does he have the opinions he does? I am not the one to answer that question. I will say I have yet to disagree with his approach to Wedges of Shims. Whereas I absolutely disagree with John Howard and his use of wedges yet both are featured on our web site.

So if interested in comparing our Wedges or Shims with others send me an e-mail about the situation you are working on and we will send you some samples for you to try and see for yourself what happens. Please share your findings with others when you do.

The articel most recently sent to me by several fitters 
http://www.cyclingnews.com/features/cyclingnews-fitness-q-and-a-december-4-2009


Swifty

Who is that?

On my way to Des Moines Iowa for some bike fit education training I had a very brief layover in Denver. I was able to get in a quick hello to long time friend and former competitor Nelson Vails. Nelson and I go way back. He walked me on the plane and talked the flight attendant into offering me a first class seat....about time I might add :-)

Here is a photo just prior to boarding.

Here is one of Nelson in the day – 1984 Olympic Silver Medalist

Training in Arkansas - Not just cold ...

Today BikeFit.com is kicking off their first blog entry from right here in Fayettville, AR. This weekend BikeFit Pro Eduction was hosted by Andres Angulo of Advanced Cycling. New BikeFit Pros as of today are Andres, Branton Moore both of Fayetteville and Michael Irwin from Kansas City, KS. Andrew Weber, Director of International Sales for BikeFit.com assisted with the training.

Here is the group pictured below.



The weekend was filled with continuous bike fits from 8am to 8pm. We had some of the most interesting and challenging fits during this week-end's instruction. A new record was achieved for BikeFit with Speedplay pedals. Six of the 7 cyclists fit this past weekend needed different spindle lengths. Pedal spindle length options are something ONLY Speedplay offers and is often the only option for cyclists needing increased or decreased stance width. If you are a fitter and you do not have the Speedplay Pedal kit you are missing something very special.

Topping the Speedplay odds was stem length needs/changes. ALL 7 cyclists left with shorter stems, making us wonder what the bike manufactures have in mind when they design and equip bikes.


The first day of training was such a success that on the second day Andres received many more requests from people hoping to get a bike fit. Word is spreading fast about the BikeFit Pros in Fayetteville. If you are in the area and would like a fit I feel you will be in very good hands with these BikeFit Pros. Look them up and schedule your fit today.

Watch the front view for this fit

Those of you racing or planning on racing in Arkansas be aware of the newly fitted and faster individuals from the Tyson Cycling Team ... Debra Dunn, Bruce Dunn, Wade Colwell, Phuong Mueller, Dori Hornbaker, John Mikesch and Adrian Balsara from the Mercy Cycling Team.

This training marked another Specialized dealer choosing BikeFit.com for education. Branton works for High Roller a Specialized dealer in Fayetterville.

Occupational Therapist Assistant Michael joined many other therapists/clinicians adding BikeFitting to their credentials. Health Care Professionals are BikeFit.coms fasted growing segment in the bike fit world surpassing Bike Shops and coaches participating with more education.


Watch the second view from the front for the same fit