Borrowing Or Renting A Bike: Making Small Adjustments To Get The Right Fit

Mountain Bike Setup and FitYesterday, I jumped on a friend of mine’s mountain bike to take it out for some singletrack intake. He is going to be out of town for a couple of weeks, so it was an opportunity for me to get on a new rig and try it out which is something I am obsessed with doing as you can probably imagine. The problem with borrowing, renting or buying a bike is that the bike is never setup to your specific tastes. I am not a fan of the “one fit fits all” theory as our body types and riding styles are all different in their own ways, so adjustments are always needed to make sure the bike fits you properly regardless of frame size.

As I started making small tweaks to the various components, I thought it would be a good idea to share on Bike198 exactly what I do to make a borrowed or rented bike work for me.

Making Small Adjustments To Get The Right Fit

Now…keep one thing in mind. I make small adjustments one at a time. I have found that if you make too drastic of an adjustment or change too many things at once, you can get mixed results and end up in a tailspin. By making small adjustments, one at a time, and then testing those adjustments on a small section of trail, you can insure that you are heading in the right direction. If you are completely lost and can’t seem to find your way, you can get a professional fit done or buy a product like The Bike Fitting Kit (to be reviewed soon) to give you a starting point.

If you are borrowing or renting a frame, you often times do not have the aid of different stem lengths to really tune in the fit to your needs, so here are something things you can do to really dial things in as close as possible.

  • Bring Your Own Shoes and Pedals – By bringing your own shoes and pedals, you can make sure your cleat placement is correct and the bike feels more comfortable.
  • Saddle Height – The first “no-brainer” adjustment that every rider makes is adjusting the saddle height.
  • Saddle Position – One of the steps that riders often overlook is the saddle position on the post. By making small adjustments forward, backward and in tilt, you can get the bike dialed in closer to your needs. These adjustments are made quickly and easily without having to remove the saddle from the post. This position controls your pedaling attack and how your weight/body sits on the bike.
  • Stem Height – Through the aid of headset spacers, you can adjust how high or low the handlebars sit through a 3 bolt process (sometimes just 2 depending on the stem). The height of the bars in relation to the bike and your body are going to have a drastic affect on how the bike handles on the trail. A lot of riders like to have their saddle height even with the bars. For those of us that have long ass legs, the saddle is typically higher than the bars in most applications.
  • Shifter and Brake Lever Position – Depending on hand size and comfort, you are going to have to change the position of the shifters and brake levers to accommodate your riding position and preference.
  • Tire and Suspension Air Pressure – While these items are not directly part of a fit checklist, they are something you need to change before you ride. Your riding style and suited up weight are going to be different than another rider and these pressures are dependent upon that.

After you have made those adjustments, you should be ready to hit the trail. Pack up a multi-tool to make any other adjustments trailside and go shred.

Image by placid casual

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