How 'fit' are you?

Hello fellow Birmingham cyclists...

I hope everyone is well. I don't know about all of you, but for me, typically this time of year I spend more time dreaming about high-end bikes, reading about gear, and talking about bikes than I actually do riding my bike. Not that it's awful to fantasize and gawk at things that I know will help me to enjoy riding more. All that winter research can really come in handy when the spring rolls around and parts need to be repaired or replaced for the upcoming season.

That being said...

Parts and gear aren't the only things cyclists should be spending time researching in the winter. A cyclist's fit is far more important and will yeild more speed than carbon wheels, super-light tires, or stiff cranks. Many professionals in the bike business, including myself, don't spend enough time emphasizing to customers the importance of their fit. Typically, this is for no other reason than the fact that being trained to properly fit another cyclist is a time-consuming, expensive affair. Lucky for Birmingham's cyclists, Cahaba Cycles has spent the past few years investing heavily into becoming a premier fitting destination.

Recently two Cahaba Cycles employees, myself and John Pugh, attended Trek's Fitting Services seminar in Nashville, TN. During this two day seminar, John and I were able to build upon our current fitting knowledge and further understand how to make any rider comfortable and fast on their bike.

The teacher of our seminar, Michael Sylvester, is a world-renowned fitter based out of Portland, Oregon (bicyclefittingservices.com). Michael's fit philosophy is based on individual flexibility rather than arbitrary formulas that fit everyone the same. Learning to assess a rider's flexibility is tremendously important in determining what position is friendly to a rider's comfort level and power output. Other factors, such as a cyclist's body alignment, previous injuries, and activity level also provide a trained fitter with vital information to tailor a bike to the individual.

Attending the Trek Fitting Services seminar is only one of many investments Cahaba Cycles has made in turning our shop into the South's best place to get fit. In addition to paying professionals to educate our employees, Cahaba Cycles has purchased the tools necessary to get the best possible fit for our customers.

Last year we outfitted our Trussville location with the highly-specialized Retul fitting system. This fitting system allows a trained, knowledgeable fitter to see all the angles being made by a rider's body while riding his or her bike. By using a series of sensors and motion capture technology our fitter is equipped with a plethora of information about the rider's position.

If you're interested in getting fit by any of our trained fit specialists give us a call or stop by, we'd love to tell you about what we can offer and what you can gain from a proper fit.

Andrew Boyd

205.879.3244

aboyd@cahabacycles.com