This past weekend, Rachel Joyce, won Ironman Texas with a well rounded performance. With a split of 4:42, on the bike is where she put the most time into her competition riding 20+ minutes faster than every female except Amy Marsh.
I’ve been working with Rachel on her bike fit going on 3 years now. We’ve made a lot of progress over that time which started with a complete position over-haul, then slight adjustments and/or improvements as she’s moved to different Cervelo models.
Rachel was one of the first athletes to receive a P5 last year. There are 3 stem options for the P5...extra low, low (+20mm), and high-V (+45mm). Originally, Rachel had to use the low stem until the extra low stem was available, which would dropped her front end down another 20 mm.
The pictures below are from Rachel's fit session in March.
The goal was to get her to relax and stretch out across the front end of the bike.
Showing Rachel how best to support herself on the arm pad. There are times when you don't need to make changes to a rider's fit coordinates (bar and saddle position), but instead make modifications to the way they posture themselves or contact these points.
A concerned Rachel, looks on as I use the Mario Brothers wrench to loosen the extension bolts
I use visual aids, which I think are important for teaching and showing the rider differences in posture and position.
Here, I'm using the video analysis option on the retul software to slow down and/or pause at various points of the pedal stroke.
Positioning the extension so Rachel has multiple hand position options depending on terrain and effort. Here, Rachel is torquing on the bars.
And then relaxed, which is her "go to" position.
I guide athletes towards a particular position on the bike, but then give them options as to what feels best to them. Normally, there is no wrong "choice" with these options. For example, once the saddle height is within a particular range, I don't care if they are at the top or bottom...that choice is up to them.
Communicating with the rider is a very important part of the fit. I'm not just PUTTING someone in a position and then sending them out the door. We both have to agree on the changes for it to work.
If you're interested in having your fit optimized, use the CONTACT FORM to schedule an appointment. Mat