Education First - Easypost Team Camp

(OCD) Obsessive Cyclefit Disorder

As obsessive bike fitters we would like to applaud EF Pro Cycling for fully embracing bike fitting and the benefits it brings to their riders.

Over the last two and a half years we have developed a process to 'onboard' new riders and to look after the team's current riders with equipment changes or over-use injuries.

For Pete's Sake
2023 saw us begin the new fitting protocol at the Service Course in Girona which also coincided with the integration of the new women's team; we worked alongside podiatrist Mick Habgood and the two Peters - Aero Pete & Performance Pete - who looked after the time trial bikes and the aero set-ups.

Lydia-Fit By Rapha
Lydia was there too from Rapha so the riders could be fitted for their new team kit.

Fit By Numbers
It takes around 2.5 - 3 hours for the two bike positions and Mick's foot assessment. They see the physio, Rapha and some admin people, time well spent.

My role is to check the rider's current position from their old team, recommend and make improvements, set up their shoes and cleats, record the measurements and work out with the mechanics and Technical Director Andreas Klier, the correctly sized Cannondale SuperSix EVO frame and components.

Here are the options:

• Six frame sizes
• Eight stem lengths - 90mm to 140mm
• One handlebar width - 380mm (nobody goes wider anymore)
• 30mm of spacers
• Six crank lengths - 155mm to 172.5mm (nobody goes longer anymore, even Kasper)
• Three axle widths on the Wahoo pedals - 50mm, 53mm & 56mm
• A hood angle range of 20mm for fine tuning and internal rotation

First Day At School

But, here's the thing, we are dealing with human beings and most of them have feelings and emotions. The new riders are dropped off at the EF Service Course which is all concrete with pink paraphernalia, busses, cars, racks of wheels, trophies and scary mechanics (I'm sacred of them and I'm 60!).

Wide-Eyed
The younger riders walk in with wide eyes and apprehension wondering what may lay in store for them, so the first task is to make them feel comfortable and at ease and that their opinion and feedback is valid. We are all in this together.

We introduce ourselves and explain the process and we are off and pedalling, filming and and adjusting. We are going to win bicycle races, in a nice way.

Set to Work - Set to Size
I set to work and put a version of the Alex's current position on a virtual Cannondale Supersix on the Fit Bike; once the new Speedplay cleats are installed the rider clicks in (sometimes this takes a while. especially if Speedplay is new and if the rider is nervous even longer; so, we stay relaxed and don't all stare and lubricate the pedal and try and explain the clip in technique; we also have the 'easy release' cleat option if we need it) once clipped in we can start the fitting; Andreas has shared Alex's measurements and we stand back and watch her ride.

Don't Stray Too Far From The Path. Unless...
We don't want to stray too far from the riding position that gained them a contract on a professional team, but sometimes they are at EF despite their set-up, and not because of it. We start with the saddle position and crank length and then work to the front; as the stem lengths are in 10mm increments we can only work in 10mm changes fore and aft and 5mm up and down. The bars go out a spacer comes out, the shoulders start too look tight, we raise the hoods 2mm. Maybe that's not quite right, the rider doesn't like it, the spacer goes back in and the hoods go back down.

Art, Science, Poetry in Motion
Its starting to look good, art and science, poetry in motion, finely balanced, stable pelvis, smooth pedal stroke, relaxed shoulders. Andreas has spent many years watching cyclists and is an ex-pro rider, I think I've spent slightly longer watching cyclists but could never pedal as fast; we both have a shared passion for racing; Andreas talks to Alex who is a new sprinter and counts down the run-in to the finish to her.

"How do you sit in the wheels with three kilometers to go?"

We want to make sure the position provides enough options to move on the bike.

"And then the last 300 meters, and then you jump, how do you sprint?"

We have put the resistance up on the machine and Alex is out of the saddle and we are all racing to the line together. 10mm more on the stem and the hoods go down. We think we have it.

Alex smiles, "this is good, I like this."
Let's build the bike.

Team EF Pro / Cyclefit Onboarding

The EF/Cyclefit onboarding process for new riders is so effective and so important; just replicating a rider's existing position isn't enough, we always look for improvements in performance and ensure their Cannondale is set up perfectly.

Mine Own Trumpet
At the risk of blowing my own trumpet, I don't think Kristen Faulkner would have achieved double Olympic Gold medals and won the USA National Championships had she not sat on our Cyclefit jig in October 2023. Yes, its a bold statement and the Cyclefit is only part of the puzzle for a riders success, but as I'm slightly biased I'd be as bold to say if it isn't correct a rider may never achieve their potential.

Hello, I'm Kristen
When we first saw her Kristen had very painful feet, saddle sores, lower back pain and was terrified riding down hill.

Her position was replicated on the Cyclefit jig, and it was so far out we had to start again from scratch; the saddle was lowered 10mm and the cranks shortened by 5mm - that's a 15mm overall change! We moved her from a 44cm Giant to a 51cm SuperSix Evo. Mick made her new orthotics to support her feet.

At the following 2023 Team Camp a month later descending at speed was still a challenge (remember she only learnt to ride a bike five years ago!) so we increased the number of spacers to 30mm (yes, pro riders do have spacers) and shortened the stem to 90mm, raised the hoods... and then by the end of the week it clicked, and off she went.

Figuratively speaking we had let go of the back of her saddle and we could stop running. Success.

Three Weeks & Three Thousand Miles Later

Three weeks later and 3,000 van miles later we are back with the Fit Bike at the Team Camp on the Costa Brava, this is where everyone gets together, I think its around two hundred people!

Costa-Campus, 200 Souls & Teams Overdrive!

Microsoft Teams is in overdrive as Claudia ensures everyone is in the right meeting at the right time with sponsors, journalists, medics and yours truly. Mick (Habgood) and I set up on the Monday afternoon in the bikefitting room and I'm in there for seven days - with only one walk to the beach and one ride in the Team car to check a rider with back pain.

And Then There Were Six
And then six more new riders to fit and then collections of orthotics, new saddles - the team has moved from Prologo to Fizik this year so saddle selection was a thing - new shoes, rusty cleats. New bikes for the new riders; there is a lot going on.

Cutting & Tilting
All the bike positions and component selections must be signed off by the end of the week; saddles tilted to the exact angle and and steerers cut, the bike spreadsheet completed and then home bikes sent back with the riders. Sixty riders, five bikes each, that's a lot of tilting and cutting. Cedric the mechanic keeps a register for the rider's return and gleefully ticks off a comfortable bike.

Just Another Wednesday
On the Wednesday its the first ride out in the new kit and on the newly painted bikes, its the highlight and everyone gathers outside the hotel, the riders look amazing in their new Rapha kit, the Cannondale's in their new livery. Shoes are on, helmet's adjusted and after a short briefing by the DS the riders head out in small groups.

(I have some great photos but can't post them until after the new kit and bike launch in January. JW)

It's great to see the athletes riding off looking so good on their bikes, job satisfaction never felt so good.

Team (not) Pink

As a contributor to the team and not wearing any pink I think I'm viewed as a 'neutral', it makes me more approachable.

Other than Batman and Robin of Andorra the majority of the men's team are OK on their new bikes and we also fitted most of them last year, there's a few saddle issues but overall everything is OK.

The Tightrope of Expectation

The girl's are different though.

I listened to a Podcast with Tadej Pogacar, he was discussing the rider support UAE were providing his team mates which included psychotherapists;

"I don't think the riders will use them though" he said "they think they will report any weakness back the management".

That may not be so, but, when I'm given an hour in the Teams schedule to see a female rider who is OK and just wants their new crank length checked, it's rarely that simple; they feel twisted on the bike, have a saddle sore. The Team says:

"She had good results last year, she won some races, but she wants shorter cranks. She needs to win races next year"

I walk the tightrope of expectation.

Do the Minimum, To Get The Maximum
So, we talk about these things and come up with some ideas and that's the hour gone and we haven't even made an adjustment, we have to move fast as we are behind schedule, 2mm here, 2mm there, a one degree change to the saddle angle. Move the bike the minimum for maximum benefit.

Bike Fitting Pro's - Men v's Women?

My take home from the camp and from working with London Academy the women's team we sponsor?

Fitting women racing cyclists is different to fitting their male counterparts (obviously, I hear you chorus).

• Bikes have traditionally been designed for men
• The majority of saddles and shoes have historically been designed for men
• We all need to work harder to design products that specifically suit women athletes
• Women generally have narrower shoulders than men
• Women' don't have a 'place ' to sit on the saddle like men
• It is harder to fit a 165cm woman and make them comfortable on a bike than a 178cm man
  
• Women are generally more mobile and need to ride in-range for stability.
  
• Women pro-riders don't necessarily need to be slammed or in an unduly 'aggressive' position, they may want to be preference being comfortable, efficient and stable.
• A little more comfortable at the expense of aero seems to work better.
• Women pro-riders like to talk about their positions and their riding.
• Talking and listening is sometimes more important than an adjustment.

Looking Forward With Hope

I look forward to seeing all the young EF athletes on the road next year; hoping the changes made will be help them improve their performance.
Hoping it well help them in their cycling careers and they can be their best.
Looking forward to the Tour Down Under in January.