Real Rider Stories: Cory Gets a New Bike
Cory is an elite female cyclist who came to the Boulder fit studio with little to no discomfort on the bike, but mainly wanted to focus on increasing her performance and bike handling during races. Cory has been cycling for about 12 years starting in the sport of triathlon. However, she began to realize that she just loves cycling and wanted to put all of her focus and energy toward racing bikes. Two years ago she made her move to join the ALP Cycles Racing team and has been crushing it on the female road bike circuit ever since.
Cory had been riding a size 54 road bike for most of her cycling career, but after seeing Cory on her bike and making some initial changes, Retül fitter, Jason Williams, came to the conclusion that she would actually be in a better position if she road a smaller frame.
“We evaluated her position and found room for improvement in a few places [which] caused us to re-evaluate the frame size for next year’s race bike.” explained Williams. After Jason and Cory reviewed the Retül fit data, “We decided to move the seat forward to get her knee function more in line with the ideal placement over the pedal in the power phase of the pedal stroke.”
“Generally, Cory had no significant issues on her current bike - she had a very successful season last year. As an elite racer, however, there’s always the question of, can we do better?” On her test ride, Cory was pleased with the feel of the new bike position and left the fit appointment ready to order the smaller size frame for next year’s race bike. “We will eventually plan to lower the handlebar for a more aero and race oriented position.” Explained Williams.
Cory wanted to use her experience with Retül to gather female fit data in order to further support bike fit information for women. As more and more women get into the sport of cycling, we know how crucial it is that female riders are informed about having a proper bike fit. Every bike fit we do helps provide us with more data in order to better serve riders everywhere.
Cory is in the off season right now, but she is currently working on her race schedule and will potentially race in the Colorado Classic this August which will be the only UCI standalone women’s stage race in North America. She has also purchased her new bike, a 52 Specialized Tarmac, and informed us, “[The fit] feels even better in terms of not being too stretched out. I feel like I am on top of the bike, instead of in the back seat. It feels more nimble, comfortable, and balanced. It was a great experience, focusing on putting me in the best position possible to not only be comfortable, but also have the most power.”
Increasing comfort and performance while preventing injuries on the bike is our mission. I think we can safely say “mission accomplished” with this one. We wish Cory the best of luck this 2019 season and can’t wait to hear the results of her next race.