Custom bikes

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My sister needs a custom bike so she will feel comfortable enough to ride
long distances. A hybrid would be best suited for her. Can you recommend
shops where she can get fitted and also recommend brands of bikes to look
at? She lives on Long Island so anywhere from Queens to Suffolk would be
ok. Thanks in advance.
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> My sister needs a custom bike so she will feel comfortable enough to ride
> long distances. A hybrid would be best suited for her. Can you recommend
> shops where she can get fitted and also recommend brands of bikes to look
> at? She lives on Long Island, so anywhere from Queens to Suffolk would be
> ok. Thanks in advance.

My own follow-up: is the Fit Kit System and it's competitors hype or real?
Thanks, again.

"SmartyPants" <aipeasr@hot(remove_this)mail.com> wrote in message
news:VNzec.25752$Nn4.5058502@twister.nyc.rr.com...
> > My sister needs a custom bike so she will feel comfortable enough to
ride
> > long distances. A hybrid would be best suited for her. Can you
recommend
> > shops where she can get fitted and also recommend brands of bikes to
look
> > at? She lives on Long Island, so anywhere from Queens to Suffolk would
be
> > ok. Thanks in advance.
>
> My own follow-up: is the Fit Kit System and it's competitors hype or
real?
> Thanks, again.
>
Your sister may not need a custom bike to be comfortable on a hybrid. What
she will need is a good bike shop person that will carefully take into
consideration what she needs and wants, and fit her to an appropriate bike.
A geat deal of the 'comfort' one gets from a bike is based on experience and
time on the bike. "Butt factor" or "seat time" has an awful lot to do with
how comfortable a rider feels. New riders often ride less because of sore
butts, yet if they rode more their tushes would become acclimated to the
pressure.

As to brands of bikes to look for; I don't think there are any bad ones
being sold in bike shops. I would advise to choose the bike based on the
store. If you find a bike shop that you and your sister are comfortable
with, that you can trust and is treating you well, buy their brand of bike.
That way if you have questions or problems you know who to turn to.

Fit Kits and other fitting systems are only starting points, there is no one
system that is perfect. There is no substitute for an experienced person
doing hands-on fitting.

"Dave Thompson" <davetspokane1@comcast.net> wrote in message news:<5b6dncaNKqwXU-fd4p2dnA@comcast.com>...
>> Fit Kits and other fitting systems are only starting points, there
is no one
> system that is perfect. There is no substitute for an experienced person
> doing hands-on fitting.

This is good advice. However, one bike that you may want to take a
look at Rivendell's Romulus. At around $1500-1700, its not cheap, but
you seem to get alot and may be something that your sister can fit.

For more on the Romulus:
http://www.rivendellbicycles.com/html/bikes_romulusframes.html

> > > My sister needs a custom bike so she will feel comfortable enough to
ride long distances. A hybrid would be best suited for her.

>> Your sister may not need a custom bike to be comfortable on a hybrid.
....New riders often ride less because of sore butts, yet if they rode more
their tushes would become acclimated to the pressure.

Her pain seems to be mostly in her shoulders, so her present bike probably
has an upper tube (correct word?) that is too long for her petite torso.

"Pants" <schmartypantz@yahoooooo.com> wrote in message
news:hoIec.19422$467.3796210@news4.srv.hcvlny.cv.net...
> > > > My sister needs a custom bike so she will feel comfortable enough to
> ride long distances. A hybrid would be best suited for her.
>
> >> Your sister may not need a custom bike to be comfortable on a hybrid.
> ...New riders often ride less because of sore butts, yet if they rode
more
> their tushes would become acclimated to the pressure.
>
> Her pain seems to be mostly in her shoulders, so her present bike probably
> has an upper tube (correct word?) that is too long for her petite torso.
>
Not necessarily. Shoulder pains can be attributed to 'scrunching' of the
shoulders and/or riding with elbows locked, or bars positioned too low or
too close, many things. If you have little experience with fitting, I would
sincerely suggest that you don't do it. If you make a mistake and your
sister is still uncomfortable, then what? Leave it so someone with the
experience needed. Fitting is more of an art than a science, there are so
many components to it and they all interelate.

You didn't say what type of bike she rides now, or how much experience she's
had. If she has determined that she really likes bikes and wants to ride
frequently and many miles, maybe a professional fit might be in order. These
can cost $75~$150 or so, but can be invaluable to someone who wants to ride
a lot. A dynamic fit, rather than a static fit would be best. A static fit
is just numbers, (body measurements etc) that may or may not translate into
a good fit. A dynamic fit would be done on an adjustable size-cyle and the
person would be observed, the size-cycle changed, more observations and more
changes, and so on. This type of fitting is much more real-world than just
measuring body parts. A Serotta dealer usually has size-cycles and are
trained in dycamic fitting. Go to or call some high-end shops that
specialize in custom made bikes. Maybe you can get a much cleared picture as
to what is needed for a proper fit.