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Long legs/short torso


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flag JoshuaHayes5BI
Posted: Sep 2, 2023 at 14:23 Quote
Looking for thoughts. With bikes getting longer and longer even running a short stem no longer cuts the mustard for some of us. I race XC and am finding bikes are stretching out too far. I run a saddle at 85cm (CBB to top of saddle) which forces me on an XL bike however I am only 6'1. The terrain here is tight as well.

To the question! Does anyone know of or have any suggestions on manufacturers that tend to have a tighter cockpit?

Thanks!!
flag WestfordChris
Posted: Sep 19, 2023 at 3:13 Quote
This calculator is awesome:

https://geometrygeeks.bike/

I have the opposite problem, short legs and a long torso. I am riding a XL SC Hightower with a shorter dropper.

Why not pick a smaller frame and swap in a 170mm or longer dropper?

Chris
flag Markjonesf18
O+
Posted: Oct 30, 2023 at 21:59 Quote
I also have that body geometry issue. I'm 5ft 10in. My short legs fit a Jean in-seam of 28in. My torso fits a large. My dropper post only needs to be 90mm lol.
So I have two bikes. One med and one large. The large is perfect for reach and posture... but I cannot touch the ground very good. The med has a bit lower cross tube for room in the crotch while standing... but the cockpit seems a bit tight. So... I'm now creating a mullet on a large frame. 27.5 wheel at the back to drop the bb which gets my feet on the fround a bit more. And 29 wheel up front for roll over ride. And the large frame for my long torso.
flag TheSlayer99
FL
Posted: Oct 31, 2023 at 8:35 Quote
Markjonesf18 wrote:
I also have that body geometry issue. I'm 5ft 10in. My short legs fit a Jean in-seam of 28in. My torso fits a large. My dropper post only needs to be 90mm lol.
So I have two bikes. One med and one large. The large is perfect for reach and posture... but I cannot touch the ground very good. The med has a bit lower cross tube for room in the crotch while standing... but the cockpit seems a bit tight. So... I'm now creating a mullet on a large frame. 27.5 wheel at the back to drop the bb which gets my feet on the fround a bit more. And 29 wheel up front for roll over ride. And the large frame for my long torso.

It just sounds like you picked the worst possible way to setup your bike for you. Running a mullet isn’t going to do anything for you in terms of clearance if you’re only running a 90mm dropper post. Standover isn’t important either but that’s a whole different conversation. I’m 6’ and wear 30” inseam pants, so I’m all torso. I downsize 1 or 2 sizes on all the bikes I ride and run 200mm dropper posts on them for reference.
flag Markjonesf18
O+
Posted: Nov 1, 2023 at 10:22 Quote
Interesting feedback. What size bike do you ride?
flag TheSlayer99
FL
Posted: Nov 1, 2023 at 12:33 Quote
I ride a medium Intense Tracer 29 right now, which has a reach of 447 in the low position. My other bike is also a medium with a reach of 455. I run 40mm stems on both. My previous bike was a large Transition Sentinel with 475 reach.
flag Gravelben
O+
Posted: Nov 1, 2023 at 12:47 Quote
Generally a proportionally longer torso / shorter legs suits longer reach / lower stack, and the opposite shorter torso / longer legs suits shorter reach / higher stack. Geometrygeeks.bike is a great site for comparing the geo of different bikes.

I'm a bit to the shorter torso / longer legs side and find many bikes too low in the stack for me, running 40mm riser bars to compensate.

Being 5'10" I'm often in between M and L sizes too, currently I have an M with longer stem and higher rise bar and an L with shorter stem and lower rise bar higher on the stem spacers.

Standover is a separate issue, some people care a lot about it but it doesn't really matter much and isn't directly related to other aspects of geometry.
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