If you’ve called Purely Custom in the last couple of months you probably dealt with Gary Casella, he heads up our Purely Custom product line and is our go-to-guy on bicycle anything.  Gary is a third generation competitive cyclist that jumped into his first race in Jones Beach, New York when he was just ten years old.  It was a 7-Eleven sponsored Citizens race and he grabbed his first win that day on a 56cm Raleigh with seat slammed far enough down so he could reach the pedals.  Gary’s grandfather and dad both raced in Uruguay and his grandfather made sure he made it to each race growing up.  Over the years Gary has organized teams, was a team director for the former US Pro squad Team Exergy, helped cycling organizations get off the ground and continues to work in the cycling industry.  Gary has not lost his competitive edge and still rides at every opportunity, for him it’s a passion and he doesn’t mind suffering as he pushes out 50 plus miles covering the open spaces of southern Idaho.  I had asked Gary about his last bike fitting and I was surprised to hear that he had only really experienced a few measurements from a plumb bob, measuring the bottom bracket to his saddle and a few adjustments from there.  You can imagine we were both anxious to see what this bike fitting might reveal.

An Immediate Discovery

Gary’s fit would be performed by Bob Seastrom, a certified fitter and President of Purely Custom and he would be joined by Steve Price, a high level racer, a newly certified fitter, and the guru of bicycle mechanics at Cycle Therapy in Twin Falls, Idaho.  Together these guys were about to make a discovery minutes into this whole adventure that would already have Gary thinking about how different his riding style may change.  Every proper bike fitting should start with an interview to learn the rider’s history, experience level and any medical issues.  Checking his inseam measurement, Bob then had Gary put on his cycling shoes and identified the location of the metatarsal bones on the inside and outside of the foot and marked the shoes with colored dots.  The dots would be used as reference points to where the pedal cleat should be attached.  The fit studio was all a buzz as each of these fitters realized that based on where they placed the marking dots; the existing placement of the shoe cleat was too far forward.  A cleat too far forward on the bottom of the shoe causes more pedaling with the toes, possibly some locking of the ankle and most likely some discomfort in the calf muscle.  I could see the look in Gary’s expression as he pondered whether his recent tight hamstring and lower back pain had anything to do with how his cleats were mounted.

Swapping Out the Shims

The screwdrivers were out in no time for a proper examination of how the cleats were mounted.  We watched in awe as Bob and Steve scurried through a box of shims like a fisherman searching for the right lure.  Some serious discussion ensued about the shims which were changed out so the cleat would make a better interface with the shoe.  Adjusting the cleat back a few millimeters would now bring the foot into the proper position over the pedal and become the start of successful bike fitting.  If there is one thing I have learned about bike fitting, the little adjustments can yield the greatest results.

On To the Fit Bike

A quick measurement of his shoulders was made to determine the appropriate handlebars, and with shims and cleats adjusted, Gary was now ready to get on the Purely Custom Fit Bike Pro 1 and start dialing in his ride.  Gary immediately noted that he felt better over the pedals.  Utilizing the laser knee trackers, these fitters were impressed with how straight Gary’s knees kept a straight line through each pedal stroke, unlike the flailing scarecrow knees I demonstrated when I went through this process a short time ago.  All the classic Purely Custom fitting tools started to come out at this point as Bob and Steve continued to check angles and confer as Gary maintained a level of wattage on the fit bike.  After the initial analysis of Gary’s body type, Bob had adjusted the cranks to 165mm on the fit bike under the belief that it would open up his hip angle.  His recommendation proved true: however, the body position would be altered and another discovery would be made about Gary’s femur.

The Long Femur

There have been a lot of jokes made about this, and even Gary’s been bragging a little after Bob informed him that he had a long femur.  Boys will be boys.  I mention this long femur because it does play into the fitting.  Adjusting the cranks to 165mm on the bike also meant that the saddle would need to be set back a bit further and would require a greater off-set seat post when the measurements are translated to Gary’s actual bike.  The Fit Bike Pro 1 takes these body position settings and allows the fitter to see results as the rider is able to get a feel for the changes.

Now What?

On the way home from the bike fitting, Gary and I spoke about the process.  Gary has been riding for quite some time and going into the bike fitting caused him to wonder how different things would be in relation to his traditional way of riding.   A seasoned rider is sometimes reluctant to change until pressed with favorable results.  He was impressed with how the process started from the ground up and of course, the biggest discovery revealed in the cleat placement on his shoes.  We’re all pretty anxious to see how these adjustments will improve Gary’s riding so we plan to check back with him in a couple of weeks to hear how some of these changes made him a better rider or if more adjustments needed to be made.  Bob reminds us, “Bike Fitting is a process, not an event.”

If you’re interested in seeing the complete line of fit tools from Purely Custom, including the Fit Bike Pro 1, just click here for all the details.

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