Today was a day I had been looking forward to for several months. After scrimping and saving for several months through the winter of 2009-2010, I had managed to save up enough to purchase my first tri-bike. I was extremely fortunate that Dan's Competition (one of our local bike shops) had the bike I was looking for in the size I needed. (2008 Specialized Transition Expert) To make the scenario even better, this price on this bike had been drastically reduced as it was a 2008 model on clearance. Before I purchased the bike I had made the decision to invest in having it professionally fitted. This would be an "investment" that would turn out to be worth it's weight in gold as I'll elude to later. I picked up my bike during the 2nd week of March 2010 and brought it home where it sat untouched in my bedroom for 3 weeks until such time I could get the bike fitted. I was resolute on not trying to ride this bike until it was fitted properly. So my online search began for an experienced Time Trial bike fitter who wasn't too far away. I made inquiries to bike fitters in St. Louis, Nashville, Louisville, Indianapolis and Bloomington Indiana. I made inquiries with several of my fellow triathletes and received several good recommendations. I literally "grilled" all the fitters with questions regarding experience and methods they use. Also I was trying to get a feel as to how responsive they were to my inquiries. I finally did an exhaustive online search trying to find customer reviews on the shops I was considering. The shop that would come out on top was Revolution Bike & Bean located in Bloomington Indiana. More in particular, the fitter, Don Galligher (who is also the shop owner).

I scheduled my fitting for Saturday, April 3rd 2010 to start about 10am. Don had agreed to work with me on that day as I was coming from out-of-town. (about a two hour drive from Newburgh, Indiana). Additionally, Don also agreed to do an abbreviated fit on my "roadie" for a nominal fee. So as that Saturday arrived, I loaded up my bikes and struck out for Bloomington. I was as excited as a kid on Christmas morning. I had truly been looking forward to this day for a very long time! Upon arrival at Revolution Bike and Bean I preceded to unload my bikes and bring in my cycling gear, shoes, shorts, hydration etc... as Don had previously advised me to bring along. My first impression of the shop was very good. It is located within a stones throw of the Indiana University Campus and centrally located in the town of Bloomington. The location definitely has a small-town charm to it. They say first impressions are extremely important and the staff at this shop made a good one. I was greeted almost immediately upon entering the store followed by someone offering to help me carry in my gear. Within a couple minutes I was introduced to Don (the fitter and owner).

The store is kinda divided into two sections. One side being the repair / fitting section and the other side being the bike showroom, which incidentally; has it's own coffee bar - hence the name - Revolution Bike and Bean. There were several patrons in the store when I arrived, some looking at bikes, some taking advantage of the caffeine section, and some waiting for their bikes in the repair shop. In preparation for the fitting session I changed into my cycling gear and Don and I sat down for a "mini-interview" so to speak whereas Don gave me an overview of the fitting process and asked me what my goals and objectives were for both this session and in regards to my cycling in general. My two primary answers were, not to get hurt as a result of poor bike fit, and secondly, that my long term goal was IM Louisville in 2011 (hence I would be training for the longer distances - not sprints).

After completing the interview process Don had the mechanics start doing a little prep work on the bike. As you can see here the aero-bars are extremely long as they must be "cut-to-fit". While the mechanics were doing their thing Don began a physical assessment that lasted about 15 to 20 minutes. Primarily (based on my recollection) Don was evaluating my flexibility (or lack thereof) and my foot position on the cranks. (I tend to really stand on the pedals the majority of the time - which seems to be fairly typical for those coming from a distance running background).

He was also looking for shoe fit and checking for appropriate arch support, in an attempt to isolate any movement within the shoe itself. I had previously purchased a new pair of Specialized Trivent cycling shoes for use with this bike. Being my arches are very high (running in minimal shoes will really accomplish this) Don recommended a different footbed with a higher arch support to further isolate movement within the shoe. After a little sticker shock ($47), I agreed to purchase the new footbeds. I guess I was a little caught off guard since I had just paid about $160 bucks for a new pair of shoes. Anyway, I really wanted to achieve the best fit possible so I was willing to make the investment. Cleat alignment also came into play during this part of the session. Pictured above are the shoes along with the pricey footbeds.

Seen here is a photo of Don placing the "new ride" on the fitting stand / trainer. Among Don's credentials are that he is a USA Cycling Level 2 coach and a Specialized certified bike fitter. Don is also a very accomplished rider himself. And finally, Don is the founder Direct Result Training which offers a wide range of coaching consulting services for the athlete looking to improve in their endeavor.

With the aero-bars now trimmed down to the correct length, it was time to saddle up and start dialing in the bike geometry. Incidentally they chopped a good 4 inches off those aero-bars. Don spent a couple minutes making some initial saddle adjustments and then I started spinning. During the next hour Don would observe me on the trainer while stopping me several times to make further adjustments. We also elected to change out the stem in order to attain a more desired fit. Don also continually questioned me as to my "comfort" on the bike. Being this was my first TT bike I really had no point of reference to judge how comfortable I should be but I will note that as the bike was getting dialed in I was feeling more and more comfortable. Additionally, I was delivering more power to the pedals. The only thing that I really noticed was that my forearms seemed to be in a bind on the aero-bars. They almost felt like they were being pried apart. After communicating this to Don we made a simple adjustment (rotating the bars closer together) and it immediately solved that issue. With all the finely-tuned adjustments made Don had me spin for a good 10-15 minutes non-stop while he quietly observed me on the bike. This time I was on the bike long enough to work up a light sweat. It felt great and I was grinning ear-to-ear as I knew my bike was professionally dialed in.

As I had mentioned earlier, I also elected to have Don do an abbreviated check with my "roadie" fit. This would turn out to be worth its weight in gold. Once again Don started with the shoe setup.

Not to my surprise - my roadie shoes that I had been cycling with for a year and a half were way to big! (As seen here on the left) They were cheapos and I never liked them as they were terribly uncomfortable. So needless to say, before we went any further - we paid a visit to the cycling shoe section of the store where I purchased a much more comfortable and proper fitting pair of cycling shoes.(As seen here on the right) Armed with some new shoes, we began dialing in the bike geometry. Before I go any further I need to provide some background here. I had previously visited a couple of the local bike shops that I do business with and I had asked them to check the fit on my roadie. They didn't use anything fancy but simply watched me spin, pull out the plum-bob and made some adjustments. I came away from both of those fits not feeling to comfortable on the bike. Even more concerning to me however, was how dramatically different each shop adjusted my bikes' geometry to what they said was a proper setup. They were literally inches apart on some of the settings. Hence I really felt the need to have someone professionally trained in bike fitting to check this out. After spinning for just a minute or so Don immediately ordered me off the bike whereas he preceded to make a "major" adjustment to the saddle. I was almost in disbelief as I watched him raise the saddle well over an inch (probably about an inch and a half) and move it way aft of its current position. Upon remounting the bike and beginning to spin I immediately noticed two things. Firstly, I was delivering much more power to the pedals (at least I felt like I was) and I didn't feel the strain on my knees as I normally did when riding my roadie. During my assessment interview I had told Don about the fact that I was dealing with ongoing knee pain and discomfort that was a result of my running. I always experienced some level of discomfort with my knees while cycling and just assumed it was from the running - hence I figured I just had to live with it - or quit running - but as you know - I'm a triathlete - that's not going to happen. The spinning continued and with each subsequent adjustment came the feeling of higher power output and increased comfort level on the bike. Within 30 minutes Don had my roadie dialed in to what we both agreed was the optimum set-up for me. I did feel my glutes and hamstrings pulling a little bit more due to the increased saddle height but I knew it would take some time in the saddle for my muscles to get conditioned to the new geometry. It would be a couple weeks later when I would come to realize the value of that fit. As the days progressed, I started to realize that my knees were hurting less and less. Within a month, 95% of the pain and discomfort in my knees was gone. I had come to realize that it was a poor bike setup rather than the running that was contributing to my knee pain. I still have some knee discomfort - after all - I am 45 years old and these legs have seen a lot of miles - but, it's very minimal and is never a factor in my training any longer.

My fitting session was completed and Don spent a few minutes writing down the measurements (geometry) settings for both bikes and recorded them on paper for me. He also strongly advised me to to take the first 6 rides on the tri-bike very easy as all the joints, muscles, tendons and ligaments will go thru an adjustment period getting used to that geometry. Don also advised me that I could return during the next 30 days for further adjustments if necessary. (I have not found the need to touch the geometry) As a side note, I have had several fellow triathletes comment as to how comfortable I look riding my TT bike. To me that speaks volumes as to Dons' abilities as a fitter. The only thing left to do was check out and get a latte for the road - After all; how can one fully appreciate the Revolution Bike and Bean experience unless we pay a visit to the coffee bar.

While my latte was being prepared I was browsing the showroom and couldn't help but notice the Revolution Bike and Bean shirts. Upon checking out I told Don to add a shirt to my bill and he was gracious enough to throw the shirt in. And I thought the day couldn't get any better!

The fitting service wasn't the cheapest I was quoted but what I paid for was worth every penny! If there is ever any doubt as to your bike fit, I highly recommend employing the services of a professionally trained bike fitter. The peace of mind knowing I'm on a bike that's adjusted correctly and won't cause me injury is priceless. All and all, my experience and satisfaction with Revolution Bike and Bean and it's staff was fantastic. I have nothing but praise for their establishment and the folks who work there. It's a really cool shop and I sincerely hope to return there sooner than later.