BICYCLING'S GUIDE TO THE PERFECT BIKE FIT

JENNA FOLEY WISHES SHE DIDN'T HAVE TO LEARN ABOUT THE importance of a bike fit the hard way.

- BY PAVLÍNA ČERNÁ, MOLLY HURFORD, AND CHRISTA LAGLER

About a year after she had taken up cycling, Foley was ready to conquer her very first century. She and three of her girlfriends mapped out a scenic arch-shaped route starting in Philadelphia, meandering toward the picturesque town of New Hope, and then returning to Philly. They figured out nutrition for the day and pit stops they wanted to make; they were ready for a great time.

Foley didn’t know anything about bikes back then. When she bought a crusty old Fuji on Facebook Marketplace, it was pure luck that it happened to be the correct size for her. A week before the big adventure, another rider commented on her Instagram story, telling her that she desperately needed a bike fit just by watching her position on the bike, but Foley had no clue what they meant. She sat too upright, they told her, and her pedal stroke looked awkward. Foley adjusted her saddle height—what else was there to do? “There are things that, unless somebody tells you about, you just don’t naturally know,” she says.

On the day the four women picked for the big ride, October 31, 2020, the weather in eastern Pennsylvania was chilly and bleak. Like many cyclists, Foley thought that aches were an inherent part of cycling, so when her knees started getting cranky, she figured she was just getting tired and cold. Plus, the group was having so much fun, so she just kept pedaling.

The knee pain became much sharper around mile 60, joined by discomfort in her hips and the pelvic area from the pressure on her pelvic bone. By the time the four women rolled back into the parking lot (greeted by friends with balloons in the shape of 100), Foley could barely walk. "[The celebration] was tainted by the fact that I actually was in a lot of pain."

I GOT INJURED FROM RIDING IN AN IMPROPER POSITION. I KNOW I COULD HAVE AVOIDED PAIN IF I'D PRIORITIZED GETTING A BIKE FIT.