Too Tall – the benefits of bigger wheels is in the way they roll over obstacles and by providing greater traction. This applies to riders of all sizes

I think my bosses wife asked me something similar the other day about my height (5` 8″) and the 29er I was about to put together. It seems that just recently theres a bit of a question mark over the starting height that folk would be best suited to get the leg over a 29er. I can’t remember this years ago.. it just seems to be.. today! (I have just built up this spearfish and someone mentioned if I was a little short to get the benefit from a 29er)

If they are better for people 6` tall and over but also not so great for someone 3 inches shorter.. when squatting over a bike with arms and legs flexed,what difference is 3-5 inches in overall height really going to make?!

Its like the snowboard sizing thing of years gone by. Like saying that a 6 ft tall boarder should be on a certain size of board but its not going to be useable for another rider at 5`4″… when they both weight the same.

What was the thing about the board meeting with yer chin or nose as an indication of sizing? lol

Excuse the steerer length.
spearfish complete built easter sunday 2012 by martinxyz, on Flickr

What!? I need a new snow board! What’s the latest niche? I’ll have one in red please. Nice bike by the way.

Hence why I am confused by the little people forcing geometry to fit the same wheels that work so well for me.

I know what you’re saying (and part of me agrees, though part of me also thinks “let someone do what they want”), but to quote you… “The little people”.

Could you sound any more condescending if you tried? Or do you really look/feel/act like Gulliver in Lilliput? 😕

Not a self portrait of rocket dog climbing on his bike after all. My feelings were hurt…until I saw a picture of rocketdog. Now I can safely disregard his opinions based on the way he looks…

That’s not Rocketdog… He’s about 6ft3 and has a grey bushy beard… The fella in that pic is his friend mtbmaff on here… RD, does Matt know you’re posting pics of him willingly? 😉

Its like the snowboard sizing thing of years gone by. Like saying that a 6 ft tall boarder should be on a certain size of board but its not going to be useable for another rider at 5`4″… when they both weight the same.

Kind of, but… With snowboards you can get varying different degrees of flex built into a board, different widths, different styles for different riding etc. Snowboard length is probably more of a variable based upon a combination of your size and height, but also your riding style etc. than Mountain Bike sizing is (well XC MTB sizing anyway). I’m just under 5ft11 and the last board I bought was a 158. Should have been absolutely perfect for me as an all round general riding board. Problem was it was quite stiff, and when I bought it I was a massive 9 1/2 stone! It only rode well if I was giving it 10/10th’s the whole time. Expect it would ride a whole lot better now though that I’m 12 stone…

cheers,its a mixture of some nice parts with some right dog parts.worked out o.k. though.

I tried riding an old board I have had since 95-ish and I got on fine with it when I was 11 stone.

Plonk 13.5 stone on it.. it didn’t move!

Or do you really look/feel/act like Gulliver in Lilliput?

In the cycling world, most of the time. You think calling myself TooTall and talking about little people in a thread about Hobbits is out of context? I’m 6’7″ tall and ride a 21″ ScandAL, a 23″ Sultan and a 27″ (72cm) Cannondale road bike. It has taken a lifetime to get those bikes in my sizes because I am taller than 99% of the people on the planet and as such, bikes aren’t made in my size.

I get the wheels rolling aspect working for everyone. However, the down sides seem to outweigh that single aspect. What you see depends where you are standing so I’m seeing this from the end where 29ers make sense for us giants.

That’s not Rocketdog… He’s about 6ft3 and has a grey bushy beard…

Oi! It’s only partly grey! 🙂

This thread is about bikes for shire folk, not trolls. Thank you.

I demoed a small Giant Anthem 29er which was good fun, and the only Giant bike I’ve demoed and liked. At 5ft 2, I’m far more hobbity than the OP!

It did look fairly silly though.

last time I checked, sub 6ft people were still riding 700c road bikes. TooTall, do you think 29ers were invented so tall people wouldn’t look silly on 26″ bikes? Riders choose FRAME size based on height/measurements, not WHEEL size.

Riders choose FRAME size based on height/measurements, not WHEEL size.

If you exclude the other aspects of the bike and it’s geometry then yes. However, the total bike is what matters and what it is used for. I think there is a point where smaller road wheels would make more sense for smaller riders as well.

If you exclude the other aspects of the bike and it’s geometry then yes

What other aspects? The only two I can think of are, potentially, a higher front end than equivalent 26 bike, which can usually be remedied with bars and/or stem (if it’s a problem for the rider in the first place)…and again, potentially, toe overlap issues. I’m 5ft 9 & have size 11 feet. No problems.

Tootall and rocketdog – here’s a thread for you guys http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/big-bike-for-bigtall-rider . I’m sure they would appreciate your advice.

martinxyz – That Spearfish looks lovely, you must be over the moon with it 8)

I’ve seen a few pics of negative rise stems on 29er’s to get a low front end.

I’m running a +10 degree stem at 5ft 7 and it still makes the bars a good few inches lower than my seat without it feeling any higher than my previous 26″ wheel bikes.

I’m not trolling, a massively negative rise stem on a bike means only one thing to me, the Bike wasn’t designed for that size rider

Using the “pros use them like that” argument holds no water either, pros are paid wages to ride whatever the bike company is promoting at that time and they’d be fast on anythe wheel size

I am taller than 99% of the people on the planet and as such, bikes aren’t made in my size.

Wow, the odds must be astronomically low then of having a forum with 4-5 people around this height then. Can’t help but feel using world wide stats is rubbish, there’s loads of big bikes around. Some brands are out, but the same applies for shorter riders (doesn’t it MrsToast 😛 ).

You see lots of 6’2″ish riders agonising over large or extra large, yet add 5 inches and suddenly you need a custom made metal horse to ride around on. Were you 7 foot I could vaguely understand.

I’ve bought plenty of bikes that have been too small, in a similar way I’ve ended up with a bit of a collection of bits and bikes/brands that actually fit. They’re hardly obscure though.

Currently riding a 22″ Orange Five, which is huge, 21″ Scandal 29er and a 61cm Tricross. Specialized bikes I find to be big, the Pitch for example is one of the longest 140mm bikes I’ve ever seen. If the Scandal fits you, an XL Pitch/Enduro would easily, you can get away with running a long seatpost and not ending up in a stupid position.

Edit: Actually, to bring this in line with your list of custom bikes. Turner seem to make fairly short bikes, most brands XL is the same length as their 2XL.

Statistically wealthier people are taller.

Cycling is a wealthy sport.

6’7″ is comfortably in the top 1% of people – from my son’s height charts (since he’s projected to be 6’6″ – 6’7″) it’s actually around the 99.6 centile (for males only) which means top 0.4% of males heightwise.

Could you vertically gifted riders please move over to http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/big-bike-for-bigtall-rider ? Many thanks.

Clubber – are you trolling to? Shame on you.

Is that in the UK specifically?

Asia accounts for 60% of the worlds population, and the average height is 5’5″. The average height in the UK or US, where the frames are built is 5’10”.

Edit: “Could you vertically gifted riders please move over” – apologies, I read that after posting 🙂

rOcKeTdOg – Member
I’m not trolling, a massively negative rise stem on a bike means only one thing to me, the Bike wasn’t designed for that size rider

See – I think they look bluddy cool. Much better than a massive “riser” stem. Zero degree stems have been around for years – it’s not a 29er thing.

A hobbit on a 29er…

You Ents banging on about your 29ers and how they’re the future, and then us hobbits want one and you’re rushing to point out they’re not for the likes of us!

It’s a squeeze. New long offset forks make it more feasible as you can have short tt’s and minimise the chance of toe overlap. Rigid specific bikes are better again as you can have a custom offset fork and also make it shorter. With a suspension fork someone 5’6″ is going to struggle to get bars lower than the saddle – so bear that in mind.

It’s also about weight distribution between wheels, the smaller person is able to move their centre of gravity less distance than a taller rider. I believe this is why those people who find 29ers “impossible to wheelie” or “cumbersome in tight stuff” tend to be shorter. Whereas for taller people they just feel natural.

While for people seeking specific attributes it’s possible a 5’4″ rider is perfectly happy on a 29er, just as a 6’2″ person is happy on 20″ wheels, in general I subscribe to the theory that wheel size should be proportionate to frame size.

Toasty – Member
Is that in the UK specifically?

Yes, UK specific – as provided by the NHS.

I know loads of people similar height to me (6’5″) but then I spent 15 years doing a sport in which it’s a big advantage to be tall. Seeing a few tall people together on say a cycling forum that tends to be populated by whiny something bags that are wealthier than the country average says nothing about height statistics on a country-wide scale.

Back to the point though, I don’t think a negative rise stem inherently says that a design is bad, it’s more when you start having to run overly long top tubes/wheelbases or overly steep seat tubes and so on to fit a small rider on bigger wheels (eg compromising geometry) that you have to question whether it’s right for them. A negative rise stem has no fundamental effect on geometry (a silly short head tube and flat stem could achieve the same position) but just allows for a reasonable length head tube.

FWIW, I have a -ve rise stem on my 29er but that’s because I have relatively long forks on it and Swifts have overly long (for my preferences) head tubes.

Seems to me that it’s just taken a while for the geometry to be beta tested to work on the extremes of rider sizes.

I tried a 5’6″ friends BeOne 29er a few years back and thought “barge” and dismissed them out of hand. Then after the good reviews Trek 69ers got and seeing a mate on a Salsa 29er eeking traction out where better riders on 26″ bikes were struggling, I reassessed my views.

Now my 26″ 100mm sus forked singlespeed has become a rigid 69er and I love it. All that rolling benefit of the gert big wheel up front with almost the same geometry and feel in other respects. So much so I’m building up another.

Toe overlap can be an issue if you have short top tubes and have a steep head angle but with the general trend for “slacker is better” it shouldn’t be so much of a problem.

Over the moon with it lol. Yes,it’s nice. Amazing descender. Still prefer climbing with 26″ wheels though.. funnily enough. :O)

The mid rise bar is all I had kicking about so I’ve left the cables and hose too long ready for a wide bar to go on. The front end is quite high but I still managed some steep climbs that usually have me off walking so to be able to do it with those risers bars.. I’m impressed.

I stopped at the top of a climb on it’s first ride and attempted to flip the risers upside down.. It looked hideous! I then started panicking at the thought of another rider appearing and spotting the stupidity.I was now rushing to get it back to normal. I took a pic of it on the phone as it was quite funny. Even if it did feel better there was no way I was about to continue the ride on a clown bike that had just been transformed into the king of all clown bikes. Sore sides on steep climbs don’t go down too well.

clubber – Member

Statistically wealthier people are taller.

They have significantly shorter lifespans too, so i guess its a ying with every yang!!

They are welcome to their wealth of statistics. I’d prefer to be short and financially loaded.

I’m 5’6 1/2″ (don’t forget the 1/2″) and i’m really happy with my fish. Rode it last weekend crc marathon in Builth wells and it was ace.
http://i44.tinypic.com/5drv9i.jpg%5B/IMG%5D%5D

If you’re after a HT, the Chumba HX2 has bags of standover for it’s size.

I’m 5’11” with a 32.5″ inside leg (non-hobbit despite being from a ‘shire) and ride with a 410mm Thomson post that is about 25mm below the minimum insertion on a medium (18″) frame, so the 16″ one would give even the dinkiest of legs loads of space.

My mate has ridden it and he’s a generous 5’8″ with 30″ inside leg and he’s fine on this size – the stems a bit long but other than that he doesn’t bang his bits on the top tube 😳

This photo gives you a good idea of standover available, BTW it has a 90mm zero rise stem for all the inverted stem haters out there 😆

I only seem to ride 29ers these days and I’m 5’3″ Big Gary Fisher fan and the latest treks are Gary Fisher Geometry.

They suit my type of riding, bike fits me better than my previous bikes. Yes the wheels look big compared to the frame but who cares I love my bike!

It’s also about weight distribution between wheels, the smaller person is able to move their centre of gravity less distance than a taller rider. I believe this is why those people who find 29ers “impossible to wheelie” or “cumbersome in tight stuff” tend to be shorter. Whereas for taller people they just feel natural.

The first person to ride that ^ spearfish as soon as it left the shop door was a scottish dh champion.. he is the same height as myself and the first thing he done after a few figure of 8’s was wheelie it about 60ft up the road. As soon as I got on it I popped a wheelie myself. It must be the riser bar. It just asks to be wheelied!

He actually said he really liked it and ‘quite fancied getting one himself’

This size of spearfish under someone around 5’6″ – 5’8″ feels like a cruiser bmx with bigger wheels out front and back.. but with the right cockpit length,no toe/tyre problems either. Salsa have nailed it.

You see lots of 6’2″ish riders agonising over large or extra large, yet add 5 inches and suddenly you need a custom made metal horse to ride around on. Were you 7 foot I could vaguely understand.

Thank you for being so understanding – no, really. If you look at manufacturers geometry charts their outside height recommendation is 6’6″ at the very best on their bigger bikes. There is almost no market for them to make bikes for the extremes of the height ranges – no profit in the numbers – so few bikes are made. It doesn’t matter whether you think global or national statistics are best – bikes are not normally available for the 6’7″ rider with a 40″ standover.

Edit: Actually, to bring this in line with your list of custom bikes. Turner seem to make fairly short bikes, most brands XL is the same length as their 2XL.

Despite your assertations, none of my bikes are custom. They are all OTP. The Turner was the first bike I ever managed to test ride and it felt better than anything else I’d ridden – overall design and geometry make it for me.
I’ve been told more times than I care to remember (by people who haven’t seen me and the bikes) that I don’t need such big bikes. However, everyone who sees me+bike says they fit. Funny old world the internet.

Anyway – back to the little people and their teeny tiny frames on clown wheels 😀

Too tall – thanks for the first patronising comment of the day. Have you had any thing to say on the ‘bikes for taller riders’ thread yet?

Have you had any thing to say on the ‘bikes for taller riders’ thread yet?

Nope – no view on bikes with that much suspension.

*pats redfordrider on the head and ruffles his hair before riding off*

Tootall – what about this thread http://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/being-tall ? Go on, play with someone your own size for a change. Anthem 29er only has 100mm of travel.

* goes off to research correlation between height and cyber bullies*