Hi

at 4ft 10 she’s on a 13″ Spec Myka, which works well but she is getting neck ache on longer rides, I’ve improved her rucksack (Evoc, proper padding and waist chest straps), and am now wondering about a shorter more upright stem.

Current stem is 60 os, so I guess 40 os is best I can do but was wondering about the adjustable ones, in a nearly straight up position(*she’s a very gentle rider) so I could raise the bar height a bit.

Any other thoughts/ suggestions – thanks

ditch the rucksac, higher shorter stem

so tempting 😉

what TJ suggested though.

+2 on what TJ said.

How is the length of reach?
mrs_oab found a world of difference between a weeny Orange clockwork and her weeny Cannondale. The shorter TT and stem of the dale is wonderful and the bike fits so well. So, as TJ says, play with some short stems.

go out for a bike ride I can’t think of anything helpful, sorry

Neck ache? Accompanied with cramp in the jaw and muddy knees? ….. 😯

Needs BJT to strengthen the neck muscles.

One of these, maybe ?

Also, you get a bigger back pack and carry all her kit as well.

Higher rise bar?

What’s the angle of dangle like on her brake levers? Too low can cause tension and hunching of the shoulders. Try having them flatter than you might think.

Ritchey do some adjustable stems, but not sure how short – I have a 110mm for experimentation purposes.

Look at her neck when she rides, she may be craning her neck and pushing her chin forward – overextension.

If so then check that the peak of her helmet is not getting in the way of her looking out the top of her eyes, causing her to crane her neck.

She may also do this at work when staring at the computer, so you would need to address this. McKenzie’s book “Treat your own neck” has some exercises for the neck.