There doesn’t seem to be a way to have a compact 160mm Alps/enduro bike that’s great when stood up bombing downhill but isn’t overly cramped when sat down peddling. I’m 5’8 and so have to have a medium frame to avoid it feeling like a gate. The geometry tends to be great for DH with shortish top tube and stem – but then overly cramped when you’re sat down.

In the past a layback seat post solves the problem – I’m not after XC race angles just a bigger distance between my arse and my fists when spinning back to the top of the hill. But now we all want dropper posts with no layback so that’s not an option anymore.

The only other fix I have found is to push my saddle as far back as it will go on the rails (well past the minimum safe position). Due to the nature of the bike (and my lack of super pro skills) this inevitably leads to bending of the saddle when the bike lands upside down at speed – and there is only so many times you can bend them back.

I did have a KS I900which had a tiny amount of layback but that recently died and my new one has none as all.

I suppose I have to resign myself to changing my saddle more often than my brake pads??

Here’s what I do – I have a Specialized Pitch, size large that I run with an 80mm stem, 140mm Pikes, and dropper post for most UK / trail centre style riding – good for going up and down with limited faff, although a compromise nonetheless.

I take the same bike, put a 160mm fork on it, a shorter seat posted saddle and drop it right down along with a 30mm stem – then take it to the Alps / uplift days etc. and it behaves impeccably – ok for short uphill sections, but mostly pointed downhill.

Wheels, tyres, rear shock, brakes, rotors, gears, bars stay the same.

It’s the best solution that I have found that works for me, without having a multitude of bikes and methods to transport them, along with a bike bit*h to sort them out for me.

I’m 5’10 and have mediums with short stem and wide bars, I have to have the saddle up quite high as I have long legs and short body so never feel cramped really.

Are you the opposite? long body, short legs?

Try a longer stem?

Get yourself a Yeti SB66 – they have freakishly long top tubes, TT on the medium is the same as my large Spicy

I’m 5’10 and ride mediums, never felt cramped on any of the usual suspects tbh (I’ve got a 50mm stem and the saddle right forward on the rails of my own medium Hemlock!)

Hmm maybe I have long arms – I am from the North and my knuckles do drag on the floor sometimes. While I am tying this I can barely seee the screen!

6ft on a medium Pitch here (70mm stem).

Just about manageable for 40mile loops in the Peaks/Lakes. If it was my main bike I’d probably have worn it out a bit more and justify gettign something an inch longer, but unless I move somewhere with more rocks that’s unlikleyto happen in the next few years.

adjustable stem……….

i remember a monkey on bikemagic back in days of yore trying to justify that suggestion to us- in that he would adjust his saddle and his stem at the top of any long descent.

having worked with a number of adjustable stems – i wouldnt trust them for riding to t’shops on my bike.

I have a 70mm stem and Im not going longer as the main point of the bike is for DH stuff – I suppose its always going to be a compromise.

I dropper post that somehow magically travels up and back at the same time – now that would be a winner!

I’m not being facetious but have you considering bending your arms more when sat down pedalling?

Short stem leads to awkward position

FWIW, I’m 5’10.5″ exactly, ride a 17.5″ Soul with 50mm stem and straight post and have ape-like arms (6’2″ armspan).

6 foot on an 18″ Orange Alpine 160. 50mm stem, 740 wide bars and saddle more or less central on an inline post.

Not cramped when pedalling, easy to bomb it downhill.

Either you’re a weird shape or you’re bike’s way too small…

chiefgrooveguru – My other bike is a soda which I believe is the same geometry as your Soul – medium frame, 70mm stem, inline post = lovely stretched out riding position. Cotics have nice long top tubes.

Unfortunately big trail bikes these days are alot more cramped. Iv had a Norco Six and now a Mondraker Dune – both mediums both cramped when peddaling – I was going to buy a Nomad but fortunately I tried my friendsefore hand – they are rrrrrediculously short!

Oh and yes I do know how to bend my arms 🙂 – Monkeys are the second most intelligent species don’t you know – I just like being a bit more stretched out when pedalling along.

6ft medium Pitch Owner here, w/60mm stem. It feels cramped on the climbs.

I keep meaning to get a 70mm stem but it’s such a rock-steady descender that I’m happy to put up with a bit of crampness on the climbs and spend the saved brass on a day out with the kids or beer.

Either you’re a weird shape or you’re bike’s way too small…

Just seen this and 😆

5ft 10. Medium Mondraker Foxy with 160mm fork, 50mm stem, wide bars. not cramped.

Yet another 6’er on a Medium Pitch here, stock stem (think it’s a 60mm) and 711mm bars. Have shorter legs and a longer torso and yes, it’s a little cramped on longer rides but then I’m 4″ taller than the OP! Feels fine as soon as the trail points down though.

Enough from all you tall show off’s! You clearly have little squity arms.
Where are all my long armed, vertically challenged friends. Come on, dont be shy…….

There is a definite wave towards a longer front centre on AM bikes.

The newer Commencals are long in the TT, as is the SB66 as someone mentioned. You can even go the whole hog and look at one of the Forward Geometry Mondrakers for a super long TT setup.

I’m on a medium Canyon Strive. I only find it cramped on steep technical uphills.

I’ve been toying with swapping the stem for something longer for XC duties but have yet to try it; largely because I’m not sure I can be bothered with the faff of changing it over!

You need the bar position / short stem for DH, so assuming that’s the priority and you also want to climb without looping out, I think you may need an inline post / saddle fwd position..

Get into a DH skier position off the bike. Reach fwd with your arms. The more you reach fwd, the more you stick your backside out to balance. C of G stays the same, through your feet. It’s very similar on the bike – if you need the bars where they are for handling and it’s a shorter-reach frame, then just sit further fwd to account for it and balance your c of g between the wheels better when pedalling uphill. It should help climbing balance, even if you don’t feel stretched out (an over-rated way to be on most non-race high-post bikes anyway, imo)

Counter-intuitive maybe, but you can play with seat-bar drop if you need to get lower over the front, and /or bend your arms a bit as suggested above. A longer TT will simply mean a longer reach (BB-headtube reach) and that shifts your weight fwd in relation to the BB – maybe not ideal for DH/Enduro handling. Or, climb stood up more.

I’m about 5’10” and ride a medium Dune with a 70mm stem fitted and it feels fine to me.

6 foot on an 18″ Orange Alpine 160. 50mm stem, 740 wide bars and saddle more or less central on an inline post.

Not cramped when pedalling, easy to bomb it downhill.

Either you’re a weird shape or you’re bike’s way too small…

That is weird.

I am exactly the same as every detail in that post. I can only assume you have seen me out somewhere and thought ‘I want to be just like him’. The height must have been the difficult bit.

I have the same opinion with the ride though. Doesn’t feel cramped at all. It must be the bike.

I do however find I standup at less of an incline than other riders. I don’t know what (if anything) this implies.

Wider bars can help give more room in the cockpit and effectively increase reach, as well as give more progressive control by moving your upper body further forward, which can also help both climbing and front grip when cornering by weighting the front wheel.

6’1″ with a 17″ dawg supreme. Layback 400mm post, 50mm stem with 760 mm bars. Not had any problems with it climbing, and once the seats down I can really throw it around on the gravity sections.

You have a Layback post – exactly what I mean – that would be fine, but you cant get Layback droppers

Joplin has a layback.
What about a bike with a slack seat tube. Look at the v2 Scott genius, the saddle at full height effectively moves away from the bars lengthening the cockpit, when lowered its more compact, forwards and away from you so you can get off the back easy.

I’m 5’10 and have mediums with short stem and wide bars, I have to have the saddle up quite high as I have long legs and short body so never feel cramped really.

+1

Cotic Rocket here and it fits well up and down, slack seat tube angle so the saddle seems to move away from the bars when you put it up.

5`7″, large Heckler, 160 talas, 70mm stem, and a layback ..
i hate being perched right over the pedals!

Fwiw – I rode my mate’s Alpine (small) and it felt no more cramped than my medium Pitch…

I’m 5″10 and I find most M to small. I’ve ride a L 2011 specislized enduro and a L Yeti ars5 carbon, both with 50mm stems and 780mm high rise bars and there both perfect for me.

I’m a shade under six foot but ride a medium SX Trail. I did try the large version but it felt like a total gate.

The SX is set up with a 50mm stem and a 780mm bar and feels slightly cramped on long climbs but not too bad.

Santa Cruz bikes are ridiculouy short. Leisure Lakes have a medium Butcher with some cash off it, lovely looking thing but the top tube is dinky. My Chameleon was a large and that felt pretty good.

What they need to make is a a stem that you can bolt an extra 40mm onto.

A large frame witha low standover may be a possible answer – a lot of my friends have gone up a frame size over the last couple of years and generally they find it doesn’t hamper their descending prowess in the slightest.

Try riding a bike that fits? Shouldn’t matter if it feels/looks like a gate – if it fits properly then your riding will be vastly improved…

Saying that ‘feel’ is a bit harder to fix that look, but if it fits you properly then it shouldn’t feel out of shape.

You have a Layback post – exactly what I mean – that would be fine, but you cant get Layback droppers

Specialized blacklite command post is layback

Enough from all you tall show off’s! You clearly have little squity arms.
Where are all my long armed, vertically challenged friends. Come on, dont be shy…….

5’6″ northern knuckle dragger here. Well not so much of a knuckle dragger, but short legged, long back. I tried a few bikes and found them all to be short in the top tube. Even medium frames. Eventually settle on a small Yeti SB66c. Perfect fit for me with a 55mm stem.