What difference does bike geometry make?

What difference does bike geometry make?

A bike’s geometry determines two very important things: how the bike handles and your position on it. At one extreme are bikes designed for racing. Their geometry will typically give you more edgy handling for a ride that’s more responsive.

What makes a bike have better handling?

Ride in a Straight Line When you are out on your next ride, hug the line on the side of the road. Practice looking over your shoulder and NOT veering off the line. Stay relaxed and bend your elbows. This skill will help you better control your bike when you are riding in a group.

How does fork rake affect handling?

Increasing the amount of fork rake will have the opposite effect: as the amount of trail gets smaller, the front wheel is less likely to follow the direction of the bike.

Are stiffer frames faster?

Both Sturdy and the representatives from Specialized confirmed that in blind tests, riders have failed to pick out a stiffer frame when directly asked. Instead, many find they’re faster on a bike with more give – sometimes even attributing this to ‘more stiffness’. Because ‘stiffness’ and ride quality are subjective.

How does front center affect handling?

For a given rear-centre length, a longer front-centre reduces the proportion of the rider’s weight supported by the front wheel. This can reduce front-wheel traction unless the rider moves their riding position forwards, or the rear-centre is made longer too.

What does a steeper head angle do?

A steeper head angle makes the bike much more responsive at lower speeds and can help the rider maneuver the bike through slower, tighter, and more technical terrain.

Is a stiff bike frame good?

The stiffness of your frame plays a very large role in how your bike feels underneath you. People often talk about bikes having a ‘dead’ feeling when they’re too stiff, a ‘noodly’ feeling when they’re too flexy and a ‘lively’ feeling when they’re just stiff enough.

Why is a stiff bike good?

Strengthening them makes for a snappier, more reactive, better handling frame.” The targets for this stiffness – and resultant good handling – don’t change much between a road race and an endurance bikes, according to Specialized.

How does fork offset affect handling?

By reducing the fork rake (offset), the head angle remains the same for stability at high speed and down steep and rough trails, but the wheel is closer to the steering axis for better handling, especially at slower speeds.

What does increasing the rake do?

Generally speaking (meaning there are exceptions) the greater the rake angle, the more stable the motorcycle is at higher speeds. To better understand this, visualize a motorcycle with 0 degrees of rake, with the forks straight up and down, perpendicular to the ground.

Does head angle affect reach?

That’s because the head angle is not vertical – so, the longer the head tube, the further back the top of it becomes, and so the shorter the reach measurement.

How does head tube angle affect ride?

Seat tube angles range from about 70-75 degrees. A steeper angle moves the saddle forward while a shallower angle moves it back. Steep is fine for racers. It allows them to ride hard in an aero crouch, as the more open hip angle doesn’t constrain breathing or power transfer.

How does stem angle affect steering?

“A very long stem with a short top tube can slow the handling. If a rider’s hands are very far ahead of the steering axis it can be harder to steer at low speeds.” Ultimately, the steering of a bike is dictated by its head angle and trail—not stem length—but the stem can enhance or dull it to some degree.