Menu+

Retooling for the Tour: Inside Tom Danielson’s new bike fit

  • By Caley Fretz
  • Published Jun. 9, 2011
  • Tom Danielson has a good shot at making Garmin-Cervelo's Tour de France squad after his performance at the Tour of California. He recently brought his time trial bike into fit specialists Retul to get it dialed in for the rest of the season. Retul uses three-dimensional motion capture technology to fit riders while they're in motion, eliminating the guesswork behind many traditional fitting methods. This wireless LED harness allows Retul to track position and motion at multiple points on the body.
  • RetŸul's software maps a rider's position.
  • Tom Danielson brought both his road (Cervelo S3, shown here) and time trial (Cervelo P4) bikes in to Retul so his biomechanical and fit coordinate data could be recorded.
  • Danielson is hoping to make Garmin-Cervelo's Tour de France squad after a strong Amgen Tour of California.
  • Danielson all wired up on his P4 time trial bike. His saddle was raised 5mm, helping to open up at the ankle and rotate his pelvis, improving power output.
  • Opening up Danielson's ankle was a priority. He had been dropping his heel in an attempt to maintain a good knee angle despite low saddle height.
  • Danielson looks at images of himself during the fit.
  • Danielson gets the run-down on his data.
  • Danielson's bars were moved up and back. His 100mm, -17 degreeš 3T stem was swapped out for a 90mm, -6 degreeš version.
  • Danielson's body measurements after his Retul fit.
  • These photos show Danielson's leg angles at 6 o'clock, before and after his fit.
  • The fit details of Tom Danielson's TT bike after his fit. His saddle rose 5mm, and his bars were brought backwards and upwards.

FILED UNDER: Bikes and Tech TAGS: / /

Caley Fretz

Caley Fretz

Caley came on board with the VN tech department in September 2010. Beyond his journalistic pursuits, Caley is a category 1 road, 'cross and track racer, and pro mountain biker.