At Interbike, I visited the American Classic booth, and I got a chance to pick up a seat post I had read about before the show. (I haven't used this post. If you have, write a comment. Make sure to state your yearly mileage, so we have a reference point on amount of use of the component.)
The clamp on the seat post is designed so that it will hold the saddle firmly, but you can tilt the saddle to lower one side. So, if you have one leg that is shorter than the other, you can tilt that side of the saddle a bit lower. And, then, since the saddle is lower, you don't have to place a shim (special piece of plastic) under your cycling shoe to raise your hip higher. (Many athletes who are now avid cyclists, broke or dislocated a leg, ankle, knee playing football, basketball, soccer, etc. On the bike over tons of miles, small differences in leg lengths created by an old injury add up to lots of discomfort. So this seat post let's a cyclist address leg length discrepancy by lowering the hip, instead of raising the level of the foot.
If you read this and think, "Oh, I busted my leg in high school, maybe that is why my hip might be killing me on long rides!" You may be able to solve your issue with a few books on bicycle fitting, a pizza pie, and a riding buddy to give you feedback about your position on the bike while you are experimenting with new settings. Or you can go to a certified bike fitter. Books and measurements don't work for everyone. And riding long miles in the wrong position can damage your joints. (Think about playing soccer for a season in the wrong-sized cleats.) Shimming things when you don't know what you are doing can cause other problems. Cleat positioning on your cycling shoes, and the height, length, and angle of your body in the best relationship to your handle bars, stem, fork, frame, and bottom bracket are what a fitter determines. The people who know what they are doing when it comes to fitting usually (not always) but usually have spent a large part of their career fitting people with unique physical characteristics and a history of a past injury. They are pricey. But if you are experiencing discomfort on the bike, before you buy this seatpost, make an appointment for a bike fitting. (Specs after the jump.)
Photo taken by Wheelgirl at Interbike Vegas 2007. Other photo lifted from the American Classic site.
This is taken from the American Classic site.
- Two different types of posts offered by American Classic:
- Road post
- Mountain post
- Both designed to work with industry standard 7mm-round saddle rails
- Both have set back of 25.4mm (1 inch).
- Length:
- Road 235mm
- Mountain 350mm
- Both are 27.2 in diameter.
- Both are offered in black.
- Weight:
- Road is 150gms.
- Mountain is 200 gms.
- Both seat posts can be reversed to create an offset position.
