I'm going to engage in a little shop talk to bike fitters right now and if that's not you you're welcome to read, but apologies in advance for catering to a narrow slice of our readership.

We still think proper bike fit matters around here. That might seem argumentative and in truth it's unfair to suggest that the major brands have stepped back from that view. So I'll explain but, before I do, here's where you go if you simply want to sign up for our March 20-24 F.I.S.T. Bike Fit Workshop. (Registration is here for our Autumn 2023 Workshop, November 6-10.)

If you consider the big brands en masse – Trek, Cannondale, Giant, Shimano, Specialized – each planned and spent significantly on well-conceived dynamic fit initiatives. If you look at that same group of 5 I think it's fair to say that most of them (I don't pretend to speak for them all) no longer feel that the job of bike fit has to be done by their retailers. I'm sure a number of them believe that the bike fitter is more important now than ever; they just don't think they need that fitter to work in their stores. They no longer believe that a fully-vested, professional, tool-intensive bike fit session is a required part of the bike sale transaction.

The brands that think this have a point. But if we go to any grand fondo or triathlon I think we'll agree that the need for a proper bike fit remains. It's just now more likely to occur in a fit studio, or by a coach-fitter, or in an independent high-end bike retail store. Maybe by a physical therapist with a bike-fit-centric practice. Less so in big brand company stores.

In triathlon, a wrench just got thrown into fit because of the new full-length forearm aerobars. I wrote recently about the incidence of these bars in the age group race in Kona, versus in the pro race. Not only are these aerobars moving to the age groupers, they influence fit.

This means our upcoming bike fit workshop, March 20-24, will not be the same as in years past, as we will reckon with these bars and the positional changes that attach thereto. Beyond that, the saddles are changing. I wrote about those as well. Accordingly, in this workshop upcoming we'll work with saddles and aerobars we haven't had at our previous workshops, and we'll instruct on how to fit with these.

I might add that the landscape is changing a bit, and bike fitters are a more likely place to purchase bikes and accessories that will remake the transition areas at triathlons worldwide, North America included. We know of bike brands now whose sales outlets consist exclusively of bike fitters.

As to that upcoming March 20-24 F.I.S.T. Bike Fit Workshop here are a few details. It's Monday thru Friday, $1,395 total with a $495 deposit and the balance paid when you're here. Most folks stay at the B&B next door. You may bring a bike or borrow one of ours. We have a size run of OPEN WI.DE gravel bikes, SRAM electronic mullet 1x, HED Emporia 27.5" wheels with 53mm tires, ideal for the gravel we have. Our rides are optional, some folks run the whole time (road or offroad), and we offer a number of opportunities to swim for those who must swim. (A number among our staff will swim at least once during the workshop.)

We are not COVID-restricted. Our workshops are indoor-outdoor, and we're spaced so as to, hopefully, avoid transmission. We are all somewhere between triple and quintuple COVID vaccinated, and I believe we'll all have had the flu vaccine as well. (My blood is by now 20 percent vaccine I think.) But we no longer require vaccines or masks of attendees.

One final related note: Many of you who're bike fitters have bemoaned the difficulty in getting the fit bike you want at the price you want. If you're looking for equipment we have scoured the earth for new and used fit bikes of the kind we believe are most appropriate for dynamic bike fits. We have a few dozen now we're going to try to find good homes for. Please contact us if you are looking for a fairly-priced unit on the secondary market.

(Registration is here for our Autumn 2023 Workshop, November 6-10.)