Gravel Fit LabHow you’d sit · 4-bike compare
EXAMPLE RIDER · edit below
178cm · INSEAM 84cm · ARM 58
TORSO 47 · SHOE 42.5 · FLEX toe-touch · GOAL comfort/adventure
178cm · INSEAM 84cm · ARM 58
TORSO 47 · SHOE 42.5 · FLEX toe-touch · GOAL comfort/adventure
Edit measurements (example rider)
Model: saddle height from LeMond (0.883×inseam = 742 mm). Limb lengths from your height/arm/torso. Joint angles are solved from the saddle↔handlebar triangle. Numbers are a solid planning estimate, not a substitute for an in-person fit. Cube/Rose head angles are approximate; Canyon angles are from published charts.
Choose a bike
Tune the cockpit — see live effect
Saddle height (BB→top)742 mm
Stem length100 mm
Spacers under stem20 mm
Saddle setback (fore/aft)0 mm
Your position
Back angle
42 ° from level
Hip opening
53 °
Knee bend
31 ° at BDC
Saddle→bar drop
103 mm
🦒 Neck craning to look ahead
48° extension
Estimate of how far you crane your neck back to keep your eyes on the road — it grows as the bars drop (≈ 90° − back angle).
🩺 Lower-back load MODERATE
Moderate forward lean (42° back angle, 53° hip). Rideable, but with a sensitive lower back and average (toe-touch), longer rides may start to ache as you hold this flexed position. The tweaks below pull you more upright.
- →Raise the bar: add spacers (try 35 mm) — each +10 mm lifts your torso ~1–1.5°.
- →Shorten reach: a 80 mm stem brings the bars back and opens your hip.
- →Core/hamstring mobility lets your back tolerate a lower bar later — but start high and earn the drop.
✋ Weight on hands MODERATE
Roughly 19% of your body weight is carried through your hands here (the rest sits on the saddle). Middling — fine for shorter spins, but a slightly higher bar will take pressure off your wrists for longer days.
Compare all four (each at stock setup, rec size)
BACK ANGLE — higher = more upright = easier on the back
Grizl S43° back
Grail S44° back
Cube S·5341° back
Rose S43° back
SADDLE→BAR DROP — lower bar = more reach for your back/hands
Grizl S113 mm drop
Grail S101 mm drop
Cube S·53141 mm drop
Rose S118 mm drop
Disclaimers
- •A solid planning estimate, not a substitute for an in-person bike fit; it can't see real flexibility under load or pedaling dynamics.
- •Canyon angles are from published charts; Cube/Rose head-tube angles are approximate.
- •Saddle height uses the LeMond rule (0.883 × inseam); limb lengths are anthropometric estimates from height; joint angles are solved from the saddle↔handlebar triangle.