Help with Frame size

[piegrande14]

I am a 6′ 2" 190, but with relatively short arms to my size; on a dress shirt a wear a 33-34 sleeve. I am thinking very seriously about a 2009 Trek Fuel EX 8 that was a demo for a weekend and is selling for $1,800; great deal, wouldn’t you say? The bike is in pristine condition and only has a little mood on the tires.

The problem is that I used to ride a trek YZ 26 frame size 19.5" this bike is 18.5". Now the the sales dude (earns no commission on sales) claims that the owner is my size and rides 18.5" because is easier to maneuver and balance. This makes sense to me, but even if is a great deal (tell me if is not please) getting the right frame size is crucial. The parking lot ride felt ok, but not totally convinced because it feels very different from what I have. In addition, I hate parking lot rides because this is not where the rubber meets the road, it’s in the dirt, rocks, mood, and crazy descents 😃 I know you agree with me on hating the parking lot try…

I would say I am a intermediate to advance rider, but out of shape because in the last 1.5 years I have been moving so much that my bike is in storage in Colorado Springs. For those who know the gem in the middle of Colorado Springs called palmer park, I was able to ride over 90 % of the trails. Much better at downhill than up, I would say. Palmer park really is a mountain biker paradise because is in your backyard and it has all kinds of trails and levels of difficulty. I bought my YZ 26 in 2003 and I feel that I need an upgrade anyways. I want to get back to MTB in a very serious way. Please share your thoughts.

Thanks

[Steven_Ned]

Can you take it on a little more than parking lot ride? Maybe some grassy hills nearby or down some steps? that way you can gauge a little better if the size will suite you.

Sounds like a pretty good deal to me but you know what you’ll need in terms of fit.

[trailrider247]

i would just go use this fit calculator here http://www.competitivecyclist.com/za/CC … ATOR_INTRO, then i would go to http://www.trekbikes.com to check out the geometry on the bike your looking at to see if it could work for you.

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