Back in March I had the opportunity to visit Retul University in Denver to obtain my fitting certification. I’ve sat in on a hand-full of fittings here at the Bicycle Studio as John led the fittings as he has been doing for the past 15 years including 3 years with Retul. With a degree in Kinesiology I found it fairly easy to comprehend the basics of the fits. But when it came to reading and dissecting the data, I found myself overwhelmed with information. So the visit to Retul University was the ideal learning opportunity for myself to get a solid base of knowledge on Retul.
Before we could participate in the class we had to complete prerequisite lessons and tests that would be covered in the three days that we were at the Retul Studio. The lessons learned were basic bike fitting topics that would help us improve our ability and knowledge of fitting such as basic anatomy, basic exercise physiology, the fit flow, marker placement, physical assessment and assessing the Retul data ranges. Once we are able to confirm that we understood these basic concepts, it was on to the big show.
I must admit that I walked into this learning experience a little intimidated. I didn’t know what to expect going into this course, I imagined the usual “college” experience of sitting in a lecture hall full of hung over students from the nights “study session” as the professor rambles on about how the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is responsible for the production of the protein or something of that sort. But my fears were quickly diminished the moment I walked into the Retul Studio and met one of the founders; Todd Carver and his Retul Staff.
The best part of the class was that our instructor was Todd Carver; since he is one of the founders we got a good look into why and how the system works and the ins and outs of the Retul 3D system. So it was no question that Todd knew his stuff and he’s done his fair share of fits. To name a few here is a small list of his past fits: The U23 Livestrong Team, Lance Armstrong, Craig Alexander, Tim DeBoom, Chris Lieto, Team Garmin-Cervelo, Team Radio Shack and the list goes on and on. So it was no question that we were getting our money’s worth with the knowledge that Todd brought to the table.
During my three days at Retul University all three of us fitters had the opportunity to practice out fitting on actual Retul customers. Each day we had about four clients of different ability and riding styles. While Todd led the fits we were all hands on in the process, each fitter was assigned a duty for each client. Once we gathered the data we carefully studied and discussed what we found, then as a group we conversed on to what we thought would be the best way to correct the client’s current position. The fits lasted about two hours each, and at the end of each fit we sat down together to discuss any questions we had or where we could improve on our fits.
The information I learned in these 3 days at the Retul Studio was more then I expected. Some of the information was overwhelming in that every fit we did was different then our previous fit. What we learned from the previous fit necessarily couldn’t be taken into to the next fit. Each rider that comes in has a different style, purpose and or issue, and that is the beauty of Retul. There are no generalizations that apply to fitting a rider, each rider will have a unique fit and experience when they come in to use the Retul system.
Though I may have received my certification with Retul, my education of becoming a better fitter hasn’t stop. The data doesn’t lie but to be a good fitter one must also be able to look past the numbers and look at the riders themselves. This is why for each client’s we do an extensive evaluation of there riding history, medical history and future goals. Here at the Bicycle Studio when we have a client come in for a Retul fitting that John will usually lead, I find myself learning something new in every fit we do. With his background in Physical Therapy, John brings a very valuable, unique style and knowledge that you won’t get with other fits in the business. I look forward to the ongoing learning process that John and the Retul System bring as well as helping each client reach their cycling needs and goals.
