Adapting and Installing Thor Seat to Vendetta

[Jeffrey Ritter]

Hi. I am looking seriously at upgrading to V 2.0 with a Thor seat (L size) to improve my racing speed. Thanks to Doug Kline who allowed me to test my fit on his and it seemed very close

But, due to my "stiff neck" I need the shoulder support of the Thor due to the limited vertical range of motion on my neck. I've seen the great posts on how to install a Thor, but have two questions:

1. Has anyone made further adaptations to improve the 'elevation' or sight line of the rider and, if so, how? Pics would be welcomed or PM of course.

2. Has anyone (Larry Oslund?) done any performance testing to see what impact a Thor seat may have on power output and/or loss of aero efficiency vs. the seat that comes with the V 2.0?

Thanks in advance.

 

[ReklinedRider]

I’ve recently completed a Thor installation with the main goal being to completely obviate the need for the head/neck rest due to the roughness of our local roads. Relying on a headrest here leads to so much head banging that I had subconsciously begun to prefer my diamond frame bike.

Although the sight line was never a problem to me with the stock seat, this new installation definitely improves it for the better. Due to winter daylight and weather restrictions, work, illness, and now a non-biking related shoulder injury (argghh!) i’ve had very little on-road time but there’s no doubt aero will be affected. To what extent i can’t say; my guess is it will be similar to the S30. Maybe the S40, maybe somewhere in between. From a comfort standpoint, very comfortable on the trainer. Nearly upright head/neck position with no straining.

I posted prelim pics awhile back on the head/neck angle thread but have been unable to post pics of the completed project due to the recent forum changes. Happy to text pics to you or, if there’s a simple way to post a link on here, that’ll work too, I just need simple instructions, and I do mean simple—I continue to be computer illiterate in many ways!

 

[Mathew Fy]

I think you need to compare a smaller seat that may push your shoulders up earlier.
I wish I had measured and photographed my before and after Thor seat and Adem head-rest conversion. The change raises the head and shoulders a little and allows the head to be a few degrees more vertical.
I have no power measurements to back-up, but with the Thor it feels like I can push more aggressively when the shoulders are held from sliding backwards. I do suspect having the head & shoulders elevated will worsen Cd.
For me the improved comfort wins out.

 

[Jeffrey Ritter]

I’ve recently completed a Thor installation with the main goal being to completely obviate the need for the head/neck rest due to the roughness of our local roads. Relying on a headrest here leads to so much head banging that I had subconsciously begun to prefer my diamond frame bike.

Although the sight line was never a problem to me with the stock seat, this new installation definitely improves it for the better. Due to winter daylight and weather restrictions, work, illness, and now a non-biking related shoulder injury (argghh!) i’ve had very little on-road time but there’s no doubt aero will be affected. To what extent i can’t say; my guess is it will be similar to the S30. Maybe the S40, maybe somewhere in between. From a comfort standpoint, very comfortable on the trainer. Nearly upright head/neck position with no straining.

I posted prelim pics awhile back on the head/neck angle thread but have been unable to post pics of the completed project due to the recent forum changes. Happy to text pics to you or, if there’s a simple way to post a link on here, that’ll work too, I just need simple instructions, and I do mean simple—I continue to be computer illiterate in many ways!

Thanks. Have sent you a PM with my email address. Perhaps the easiest way to share with me (and perhaps here) is to store the pics on Google Drive and create a link to the folder to share.

 

[LarryOz]

Hi. I am looking seriously at upgrading to V 2.0 with a Thor seat (L size) to improve my racing speed.

Jeffrey - you make me smile BIG! You've got the "need more" speed bug bad!
I smile because I resemble that remark. Haha
I am sorry to sorry, although I have tested hundreds of items, that I have not tested the Thor seat. I actually purchased one to try, but after taking a look at it I realized that it would stick my head up in the air more, which I knew would not be faster for me than the stock Vendetta seat. That is because I am such a short person and pretty much fit the original Vendetta seat and headrest like a glove.
Many people have switched to it however for fit and or comfort.
Question: Why are you considering a V2.0? Is there something specific about that version that you think will be more advantageous than the current V20?
I look forward to hearing about this next adventure!

 

[Jeffrey Ritter]

Hi Larry. I am so new to Cruzbike I did not realize the difference between V 2.0 and V20. So, my interest is on the current model. Doug eyeballed me on his and we both felt it was pretty close to a perfect fit for me, but if I can't improve my speed with the investment, then I just have to make the legs faster!

 

[RojoRacing]

#1 are you referring to improving you as the riders line of sight over the bars, and or positive neck tilt? If so then yes in both regards it's much better and the key to me descending with confidence as I do through the complex California mountains.

#2 I can't give you any exact power value gains but for me the comfort and overall support is 300% of what I was able to get with the stock seat. Because of those two things I can continue to put out my max potential power for as long as I want with zero discomfort to hold me back. The real problem with answering your second question is that everyone who's made the swap has loved it so much that none of us are willing to put the stock seat back on for comparative testing. As for pure aero loss, yes there will be some and in a completely flat centruy race you could do better but in the mountains or 24hr events support and confidence as well as comfort are what I want.

Today was my first ride on the V20 in over a year and I jumped strait into it with a 150 mile ride with over 7000' of climbing and averaging nearly 20mph. I was so comfortable at the end I got off feeling loose and relaxed like it was a 20 mile ride.

 

[Jeffrey Ritter]

#1 are you referring to improving you as the riders line of sight over the bars, and or positive neck tilt? If so then yes in both regards it's much better and the key to me descending with confidence as I do through the complex California mountains.

#2 I can't give you any exact power value gains but for me the comfort and overall support is 300% of what I was able to get with the stock seat. Because of those two things I can continue to put out my max potential power for as long as I want with zero discomfort to hold me back. The real problem with answering your second question is that everyone who's made the swap has loved it so much that none of us are willing to put the stock seat back on for comparative testing. As for pure aero loss, yes there will be some and in a completely flat centruy race you could do better but in the mountains or 24hr events support and confidence as well as comfort are what I want.

Today was my first ride on the V20 in over a year and I jumped strait into it with a 150 mile ride with over 7000' of climbing and averaging nearly 20mph. I was so comfortable at the end I got off feeling loose and relaxed like it was a 20 mile ride.

Thanks. Do you happen to have a profile pic (of the bike, not you!) that would allow me to sort of see the angle at which the seat and headrest resolve themselves? As I mentioned, it was close on Doug's and I just want to improve my confidence in my outlay.

 

[ReklinedRider]

Thanks. Have sent you a PM with my email address. Perhaps the easiest way to share with me (and perhaps here) is to store the pics on Google Drive and create a link to the folder to share.

I sent some photos to your email; hope they help. I will have to find out how to store pics on Google Drive, then how to create a link. Such magic is currently beyond me.

 

[bazzawill]

I sent some photos to your email; hope they help. I will have to find out how to store pics on Google Drive, then how to create a link. Such magic is currently beyond me.

I use Google photos,
1. create a shared album (you can use one shared album for all future Cruzbike images, add photo(s)
2. Click on image to open full
3. Right click on photo
3. Click copy image address
4. In the form click the insert image button
5. Paste in the link (it will look insane)
6. Click insert
7. Image should display in the forum editor

 

[DavidCH]

so comfortable at the end I got off feeling loose and relaxed like it was a 20 mile ride.

Pretty sure some of your riders were feeling somewhat different

 

[ReklinedRider]

I use Google photos,
1. create a shared album (you can use one shared album for all future Cruzbike images, add photo(s)
2. Click on image to open full
3. Right click on photo
3. Click copy image address
4. In the form click the insert image button
5. Paste in the link (it will look insane)
6. Click insert
7. Image should display in the forum editor

I will give that a try, thanks!