Over the winter I got a bit too ambitious and did just a little too much training indoors. I was trying to get into shape for the season and for some reason I thought four to five hours would be a good idea on my stretched out road bike, and soon enough, I had neck problems.
It was an old injury in the disc in my neck and got pretty inflamed and I ended up with essentially a pretty brutal pinched nerve. I took some time off, and did some physio and slowly got back to it. I could still ride inside with relatively no pain, but. riding outside with the bumps of the road resulted in some pretty bad pain. After the inflammation reducedI wanted to ride outside again but was worried about any of the vibrations. I did some research into stems and posts and came across Redshift, a Philadelphia-based company that focuses on specialized gear for cyclists.
Redshift Sports was founded by a team of mechanical engineers who love cycling. I tested two of the company’s products, the Shockstop Pro Suspension Seat post and the Shockstop Pro Stem. I put them on my gravel bike as I wanted to see how it would be on some of the bumpy roads and trails in the Greater Toronto area, but you could also easily put it on your road or mountain bike. The stem is compatible with both drop and flat handlebar set-ups, but RedShift does point out that it’s not compatible with a cruiser-style bar.
Shockstop Pro Suspension Seatpost
As mentioned, my injury was the reason to look into the product, but it’s not meant to be used by just people who are injured. In fact, you could argue the stem and post would help your body deal with cracks or bumps in the road or trail which can contribute to fatigue and strain. That could be on a road surface where the pavement is less-than-ideal, or in my case, gravel roads.
Redshift claims that this will not only make your ride more comfortable, but fasten, and further. The company says that you will feel refreshed from “the energy that is normally wasted suspending your body as it is converted into forward motion.” It also will help with your bike handling, as you will have better control over any obstacles you face.
Installing the seat post was relatively easy, but there are a few differences due to the nature of the suspension system. Redshift says that to account for the sag of the post from the suspension, you should position your saddle 5 mm higher, and 4 mm more forward. To change the saddle setback there is an allen key bolt that is…
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