When Is Standover Height Insufficient?

Steve Sr. wrote:
Fellow Cyclists,

I had a professional fitting done to in anticipation of ordering a
custom geometry bike. With the fitting I found out that I had a short
torso and arms which requires a geometry with a high front end and
relatively shorter top tube. The fitting was done on a Serotta Size
Cycle but the frame was done by another manufacturer.

The frame builder addressed these issues with a longer seat tube and a
slightly sloping (up) top tube and a taller head tube. Unfortunately
in dealing with these issues it appears that the stand over height was
missed by about 3/4" i.e. the bike is about 3/4" higher than was
recommended by the fitting.

So far I have had a test fitting on the new bike but haven't been able
to ride it since the seat post provided was too long (won't go low
enough). I can just barely straddle the bar with bike shoes on. I
would estimate that there is currently somewhere 0-1/4" clearance if I
stand just right. The bike currently has 23mm tires on it but I will
probably switch to 25mm when these wear out to reduce the chance for
flats. This will only make the stand over height worse.

Is this stand over height likely to be an issue? At what point would
you consider stand over height to be insufficient?


Thanks,

Steve
Steve, IMO standover height is somewhat of a non-issue, at least with me.
I've been professionally fitted and on both my bikes the top tube is
touching when standing over with my riding shoes on. My reasoning is that
one very seldom, if ever, stands over a bike with both feet on the ground.
And if I have to do that, I would cant the bike slightly and have no
stand-over issues.