Each ride starts with a clean slate; the bike is 100% tailored for the rider. As the company states, there are "no pre-conceptions, no template. Yours is a bike that has never existed before. We are at Square One, open and ready to learn about you." After an approximately three-hour process that includes an interview and a flexibility and range-of-motion assessment of the rider, the bike is ready to be crafted.
During the interview, a Serotta-certified "fit technician" sits down with the bike's intended rider to discuss his or her biking history and goals. They talk about some of the following questions:
- Why do you ride?
- How do you ride?
- What is your injury history?
- Do you have any personal asymmetries, such as one leg longer than the other?
- Do you have any problems with your old bike?
- What are your goals and aspirations as a rider?
Next, the technician tests the rider's strength and flexibility to ensure the bike will be able to accommodate and mold to his or her body. In this stage, your body's physical range is calculated, making it possible for the bike to work with you, not against you.
You are then placed on a Serotta Size Cycle, and professionals observe and note how you ride so that the bike can be tailored to fit these characteristics. Serotta's fit specialists record details about your posture and breathing and how comfortable you are on the saddle.
Once the prep process is done, you can have the bike in about four to six weeks. The actual assembly of this custom creation takes about 30 hours to complete—now that's love. But they have the time. Only about 3,000 of these beauties are made every year.
And according to Serotta, it's worth it since "your bike is nothing less than an extension of your body."
