"compact" frame just means a sloping top tube. That's all.jack frisch said:my heels seem to extremely far cback/close to the rear axle, is this a result of the so called compact frame style?
Some frames (compact or not) have short chainstays. Shorter chainstays make a bike racier.... quicker handling and stiffer feeling. Chainstay length has no relation to top tube slope. Some chainstays are curved or shaped to give some heel (not heal) clearance.
My heels are pretty close to the rear axle on my Cervelo R3. I have long feet and short toes, so the ball of my foot is pretty far forward. That means that there's a lot of foot hanging back off the pedal. I also pedal with my toes out/heels in, so my heels are close to the chainstays. In fact on most of my bikes, my heels can hit the chainstays when I am coasting with my pedals level. It's not a problem when I am pedalling, although if I used road cleats that allowed float, it could be. If your heels don't hit the frame when you are pedalling, you're ok.