djb

I strongly suspect this 30cm number is just plain wrong. My wife is 5'1" and her xs frame bars are certainly not that narrow.

what I can recount from personal experience is that narrow bars that perhaps are exactly your shoulder width (whatever that is, depending on where you take the measureement from) are not necessarily the proper width for comfortable riding.

My old touring bike had narrow bars and when I went to wider ones, I realized how much the narrow ones had been constricting for my breathing, and just plain uncomfortable compared to the wider ones I have on my newer drop bar bike. Being open and relaxed in your upper body is way more important than a theoretical "perfect" shoulder width to cut thru the wind--and again, I question the measurement system, as depending on where you measure from there can be easily 4cm or more difference.

ps, I just measured my wifes bike and the bars from middle to middle of the hoods area are 36cm (middle of the bar diameter) while the areas on the tops where you place your hands is obviously much closer, as is the "corner curve" of the transition from tops to drops.

this 30cm number doesnt seem to jive.

pps Ken, Im pretty sure my wifes bike is a 44 also. This was my wifes first drop bar bike and having the proper sized frame (and bars, and reach etc etc) makes it the first time she is really comfortable on a bike, and the drops make a real difference to wrist comfort etc compared to her flat bar bikes, due to being able to move around with diff hand positions (and hence neck, back positions) compared to the limited flat bar bikes (plus of course that the frame is the right size)

good luck