ridethecliche

I've been changing things around based on feel over the last few weeks, and I just wanted some input.

I raced a few crits with my stem flipped up and on top of all the spacers. My back felt fine, but I had trouble getting low, and I had neck pain. I dropped a spacer, and it still didn't help.

I then flipped the stem. With the stem flipped, I was comfortable in the drops, but my reach to the hoods was a little suspect. Back acted up, pain wouldn't stop me from riding hard but it wasn't comfortable.

Due to the reach issue, I decided to move to a shorter stem flipped down. The back feels better now, but my hands have been getting numb even in the drops. This was never an issue before. Can this be due to too little reach? Back's still a little sore but it doesn't hurt after I get off the bike and isn't terrible to begin with. I think my continued stretching and core work will enable me to get rid of this with time.

Any suggestions for what I should try next.

I honestly don't mind riding with the longer stem flipped up, but the neck pain was annoying and I really had a hard time getting low enough since I had to bend the crap outta my elbows.

Thanks.