Hello. I am planning a nearly 5000 mile bike trip and have decided to go with aero bars to avoid hand numbness (which I already occasionally experience on shorter rides). In fitting aero bars to a regular road (racing) bike, are there any rules of thumb regarding stem length? Or should I simply start with what I have and adjust if necessary?
Any other adjustments I should make to the bike when switching the bars? (seat?)

Also, has anyone used the Blackwell Performer, or Performer SS? Any thoughts or suggestions? I am also considering the Syntace C2 or C3.

Thanks,
Ben

I haven't used the bars you mentioned, but I can pass on a little experience with aerobars in general:

Stick with changing one thing at a time. When you put the aerobars on, leave the stem the way it is for now. You'll want your hoods and drops to be where they are now. Once you're used to being on the bars for long times, you may want to change the bar drop some, but there's no rush, especially as it seems you're looking for comfort.

You may or may not need to change your saddle position, or the saddle entirely. A lot depends on your anatomy. When I put my bars on, I had a saddle that I was completely comfortable with. But when spending much time in the bars (say long-ish parts of a solo century), I would go numb downstairs. So I experimented with tilt and all that, for no joy. What I ended up with is a Terry Fly saddle with the center cutout to relieve perinium pressure. Since then, perfection. To be fair, I also ended up with a slight (very slight) downward tilt to the saddle, but be careful if you already experience hand numbness, as downward tilt adds weight to your hands. Not saying you should get the Terry, just that it worked for me. You may not need a change at all.

One other thing to consider is the angle on the aerobar itself. The most aero setup isn't always the best for long distance. I find I'm more comfy with a little uptilt to the bars, meaning that the forward ends are a little higher than the pads. Also, if the pad position is adjustable, I like to have the pads a little wider than someone might who is setting up solely for aero benefit. I find that it helps (for me) to have the pads 10" apart (measured center to center of the pads). Otherwise, I found my breathing suffered to the point where I couldn't spend long periods on the bars. A wider elbow position won't close your lungs off so much.

Wow, I went on and on. Sorry about that. Anyway, try to spend some time on trial and error before your trip. It won't be much fun trying to make changes on the trip itself.

Steve

You should keep your existing stem and adjust the position of the aerobars to suit you. Otherwise you'll mess up your position for the times when you are not riding in the aerobars (which likely will be often). Riding in aerobars for long periods can be hard on the neck muscles.

Alternatively, have you looked at raising your handlebars to reduce hand numbness?

Thanks for the replies.

I am currently trying out a bunch of seats as I am getting numbness on long rides. Up soon are the ISM Adamo Road and the SMP Evo.

I have raised my bars, but I am going to give the aerobars a shot to see how they feel.