jaltone

When I was being fitted to my new road bike 2 weeks ago I was told to ride holding the hoods most of the time like this:


I've been riding a flat bar road bike for the last 2 years (n.b., I'm a middle aged recreational rider riding for fitness and health), so I'm still getting used to riding with a drop bar. I find it more comfortable right now to hold the bar like this though:


Is this considered normal for someone transitioning to a drop bar? How long would it normally take to become flexible enough to hold the hoods? Is 6 months realistic enough? (I ride 3x a week for about an hour each, a bit longer in the weekends. The stem is 90 mm 7 degrees flipped up. I rotate myself forward at the hips. The bar has an 83 mm reach and 128 mm drop.)

svtmike

It usually lasts until about a millisecond after you can't reach the brake in time to avoid disaster.

Seriously, you should be able to hold the hoods correctly right off the bat.

caloso

There's no single correct way to place your hands on your bars. That's what's so great about drops. I'm in the drops, on the hoods, on the ramps (which is where the tops curve forward to the hoods), the middle tops, and sometimes I put my hands right up against the stem. Just as long as you can reach the brake levers when you need them.

As for increasing your flexibility, whenever you go for a ride, spend some time in the drops. As long as is comfortable. And then a few minutes more of discomfort. Do it a little longer the next ride. Focus on keeping your elbows and wrists unlocked. Loosey-goosey. This means having to support your weight with your core.

Keep working at it, a little at a time and I'm sure you'll develop some strength and flexibility by summer.

RollCNY

Uncurl your fingers. Your hands rest on the bars unless you are sprinting or climbing hard. Part of the discomfort may be that the finger wrap bends your wrists awkwardly, because both photos look uncomfortable.

RoadMike

+1 We do not wrestle the bike into submission, you should have a very light touch on the bars whenever possible. You don't need to choke your levers. if you feel too stretched out so you need to hold on to the bars to stay down in your riding position on the hoods, something is off with your fit.

hfinstrom

this may be difficult to explain via text. but if im riding on my brake hoods i ride with with my hands making C shapes around the brake hoods. my thumbs are facing each other. imagine the top of the "C" shape is my thumbs with the finger nails facing each other and all other fingers are on the brakes and shifters. i run shimano 105's . what configuration are you running? a better example would be to hold your arms straight out in front of your so you an only see your thumb and pointer finger. then place them over the brake hoods. all your other fingers should be able to easily access the brakes and shifters. your thumb nails should be facing each other more or less. hope this helps

rm -rf

It's very hard to tell from the photos. Maybe post a photo showing you sitting on the saddle and showing the bars. The picture should be taken straight from the side.

When I got my road bike, I was gripping the bars behind the hoods, and reaching the hoods felt like a stretch. A 10mm shorter stem helped me. But you probably don't want to go shorter than the 90 mm stem you have.

You might experiment with moving the brakes up a little on the curve of the bar. I like the hoods to tilt up a little, so my palm rests naturally on it. Unwrap the bars and try some different brake positions, or slightly rotate the bars up or down. A small adjustment here can help a lot. I make a change, then get a quick idea if it helps by sitting on the bike in a doorway.

Since it's a new bike, go back to the LBS and put it on a trainer, and have them help with trying some fitting changes.

I like my bars tilted similarly to the right illustration, found on this Bikefit page via google images.

DXchulo

https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread...=1#post8950502

I saw a link to this in the LD forum and it's a great post.

Keep playing around with your lever positioning on the bars and your bar angle. I also prefer the way rm-rf illustrated. I like my wrist as straight as possible in a natural position.

idc

If you're having trouble reaching the hoods to brake due to flexibility, I'd raise the stem a bit if possible.

I also can't ride with 1 finger over the brake like that, it seems uncomfortable. Do you have short fingers? Some brake levers have adjustable reach.

Bob Dopolina 

Ulnar Nerve Compression. You don't want this.

Holding the bars the way you are now can lead to this over time.

Also, your wrist will be locked and you will be pushing the bars instead of allowing them to move slightly side to side as you corner (FYI, proper cornering is done with your butt, the hands are just along for the ride - pun intended).

jaltone

You are all awesome with all this wealth of information I just received! I'm running all of this through my head, and picturing how to do the proper hand position over the hoods. The photos and explanation from that 2009 thread really help a lot. I'll do my best to rest on the outside palm heels and wiggle my fingers often to check that I'm doing it properly. I'll do the drop exercises too as advised to improve long-term flexibility. I'm eager to ride and put all these ideas into practice. Thank you, everyone! You're all an awesome bunch.

Bob Dopolina 

^^ Holy crap! What just happened?

Did someone come here and get useful advice?

Is there another meteor out there that I don't know about?

hueyhoolihan

troll...

jaltone

LOL. I wish that was true but, no, I really did not know how to properly hold the hoods on a drop handlebar.

LesterOfPuppets

I usually ride hoods with index and middle finger draped over lever.

I only use grip shown in second pic while standing and stomping pretty much.

+1 to suggestion that you may have too much stem reach or the like.

Cookiemonsta

If that is the way you sit, and there is not change after using the bike for a longer time, then there is something wrong with the fit. Changing the stem or angle of the drop bars might be a solution.

Personally I change my grip all the time. Especially on long rides it helps to remain comfortable. However, you should be comfortable with your regular position in the hoods. You are also a lot further away from the brakes this way. Though truth be told, so am I a lot of the time.

I also have to agree with previous comments that you will be more comfortable if you keep your hands relaxed. No reason to squeeze anything.

Campag4life

See Campy Ultrashift positions below. No reason they can't be applied to other shifters though I prefer Campy ergos.

Most important thing OP...other than moving your hands around the bar is what Bob wrote. Ulnar Nerve Compression is a game changer and a common mistake. In earlier days, I rode a bit off road to supplement my road biking. Inadvertently, I damaged my hands by compressing my ulnar nerves...this predated the advent of Ergon grips which help a lot. I have since recovered but it has been a long road back. Your hands will tell you if you are doing it wrong. You will have some pain or stiffness in the outboard base of your palms.

For a road bike, on the hoods, you want the outboard bases of your palms OFF the top of the hoods. You want to support your weight between the thumb and forefinger around the hood nub. This crotch of the hand can take a lot of pressure and is devoid of tapestry of nerves that run up the arm through the elbow ergo the ulnar nerve.

Other thing to add is...FIT is king. What that means is, a good fit takes pressure off the hands. Adequate saddle setback and a LONGER and not short reach and more rotated forward torso takes pressure off the hands. This is lost on I would say 50% who ride road bikes with short cockpit which places their arms in greater compression. Think of the body as a hammock and you will get the right visual. The body shouldn't be a tent...it should be a hammock.
HTH.

PS: Perhaps one of the best articles I have ever read about fit and the necessity of adequate reach was penned by a member of the forum Danno who is an accomplished cyclist and astute student of the sport:

https://www.bikeforums.net/showthread.php/752905-Numb-Hands

jaltone

Thank you for all of that. It's good food for thought. I think the bike fit is already close to ideal for me. The BB to saddle height and saddle setback are good. I've also got my feet stance close to ideal by positioning my cleats all the way inward (n.b., I have moderately bowed legs) to bring my knees closer. These I tweaked from my last 2 years of riding on a flat bar road bike. It's the upper body positioning, arm positioning, and hand positioning on this new drop bar road bike that I haven't quite figured out yet. But, thanks to you and everyone else, I've been pointed to the right direction.

You're right, I've been mistakenly thinking maybe I need a shorter stem. But, after what you and others have said, I think the 90 mm stem I have on this 49 size bike is good enough (n.b., I'm 5'2" short although legs, torso, arms are proportional). It's my handhold on this drop handlebar that's erroneous, and most possibly my arms and back as well.

My handhold problem is compounded by the fact that I've got small hands and even disproportionately shorter thumbs and index fingers. This photo I just took clearly shows this:


Due to my unfortunate hand anatomy, and based on what DannoXYZ has extensively explained, I think my first try at using a correct hold will be like this (using his photos):

and this:


I'm going out for a ride in an hour, and will focus on correcting my hold based on everything I've learned thus far. Thank you very much, everyone. You've all been a great help.

wphamilton

With respect to this question only, it was a good three or four months before I was comfortable all the way up on the hoods. Holding on the curves behind the hood caused numbness.

MikeWMass

I didn't realize there was a correct way to hold the bars (hoods or otherwise). I thought as long as you were comfortable, could control the bike and could get to the brakes when you needed to, it was OK. I guess I'll have to check my hand position when I next head out.