My Dahon Helios does not permit a normal stem extension to move the handlebars foward. After about 240 km of commuting with my previous setup you can see in the pics above, I needed to stretch out and lower myself a bit more to take advantage of the fairing more efficiently.

I experimented with a long stem which moved my flat bar with bar ends forward and higher. However having a too long a stem negatively impacted steering and prevented me from out of saddle acceleration and climbing.


The picture above shows the bike mounted with Kalloy trekking bars. The yellow line shows where the bar is clamped to the Dahon handlepost. The red line shows where the handlebar would be clamped to a forward stem. The closer this point is to the front wheel's axle, the stranger the bike's steering will be. To move the handlebars forward so I could stretch out WITHOUT mounting a stem to the handlepost, I resorted to trying a trekking bar.





There are varieties of hand positions:
1 - Feels like being on the drops of a drop bar
2 - Feels like large bar ends but provides better leverage for climbing since the trekking bar is wider
3 - Is for easy cruising and "sitting up"



This setup allows me to achieve a better tuck behind the fairing without being uncomfortable. Out of saddle climbing is also stronger due to better leverage from the wide bars.