Originally Posted by
beezaur
You guys really have never heard this before, have you.
I found the book where I first read this. It is by Zinn, Zinn and the Art of Triathlon Bikes. On page 258 it has a section called "Handlebar Maintenance and Replacement Schedule." Every other cycling book I have that mentions handlebar maintenance says the same thing: replace (modern racing style) handlebars every few years, depending on how you ride. They are built to be light, not durable, and can fail on you unexpectedly with catastrophic results.
If you still don't believe it, you can search here on this site and read firsthand accounts with photographic documentation.
I think the advice given above is solid advice: listen to the advice of experts and not the interweb wannabes.
Dude, two things to think about. If you want to replace your bars do so. Material doesn't matter because most bars will hold up for the time frame you have specified. Second you don't ride all that much. 100 miles a month would be 5200 a year and 100 miles a month isn't all that much. Still with your riding style why not get areo bars that are made to be areo bars? No extra stress from where the areo bar attaches.
http://www.nashbar.com/bikes/Product...92_-1___202445
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/M...?ModelID=36158
If you insist on using clip-ons try:
http://www.chainreactioncycles.com/M...?ModelID=49322