Originally Posted by The Fixer
It's a matter of comfort......I can bet most people who rarely use their drops basically have their bars too low for comfort.
Originally Posted by garysol1
Stem flipped up and in the drops would be just as aero as stem flipped down with your hands on top of the bars or on the hoods. Would it not make more sense to keep the stem down (as long as that is comfortable) and work on improving your in the drop's skills and your bodys flexability?
Originally Posted by jtree
if you can't ride in the drops, then your bike fit is off. raise your bars and allow yourself the luxury of multiple riding positions.
Originally Posted by lmans66
Because they have their seats too high!!!!!... Way too many people either have the wrong size bike, forcing them to have seats high, or.....have the right fit bike size but keep the seat high because it looks cool. If you can't get in the drops comfortably, or have your back going "down" and I mean down......then your seat is too high.
I agree that most riders have their handlebars too low, and this has a lot to do with why most riders don't use their drops much. Part of this is because most riders ride bikes that are too small for them, sized as if they were racing professionally. Which means, especially when you're using a threadless stem, that you can't get the handlebars up very high. Which is fine if you're racing, but most riders aren't. The road bike market is, at this point, driven by Lance et al.
Look, I'm very flexible, and
my handlebars are 5" below my saddle and my back is flat when in the drops. So, lower than most pros. I can ride fine that way, but have no other option because I'm 6'5" and my frame isn't big enough for me, even though it's the largest that Raleigh made at the time (61cm ctt). But the reason that I rarely use the drops? It hurts one's *neck* to always be craning it bent back like that. So I plan to buy a higher stem (Nitto Technomic), and eventually a near-custom larger frame.