Originally Posted by
easyupbug
I also do not understand his point. My experience with osteoarthritis in my hands and one wrist is the opposite of what I understand maddog34 is saying. With over 70 years in saddles I move slowly and cautiously and have been raising bars incrementally and finding a notable less loading transferred to my hands and a more pleasant ride..
"incrementally"... how high? how much in each change? did you change any other parts? stem? seat setback? seat? do you lock your elbows, or do you gain elbow angle with every move upward of your now really high bars?
were the changes to one bike, or several?
how did the upward motion affect your back and hips?
do you stretch out before a ride?
share your experience.
i've had a broken wrist, and a broken thumb.. both on the right side.
i get numbness and pain, variously.
both shoulders have been dislocated multuple times, and my left collar bone has wire wrapped around a permanent spiral fracture.
i have two plates in my chest from a split sternum, and a few feet of wire holding them together. my left hip has fractured three times.
i remedied the hand issues by moving the seat forward, cork-like tape,and using a 20mm shorter stem on my '82 trek road bike.
compact drops help too.
on the more recent MTBs, i went with softer grips, comfort grips on the rails to trails bike, and careful cockpit sizing.