Bar end shifters were the secret weapon for many crit riders in the pre-brifter era. I used them to my advantage in many sprints, along with then-ridiculed aero wheels ("Why use TriSpokes? They're so heavy... Don't they catch too much wind? Aren't they hard to control? Why use Zipp 440s? Why use....").

Although technically they do put the shifter at the "end" of the turning lever, in reality, with properly trimmed bars, they do not affect shifting significantly if the rider understands how to use them. I could shift multiple times in a 200-300 meter sprint and not have any problems.

Likewise I could dive into a turn, change my mind about what gear to use exiting said turn, and make adjustments on one downstroke of the pedal.

I specifically reduced the friction level so the shifter would shift quickly. I was also careful in setting up a low friction setup, adjusted the rear derailleur and chain length so the upper pulley was close to the cogs, and basically used every trick I knew to keep cable movement force as light as possible.

Two bar end shifter equipped things...

Bar ends for crits:
http://sprinterdellacasa.blogspot.co...for-crits.html

Sprint with shifting while using bar ends:
http://sprinterdellacasa.blogspot.co...criterium.html

For taping bars I have to find some old pictures but if you look at the first of the two links, you'll see I drilled out the bars and put the cable inside the bar. Before that I ran the cable housing up to the brake lever and let it poke out there. I've also run it all the way to the tops of the bar but I think the shifting wasn't very good. My second favorite position (after the drilled bar method) was to have the cable housing poke out a few inches from the shifter, on a slightly upward pointing bit of bar. This way the housing wouldn't droop. I wrapped my bars from the bottom all the time.

cdr