Originally Posted by
zephyr
I have albatross bars on a surly cross check with nexus8 internal hub. This is my lousy weather commute bike (about 30 mi round trip) and in town errand bike. The albatross are usually pretty comfy for me. They are higher than my seat and I have the part around the curve taped so I can use that area of the bar if I'm going down hill. I have two other bikes with moustache bars and bar end shifters which I like a lot. A difference with the albatross is when going downhill and having to apply brakes hard, I am a less secure with the location of the brake levers back closer to me on the side of the bar than if the brake levers are out front like on the moustache bar (or a flat bar). The pics of the mary bar have me wondering if it might be worth considering as an albatross alternative. Might be worth a look.
I adore my albatross's's's's. My mtn bike bars always hurt me and I suspected it was somehow my fault. My cruiser bars were just silly wide and back. Having bars that are comfortable and practical is a revelation. I might wish they were an inch or two narrower.
I use two hand position off the grips. Push my thumbs into the curves to grind uphill/into the wind. Grab the strainght just outside the stem for into the wind on the level. I do both just on the bare metal. How much would I gain by taping these spots? Holding near the stem is not terribly stable, maybe a wider built up bar would help a bit?