Just to say --

I posted this after I...noticed my rear getting a little sore from riding. I think there might even be a hemmeroid developing.

I usually place my hands on the more upright straight bar section, right around where they turn around.

So I tried drops, and it all seemed better. It is more awkward though, b/c you're leaning more forward, and I feel like I can't manuver as well as I can in a more upright position, but for some reason I seem to pedal harder when I'm in the drops, and my rear hurts much much much less. It's incredible how much less...

So did you get a whole new bike, or just do the drop swap (can be quite the expensive undertaking for geared bikes).

Probably could've achieved similar results with stem and/or bar swap and barend addition. Drops are nice, however.

I've never had a bike with drops but I think my next bike will definitely have them. I like the idea of having multiple hand positions and lately I've been finding my hybrid cramped and uncomfortable.

Attachment 166495

and this is my commuter.

your point?

not essential for commuting

+1 on the trekking bars; they seem ideal for hybrids as they offer multiple hand postitions while still using your same controls. Why not make your hybrid more comfortable while saving for that drop-bar bike?

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and essential != awesome. :|

Er, having a properly sized cockpit where your body is positioned and balanced properly will avoid excessive pressure on your behind by balancing it with pressure on your hands. If you need drop bars todo this, your top-tube is probably a bit short or handlebars too high or something is off with the fit.

Drop bars are good for getting a little more aero, but aero bars are better at that.... so flat-bars with aero bars might make a good commuter!

Possibly, but certainly not always the case. Some have vast experience with drops but have decided that other set ups suit their needs better. I rode drops exclusively through the late 70's and all of the 80's. Since then almost all of my miles have been done on non-drop bar bikes.

What matters more if looking for less wind resistance and physical position on bike is saddle to bar drop at your most common hand positions and if you bend you elbows or keep them near straight.

I have three bikes set up with trekking bars, one has north roads, one has risers (my mtb, one has moustaches bars, and the other 7 have drop bars.

Like some others, I cannot sit upright on a bike and ride for any distance so the old 3 speed with the north road bars does not see a lot of mileage but the three speed with drop bars does, the mtb has a very aggressive / forward set up and is quite comfortable, and trekking bars are about as versatile as they come... but most of the time I am riding a bike with drop bars.

Besides the good hand positioning I can be more aero with drop bars and more aero is more efficient... as I can only pedal fully with one leg every little bit helps.

Could never abide flat bars... they have to be the worst type of bar to use.

I don't agree with you. I do a lot of long distance rides and I never use drop bars. I prefer to use bull horns or flat bars with bar ends.

Dude........what she said. Double encore.

The hoods offer the best leverage for working the brakes,esp in a panic stop. They also give the best leverage for sprinting away from a light(you're too hunched over in the drops,and the tops are too narrow). Most drop bar bikes don't have cross levers,so you'd have to add them.

Not true, the drops will give you better leverage than the hoods for breaking. And if the hoods are better for sprinting why do the pros use the drops?

Maybe because they are not sprinting away from a light? ;)

My CX has drop bars. When i used to use it for commuting on pavement with road tires I stayed on the hoods nearly all the time. But on rocky rutted singletrack with drop offs, dips, etc. I stayed in the drops as it gave me better control for turning, braking and powering up short steep rocky inclines. Maybe because my GC was lower?

Yes, I guess it might sound counter-intuitive to others, but drop-bars are the only way to go for my back. And ditto on the saddle vs. bar position - I have my bar tops about 4 inches below the top of my saddle. If I'm anticipating icy patches or the need to do some quick bike handling due to traffic, I am always down in the drops.

the saddle to bar drop is about the same on both my road bike and my MTB-turned-hybrid, the difference of course being that i can get even lower when i want to on my road bike because it has drop bars, whereas my hybrid just has a flat bar.



can you maintain the same level of control of the bike riding in hectic, harried traffic on aero bars like you have with drop bars? just an honest question, i've never ridden with aero bars before. also, being on the drops, i still have easy fingertip access to my brake levers which is also nice when riding in traffic.

i do however have long stretches of uninterrupted trail on my commute so maybe my old hybrid would be better served on windy days if i slapped some aero bars on it.

You don't want to use clip-on aero bars any place you might have to make a sudden turn or stop. I've had them on my bike and they're nice when you've got long open stretches but I get out of them once I'm in traffic or even around a lot of other cyclists.

Aside from not having any controls at your fingertips, the other downside is that they're probably not going to be positioned optimally without using a shorter stem. And if you use a shorter stem, then your handlebars may end up too close. Clip-on aerobars are really a compromise.

No, aerobars=poor control, but if you're into these epic battles heading into the wind for extended periods they can be a blessing, i'll just say that it depends. Drop bars are a compromise.

^ thanks for the input.

my hybrid currently has a flat bar with SRAM grip shifters, i was thinking about maybe changing to a different bar to get more hand positions. are there any other kinds of bars that can work with grip shifters? trekking bars? bullhorns? others?

Trekking bars, Im running a Rohloff hub and use an ITM trekking bar.

bar ends on the ends of your straight bars adds one position, trekking bars add several

a fore and aft rather than up and down for leaning into headwinds..

Again, not true. It is exactly the same as a sprint from a track stand on a velodrome.

Which again is not sprinting away from a light. ;)