Right, this must be why most touring bikes come with drop bars!

Again, the issue is fit. An aggressive frame geometry will put you in a face down position, not drop bars.

This ^^^

I have three drop bar bikes and I'm converting my Pugsley to Woodchippers (drop bars). I love the hand positions the drop bars offer. A couple of my drop bar bikes have me leaning way forward (pure road bikes); the Kona Dew Drop is more upright; and the Pug will be much like a typical MTB, with the option of getting down on the drops when the wind is blowing or I need a change in positions.

Well, when none of the positions are all that comfortable, you need plenty to move around to!

A lot of what people have posted here is preference ... and in truth, there is no "Right" answer, but the different anecdotes might help the OP make a choice.

What I think is key is that drop bars do not Force you to ride low or "face-down" and flat bars do not automatically make you sit up. Butterfly bars do not automatically offer a wealth of comfortable hand positions. There are many factors at play, from bike fit to physique and flexibility to some subliminal image of what you think a bike rider "looks like" formed when you were three years old and will never be fully aware of or fully escape.

And as with all those "What's the best *****" or "Which ***** should I buy," the answer is always, try a bunch of different things at bike shops and when you find what fits You, buy it and be happy.

By the way ... drop bars are the best and if you don't use them we won't think you are "cool" any more. We will make you post in the MTB or Utility forum. Be warned.

Been using drop bars since I got a Schwinn Varsity when I was about 12 or so, so that's all I know. I did use clip-ons for a while, but not now. I did borrow a friend's hybrid and found it was killing my hands/wrists. Also saw no advantage to the shifters. I suppose I could get used to it in time, but see no reason to do so. But that's just me.

scott s.
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North road bars are on all my bikes too, all upside down. Touring bike, gravel bike, 29+ no suspension mountain bike, and road bike which I do ride in pelotons.

Drop bars have all those hand positions and none of them are as good as a north road bar.

Thanks for the input. Next question is what are the different type bars? Wood chipper, trekking, north road bars? And here is my c'dale.

Maybe in NA where the sport aspect of cycling is dominant, but that's not the whole story, just a limited point of view.

My road bike is as unagressive as they come, and fit correctly. The full drop position is most certainly face down as far as I'm concerned.

I find it amusing that some who prefer drop bars need to believe they possess some sort of universal undeniable superiority, and that anyone who prefers anything else is ignorant.

have you ever tried Lautterwasser bars? I have them on my path racer and like them better than inverted Northroads.

Center bike has the Lautterwassers.

I've been using the term "north road" generically for upright, swept bars, such as:

VO Tourist Handlebar 22.2 dia

Origin8 Citi Classic 25.4mm x 58cm Silver Cruiser Bar - Walmart.com

Don't be put off by WalMart -- these are high quality bars. In addition, a similar steel bar from an old Schwinn is now on my winter bike.

One of my bikes is a 1983 Trek 311, which started its life with downtube shifters and drop bars, not radically different from your c'dale. It now has the Origin8 bars on it. I have a problem with my neck that makes it very uncomfortable to reach way out... even the hoods on drop bars are uncomfortable for me.

Naturally the conversion to flat or swept bars requires new brake levers and possibly new cabling if the existing cables aren't long enough.

Love the path racer. I emailed Evans Cycles in the UK to see if I could get a Pashley Speed 5, no dice.

The Lautterwasser looks great but the reach would mess me up. My bikes all have pretty long top tubes, very compatible to north road bars.

I am currently using Pyramid north road bars. They cost about $15 online. The chrome finish is excellent, it doesn't mar easily. They are steel and the weight might put some people off but I love them.

Previously, I used Wald #8095 . They angle out at 45 degrees, about the same as a Jeff Jones H-bar. The Pyramid has a 70 degree angle which I like MUCH better. I had to swap out all the Walds for Pryamid. At $15 each, no big deal.

As a matter of fact the Jones Bend H-bar bears an uncanny resemblence to the Wald, hmmmmmmm. I also have to laugh that the steel Nitto north road bars cost more than the aluminum ones, not that they aren't great bars.

Road bike brake levers will work on 22.2mm handlebars. Some might require you to fashion a shim like a strip of flexible plastic.

I looked into a Pashley too, but it was too rich for my blood, I ended up with a $150 Flying Pigeon.

The Lautterwasser bars do best with a short stem, especially with a bike as stretched out as a traditional roadster like the Pigeon.

Hmmm, there's a brick and mortar Flying Pigeon shop not far away.

With the dollar being so strong the Speed 5 was $1200. Expensive but so beautiful.

PS I just checked Pashley USA site. Speed 5 now available in the USA, $1795.

The components are very low end even by walmart standards, but the frame and fork are actually well made for what it is. The BB and headset are standard English threading, not the obsolete Raleigh threading which makes upgrading super easy.

I will check them out on the Internet.

Nice tourer! ...for a tall guy, at least. That frame's on the large size for us average-sized folks.

If the bike fits and you want to explore shifting options besides downtube shifters, going to modern integrated brake/shift levers ("brifters") might be an expensive proposition. If I'm not mistaken, your bike is a 1990 Cannondale ST400, which came equipped with SunTour Accushift shifters, freewheel, and derailleurs. Those are long discontinued and aren't directly compatible with any indexed shifting components available nowadays. Going to brifters or any modern indexed shifting system would require changing out not just the shifters, but the derailleurs and freewheel/cassette as well.

You can switch to bar-end shifters ("barcons") for a much smaller price tag, though. If I remember correctly, SunTour Accushift indexed barcons are plentiful on eBay. Or you could go with just about any bar-end shifters, so long as they can operate in friction mode, and most can. There are some less-common possibilities as well, like Gevenalle shifters.

Not sure why being in North America has anything to do with it? Or why you keep bringing up this concept of "sport" cycling? What do you mean by that? Is it not true that touring bikes, bikes that are designed to be ridden long distances typically have drop bars? It's certainly true in Europe as well as North America. I suppose you're thinking if the Dutch style of commuter riding, but I would ask you, what is the average distance someone rides one of those bike? For the record, my commuter bike has flat bars.
Sure, but how often do you ride in full drops though? For me it's nice to have an "aggressive" position available but I mostly use it for downhills when I'm riding for distance.
You're putting words into my mouth. I'm simply arguing against the idea that drop bars put you into an uncomfortable hunched over riding position.

I notice Joepasta's C'dale has a very long stem and the bars are pretty high---I wonder if the frame is a tad to big for him? Of course it could simply be that he likes that set-up---no judgment implied. Also, the bars look pretty big---I find compact drop bars a lot more useful. Not such a dramatic difference between hoods and drops, but that means hoods and drops are both comfortable.

Here's my setup Nitto Mustache bars. Originally a Fuji touring bike with brifters, now barends.

Since you want to ride on gravel and crushed limestone, you should also look at Adventure/Gravel bikes. Here's an article on them that also gives some examples.

GH

I have built two bikes with flat bars and drop bar ends. One bike is a tourer/gravel bike and the other is a city/MUP bike. I like having the controls on the flats so that when I am in traffic I am more upright while my hands are covering the brakes. But I also get all the hand positions and the benefit of being aero that drop bars afford. I will post pictures later. The bikes are NOT pretty, but they are immensely functional.

I virtually never use the drop position because it does in fact put me in a position I don't enjoy riding in, and that limits my visibility. But I do have 2 bikes with them because once in a blue moon I do feel like doing sport riding.

From what I saw when I lived in Europe, drop bars were just one among many types of bars used by folks touring and were in the minority. I'm not talking about folks riding city bikes for commuting and utility because at that point drop bar become an infinitesimal fraction of what folks use.

Trekking Bars: WB Bicycle Gallery: Robert Clark's Koga Miyata WTR



My old Derailleur Touring bike has Drop bars , as does the road bike ..

I have straight bars on my Winter bike, that wears the studded tires ..

Arc bars on the Porteur rack Bike ..

More than either / or, there are several options..

OK fair enough. I would argue though (and this thread is called "straight vs drop bars") that even without utilizing the drops, drop bars give more hand positions than straight bars. I suppose if you add bar ends to straight bars, that adds a single extra position. On a long ride, I struggle to see the benefit of not giving myself the option to occasionally ride in the drops, especially living near Appalachian ridges where the majority of the riding is long climbs followed by fast descents.

FYI I'm from Europe, albeit the UK part which may not be Europe for much longer(!). Drop bars in the UK are far the most prevalent on touring bikes. "The Continent" may be different.