Just wondering, how many hand positions do you guys actually use?

People always use the number of hand positions as the main reason for drops. In normal riding I only ever find myself on the hoods though.

If I'm trying to go faster than I could on the hoods (generally due to air resistance in whatever form) then I'll go into the drops, but that's about the only other position I use enough to even be worth mentioning.

Wondering if I'm the only one like this any everyone actually makes use of all the wonderful extra hand positions.

3. hoods mostly, tops for climbing, drops for downhill or wind.

I just ride for recreation, but
For cruising: I use the hoods
Headwinds / beating the traffic light / descending : the curved part of the drops or the flat part of the drops
Climbing : the flat part near the stem, or the curved part between the hoods and the stem.

So yeah, my hands move around quite a bit.

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.

7.

Probably some slight variations there too.

And I didn't even count no hands, so 8?

i saw a guy sit up, take his wind jacket off, roll it up an put it into his back pocket. if i could ride hands free, i would have given him a round of applause.

It's not hard to ride with no hands. The bike wants to ride straight and it's only through your actions that it will turn. The only trick is to have a relatively clean pedal stroke so you aren't jerking the bike around.

1. back hooks
2. front hooks
3. top of shifter
4. hoods
5. front of hoods at the bend
6. wide tops
7. narrow tops
8. wrist on tops

Guess that's 8.

3. top of shifter, as in heel of palms on the hoods? That's one of my faves, good for stretching out a bit, or just having the knuckles perpendicular to direction of travel without being on the bar tops.

I've seen people do that with Shimano because they stick up a lot higher, but I don't think that really works with the flatter SRAM. To me, the regular hood position on SRAM has a similar effect.

I've seen a couple people pull this off. I watched my friend Dawn do it on Virginia's Skyline Drive many times in succession. On the start of the downhills, she'd pull her jacket out, casually put it on, zip it up (while steering with her knees through the turns) and then when the road would tilt up, she'd casually take it off, roll it up, stuff it in her pocket, and continue on. I was in awe.

just to add a few more, forearms on top (aka invisible aero bars).


Middle finger and index finger split over the hoods. Not terribly comfortable, but can relieve numbness if you do it for a few minutes as a break to pressure on your palms.

Hoods, drops, tops, and kind of in between tops and hoods at the bend.

Worth a nod, perhaps. 1/2 zip or no-zip garment removal while rolling really takes skill, however. I've had trouble with a T-shirt before, luckily you can see through them pretty well when they're smashed up against your eyeballs.

all of them!

I go narrow on the tops and on top of the brifters for climbing, middle of the bar for cruising. hoods used for more speed-oriented rides, and then drops when i take pulls or downhill (~26mph+)

hoods mostly
drops for power climbs, downhills, and windy situation
tops for climbing and aero-tuck
elbows narrow on tops for TT
elbows medium on tops, palms upwards, hand holding onto derailleur cable for TT
no hands when i feel like resting or goofing off

For all you sram users, how stable do you find your bike when doing the invisible aerobar? for better or for worse, i can hold the exposed shimano derailleur cables for a little bit more control

I really like that position, I spend way more time there than on my hoods the proper way... although that could be partly due to being to lazy to put my bar tape back on...

edit: since i've got actual aerobars on my bike, i think i have 11 somewhat distinct hand positions

Just a thought, in general - If you don't use a position due to comfort issues, the bike may not fit you properly.

I don't use IABs, for two reasons. First, I can't TT, so being more aero is kind of an oxymoron for me. Second, I feel unstable, and being risk averse, I don't like feeling unstable.

I use drops, hoods, tops.

I try and hook a finger/thumb around something. Eddy B would say to have something hooked to your bar so that if you hit something unexpectedly (more likely if you're sightseeing or in the middle of a group of riders), your hand doesn't go flying off. He was pretty critical of riders who casually laid their hands on the bars. I think the word he used was "stupid".

I used to ride casually like that, but, again, being a risk averse person, I now ride with either with a hooked finger or being very aware of what's ahead of me.

Drops are very comfortable for me. Fit has a lot to do with it. Before this last bike, I wasn't very comfy in the drops. Now, with a longer cockpit, I'm much better on the drops, and at the end of long rides, it's a relief to hunker down in the drops. I use drops whenever I may be presented with an unusual situation or may need to brake more than casually, so typically in tighter groups/races, descents, corners, sprints, attacks.

Hoods are great for climbing out of the saddle. I also use them to switch pressure points vs the drops.

Tops I ride on long climbs or to be tall. If I'm pulling on a group ride, and I want to help as much as possible, I sit upright on the bike, put my hands on the hoods, and try and be as tall as possible. I'll do this on a leadout as well, in races.

cdr

Tops when I'm just cruising or climbing.
Drops when facing headwinds.
Hoods when going downhill (yes, I get scared downhilling in the drops).

I've never tried to count the number of different hand positions I use ... but the longer the distance you ride, the more hand positions you'll use, just for variety.

I can be on the bike for hours though, and never feel the need to leave the hoods.

Kinda why I asked the question, do people feel the need to move because they get uncomfortable or because it enables them to get more speed in whatever situation?

this is one of my favorites

1. Hands on hoods
2. Hands just back from the hoods
3. Palms on top of shifter
4. Holding top of shifter in a pistol like grip
5. Hands on tops
6. Hands flat, pointer finger and thumb following the bend from the tops to the hoods
7. Pointer finger split from other fingers over the hoods
8. Pointer and middle fingers split over hoods from ring and pinkie.
9. Curved part of the drops
10. Flat part of the drops at the bottom
11. Aero bar

I have had lots of hand problems. I need to keep my hands moving to keep the numbness away on longer rides.

Try it, it's not a big deal. Let go, sit straight up.

pcad can do this. Just sayin'