Riding in the drops
 

Hey guys,

Most of my road riding is in the hoods and on the tops. In heavy wind or steep downhill I go to the drops, but find it uncomfortable to sustain for very long except for coasting downhill. I saw some crit races on youtube and those guys sit in the drops practically the whole race!

The fact that I have a spare tire around the midsection might be impeding my breathing which is probably the major cause of discomfort, but my back doesn't like it much either. My question is: Do I need to adjust bike fit, or just get conditioned to it? I'd like to be able to ride much more in the drops to help with aerodynamics so I can be a little bit quicker. How much do you guys ride in your drops?

Thanks for input!

Core strength + flexibility + bike fit = comfort in the drops

It took me about 2.5 years to get comfortable in the drops, including about a season and a half of racing. For me, it was mostly about flexibility, mostly in the hips I think. I can now ride 2 crit races back to back without ever leaving the drops. Once you get used to it, it's a very powerful and controlled postion. Corning on the hoods now feels strange.

The "spare tire" will cause you to arch your back more to make room for your lungs to expand; this might be why your back hurts in the drops. The guys riding in crits are typically more fit than your average bear. To get better aerodynamics (as opposed to merely increasing the number of hand positions comfortably available), you will have to get into better condition.

It is also a matter of getting yourself flexible enough to get into the position. I started racing five years ago; the position I was in then will feel like a dump truck to me now. I have extended my stem 10mm and dropped it by about 3" over the course of the last five years. But put me back to the conditioning and flexibility I had five years ago, and I would not have been able to do much in the drops on my current bikes.

FWIW, I can stay in the drops as long as I need. That is to say, well more than an hour if conditions warrant.

You could raise your bars some to make riding in the drops more comfortable. Then lower them when you get fitter.

Like Brian I have lowered my bars over the years as I have built core strength. I set my bars so I can ride in the drops for a long time when it's appropriate.

This is probably the solution. Raise the bars enough so it is a bit of a stretch to ride in the drops, but you can do it continuously without too much discomfort. Then as you get fitter and more flexible and all that, you can gradually lower the bars to get better aerodynamics and power production.

I'll quote an old post I made. I don't lean forward as far now, with the shallow drops. Much better.

Just keep riding and you'll be able to lengthen your time in the drops.

I think, because I started riding a road bike when I was 13 - decades ago - I don't have any problem staying down. I wouldn't say, at 171 pounds this morning, and 5 feet 11, that I'm overweight. On my bikes with the most drop, though, I can feel the top of my thighs touch my gut. It doesn't impede the time I can stay in the drops, though.

I am in a similar stage. I have a SUV spare tire. And, I am flexible as a plank.

I just started biking seriously about a year ago when I turned 42.

For my first serious road bike, I had a bikefit done with the fit set up so I would comfortable on the hoods and bearable in the drops. This translated to +40mm head tube spacers (from the Chris King inset headset with 12mm of stack) and a 100mm stem with the Enve compact handlebar (I can't remember the drop and reach). The bikefitter told me that I should ride more to increase my core strength and do stretches and yoga to increase my flexibility. The bikefitter asked me to come in for a bikefit tuning every six months.

Currently, I ride about 250 miles a month and stay on the hoods 80% and in the drops 20% of the time. My cadence is 85-90 while I am on the hoods but drops to 80 while I am in the drops. Every week I try to push this envelope a bit more - to the point of being slightly painful and uncomfortable. Hey, no pain no gain.

With my current responsibilities, I probably will not be able to ride more than 300 miles a month apart from special bike/beach vacations, where I would put my family into a beach bungalow with room service while I ride.

The bikefitter told me that the goal, within two to three years, is to decrease the head tube spacers to +1 cm or less and to increase the stem length to 110mm or 120mm. The bikefitter races and probably rides more in a week than I can ride in a month. I am almost double his age - my goal is to just have a good time riding and hopefully cheat time.

I can not emphasize the importance of a good bike fitting. I have no back pain, shoulder soreness, forearm pain, or knee pain (even with a partially torn ACL) after my weekly 50 mile rides. Of course, the centuries are another matter, starting at mile 80. Soreness because of over-exertion is normal but pain because of a poor bike fit is not.

Cheers.

Mark

These are termed "compact bars" and several brands have them. Definitely a solution, particularly if you are out of room to change bar height or are already looking to change bars. They basically bring the "drops" position back and up.

I have a set on one of my road bikes, however, I use them with an extra long stem to make the tops and hoods lower and longer without affecting the position of the drops.

Thanks, guys!!!

Keep working on it. You'll get leaner, more flexible, more comfortable. And when you're more comfortable you'll ride more, get leaner, more flexible, more comfortable. It's a virtuous cycle. :thumb:

I recently did the same thing.

I find that the comfort level for riding in the drops is quite dependent on the level of effort. For light to moderate efforts the tops and hoods are the most comfortable and the drops are not. When the effort ramps up using the drops feels natural and there is no problem staying there for as long as required.

Also, not sure where your saddle is fore and aft, but moving the saddle back can make you more comfy in the drops by distributing your weight better (better balance)!

Because my bikes fit and are set up properly. And I have the correct reach and drop on my bars. I can ride there all day if I choose to. I don't, but it's nice to ride 20 or 30 miles into a headwind in the drops.