Adam G.

Personally if I had another bike and used it for casual riding I would maybe get risers. I use my bike for fitness reasons and training. No way would I have risers riding the way I use my bike now.

Pennywize

Risers just feel different from the other bars I cant explain it they just do!!!

i switch between bullhorns and risers.

jdms mvp

my comment was about riding with brakes and on the hoods.... i ride brake(less) on my track bike. and of course there is climbing ON my track bike because i commute daily with it. on longer rides near my house, i will exclusively use my road bike....for obvious reasons...

my risers aren't emo-cut short.... they are wide(r) than my drops.....

crushkilldstroy

Of course they do. They're different bars.

pawpaw

i think risers can be very stylish and they're fine if you prefer an upright riding position; however, if you prefer an upright riding position, a road/track bike is the exact opposite of what you need. and that notion opens up a topic that i don't think needs to be discussed here (why people who aren't comfortable on road/track bikes put themselves through the discomfort simply for aesthetics).

you may be able to barspin better than someone using horns or drops, but let's a have an uphill sprint and see how many people riding risers can crank as efficiently as people with horns or drops.

patrick.decker@

When I first switched to risers climbing was certainly more difficult, however.... I would now say that the challenge only made me stronger, and if I switched back to drops (or even horns) I could ful**in kill it.

anthegreat1

i have alot of hills here so it's bullhorns for me

Thetank

I have but a few hills, baby ones at that, so I ride track drops and risers depending on where I'm going.

novacane

i like the vantage point that risers give me, i can keep a good eye on everything going on around me, and also like the hand position, but i switch between them and road drops every once and a while.

fgk23n

I don't know anyone that has chosen risers for their performance - people usually choose them for comfort or style reasons. Personally I use risers on my bianchi fremont so you can't argue the track geo issue, I find them comfortable while riding to / from class and work in the city, plus like novacane mentioned you have a nice vantage point to pay attention to what's going on around you.

Once I finish building my frame with track geo, I won't put risers on it, I'll put drops.

elTwitcho

There is more to a road/track bike than riding in an aero position. It's entirely conceivable that someone wanted a bike with steep angles and low trail for it's handling characteristics, and appreciated the usefulness of horizontal dropouts (track ends).

grymg

the kilo I ride has a very agressive riding geometry when combined with the stock drops, so risers would give me a more comfortable position

but casual riding isn't what I bought it for so I'll stick with the drops. Also I like constantly changing positions on the bars depending on what kind of riding it is

aphid308

i ride risers bc i do more barspins than climb hills... but i dont find ascending to be awful on them actually

MPLSdunk

i ride straight bars with a little sweep. i used to ride bullhorns but didn't like all the pressure on my hands and wrists from leaning so far over. so i got a shorter stem and straight bars.

JoshG

i ride risers becuase they are hella comfy

JoshG

are those dimension risers???

brandonspeck

I think risers are great for riding around town. A friend of mine rides risers when he's just getting through traffic because it's more comfortable for him. He'll switch out to track drops when he's doing more intense, faster rides but overall I think risers are good for more upright positions. And hell, if they're comfortable then they're comfortable. can't argue with practicality.

Personally I ride pursuit bars because I can have the option for a more upright position on the flat part, then have a more tucked position riding in the dropped bullhorns.

It's all preference.

melon

its all prefrence, but im going to throw the cats amoungst the pigeons and say that everyone who doesnt ride road drops with hoods isnt riding thier bike correctly. the reason we ride fixed gears should be becuase theyre fast and can be ridden well on roads. even though fixed bikes traditionally are meant for the track, you cant deny that the speed control, reliability, and the stop start nature of city riding are indicitive to thier use on the roads.

i like pursuit bars for thier comfort and leverage for climbs, but drops are exactly the same, and have the extra bonus of having two more hand positions for a much more aero dynamic profile. so why bother with them, just get road drops.

risers are fine on bmx and mtb becuase more precise control is needed, and the wider profile of mtb bars allows greater balance on rough surfaces. aerodynamics, long climbing at speed, and long rides which need multiple hand positions for comfort, isnt really important in these disciplines. but they are relevent for the road ridng we do on our fixed bikes.

if you want to do tricks, get a bloody bmx, leave the track/roadbikes for riding fast.



you can ride with risers if you want, but ill be much smugger in the knowlege that im more comfortable, faster and have some way to eleviate the hell of a constsnt strong headwind.

fgk23n

What if I want to do my tricks while going fast? or I want to quickly get to where I do tricks and don't want to bring an extra bike along?

Just adding more fuel to a fire that will never go out.

dudezor

Flat bars and riser bars are great when riding in city traffic for the MTB reasons you mentioned. Unless they're cut down stupidly narrow, they do provide greater control and stability, and a nice view over the cars. If one's primary use of the bike is city riding then they can make good sense.

palladio

I agree. I have a road bike with drops which are great for longer rides, but I have never really liked them for riding in heavy traffic and rough road conditions in NYC.

I disagree that a track bike is only meant for speed and drops. Granted, I have a Soma Rush which isn't really a track frame as I understand it, but it is noticeably quicker, lighter and more nimble than my geared road bike. Thus, I find it more fun and comfortable for the crazy task of dodging cab doors opening, bike swallowing potholes, oblivious jaywalkers with headphones, etc. that are the daily biz in NYC. I also like the fixed aspect as I'm never worried about missing a gear or preocuppied with shifting instead of being 100% focused on what's going on around me. The heads-up position and slightly greater steering control provide by risers is another plus in this environment. No they are not great into headwinds or on hills, but those are lesser problems where I ride than getting clobbered by a bus or car door.

A mountainbike with slicks also makes a good city bike (and that's what the majority of people ride in NYC), but so far I happen to prefer the lighter weight and quicker acceleration of a fixie with risers.

2new2this

Um that is almost quote-worthy for how stupid it is. Think about what you just said. "A TRACK bike is not just meant for the track." Unfortunately for you, that is their only purpose. And when I say purpose I mean what they are made for. They aren't made for people to take out on the streets. Sure they might market them that way, because they are out to make a buck. And that also doesn't mean it is wrong to take one and put risers on it and ride it on the street, but that certainly is not what it is meant for. A better way to state your quote would have been, "track bikes can be used for purposes other than the track." And I am not trying to be a jerk with this, I am just letting you know that what you said is completely false.

palladio

You are completely correct that I misspoke, and that what I was actually trying to express is "track bikes can be used for purposes other than the track".

You sound like a jerk. There was no need to infer that I'm stupid to make your point. I can assure you I am not.

2new2this

I agree with everything here. Road drops with hoods for the road. Track drops for the track. That's what is making sense to me.

brandonspeck

I think this sums up his point. If people stick to just riding track drops to the track, road/hoods for the road, then why are you riding a track (or semi-track) bike in the street when it's just meant for the track? And generally if you're posting in this forum you're most likely riding a more aggressively built bike in the street.

I agree with palladio, because other than preference, bars and levers are just adaptations to your surroundings. If you're dodging through traffic, you need something responsive as well as something that puts your head above traffic more. I completely understand this logic, but I still don't understand the logic that says, "you can only use road bars for the road, and only track bars for the track, and riser bars for the mountain."

Because isn't the reason we're riding fixed gear bikes in the street go against that logic entirely?d