For those that suffer from hand numbness, there is a current thread about it in the long distance cycling forum where a link was provided to this thread that details the remedy for most if not all people. Scroll down to the post by dannoXYZ and read from there.

There are also some good suggestions in the current long distance cycling thread, such as making sure your drop bars are positioned so the flats are actually, or nearly flat (level) and brake lever placement that creates a smooth flowing line onto the flat. I don't suffer from hand numbness, though I used to experience it sometimes. But now all my bikes are set up so my weight land on the correct part of my hands. I went through the process over time, by trial and error. I think the link above can save some folks a lot of time and undo discomfort by indicating what they should be trying to do to start with. Here's a photo of my bars/lever from the side.

[QUOTE=Ciufalon;15439167]For those that suffer from hand numbness, there is a current thread about it in the long distance cycling forum where a link was provided to this thread that details the remedy for most if not all people./QUOTE]

I think this is, ummm, slightly optimistic...

I understand the pessimism, but after reading it (or maybe you already have), I think most folks will find that it works. It is about the best bit of advice I have seen about how to stop hand numbness if it occurs as a result of riding a bicycle, and several others in the long distance cycling forum concur.

Have not read the thread (yet) but curious if there is anything for straight bar bicycles. I commute all over town on a mountain bike that I turned into a commuter.

I did read it. And there is some good advice there. But (and this is important):

(1) It is hardly the "This is everything you need to know" reference source on hand numbness, and

(2) Some people are going to get numb hands no matter what they do.

And given that

your summary seems even less, ummm..., relevant.

It's not that I doubt your motives, but I think it's fair to say that you're over-selling this (by, well, a lot).

Putting on bar ends so you can change your position can help a lot. I found that I could ride on aerobars with very little problems with my hands/arms (although my neck got sore looking up) - there was someone on the touring forum who just posted a picture of a flatbar handlbars and aerobars:



Cheers,
Charles

The only thing that worked for me is a recumbent. Any weight on my hands causes numbness in my left hand.

I wonder how a recumbent work work out with commuting. Do you ever get nervous with sitting lower to the ground?

Do YOU have them on your straight bars? Interesting thought.

Agreed, my kneck still hurts from having to look up so much. Need to modify that actually.

I've had some hand numbness for years, gradually worsening, while riding 5 different bikes.

This thread brought me to the sudden realization that I have not had any hand pain or numbness since I started riding my latest bike five weeks ago, where I set the handlebar 7cm above saddle - my most upright position ever. I intentionally built it this way to alleviate upper back / shoulder pain, and now I realize that I have inadvertently fixed my long-term hand numbness. How nice!

I agree with dannoxyz, raise your handlebar to alleviate hand numbness.

Do you have a pic of your bike set up or you on your bike? Would like to see it.

I don't have any issues at all commuting with my recumbent. I've ridden my Cruzbike Sofrider in NYC and I had no problems (not that I really like riding that much in NYC...).

I prefer commuting (and riding in general) on my recumbent. Not only is it more comfortable, it's much easier for me to see (I'm sitting up and not leaning quite forward). I'm also weird enough that cars seem to notice me more and give me more space than a regular bicycle.

Here I am in my Damn-it's-cold outfit:




On my comfort bike, I have my bar ends horizontal and I used to almost lie down with my elbows and arms on those. This results in less control than aerobars and I would have put them on my bike, except I don't ride it anymore (I pretty much only ride my recumbents now as I find them much more comfortable).

On my (so-called) comfort bike, I could do pretty well to avoid numb hand by doing exactly this, being quite upright and not putting as much weight on my hands. Not as comfortable (or effective) as my recumbent, but definitely a big improvement.

Cheers,
Charles

One of the most important bits from Danno's post that tends to get overlooked in favor of his thoughts on hand positioning is to keep those elbows unlocked and loose. Your hands should be light enough on the bars that they don't need any padding to keep from going numb, and padding can actually encourage you to leave your hands in one position for too long.

I agree with keeping the elbows unlocked and loose, although I did find that thick gel gloves did help in my case (I was very conscientiously varying my hand positions to help alleviate the problem).

My short wheel base recumbent sits as tall as my diamond frame. My tadpole sits lower and I feel like I disappear in heavy traffic with the exception of my flag. That one gets used for my distance rides.

But my hand numbness isn't a problem up until around 30-60 minutes, so I commute on a diamond frame.