Did you change from Hybrid to Drop Bar Bike

[Dave W]

Went from a flat bar hybrid to a drop bar CX and after a year of fettling and trying to get comfy with it I've sold it and am going back to a flat bar hybrid.

I foolishly listened to everyone who said drop bars were comfier without trying a drop bar bike properly. They're not (for me) and I regret flogging my old hybrid now.

 

[Cp40Carl]

I went from a drop bar to a hybrid as I scared myself witless following my cycle chums when they went off road one day last summer!

Extra weight to hybrid but at least I can go pretty much anywhere now. Do miss my drop bars on the flat roads though, it was effortless cycling...

 

[KneesUp]

Went from a flat bar hybrid to a drop bar CX and after a year of fettling and trying to get comfy with it I've sold it and am going back to a flat bar hybrid.

I foolishly listened to everyone who said drop bars were comfier without trying a drop bar bike properly. They're not (for me) and I regret flogging my old hybrid now.

Your modern drop-bar bike has too much of a height difference between the seat and the bars for most people who haven't got a number pinned on but bike manufacturers imagine that we all want to look like 'racers'. A more old-fashioned geometry (or a bike described as a 'tourer') would probably have been more comfortable. It's taken me a while to get my drop-bar conversion so that it's comfy.

I went from a drop bar to a hybrid as I scared myself witless following my cycle chums when they went off road one day last summer!

Extra weight to hybrid but at least I can go pretty much anywhere now. Do miss my drop bars on the flat roads though, it was effortless cycling...

Get some of these bad boys (image from SJS - I'm sure others sell them too)

 

[Cp40Carl]

Get some of these bad boys (image from SJS - I'm sure others sell them too)

[/QUOTE]

LOL!!! Now you're talkin'. Suppose cyclo-cross maybe the answer for me at some stage.

Classic find though but not sure about the lack of brakes when on the drops and going flat out though!

 

[simongt]

On my five bikes, I have two dropped and three straights, including a Brompton and a dual susser mountain bike, so for me it's a matter of what job the bike does. For local cycling around town etc., straights are fine, but for anything longer than about ten miles, drops, simply for the greater variety of hand positions available. I bought a cheap pair of bar ends for my street bike and cut them to half the length to make a pair of 'stubbies' to give more variety of hand positions, as they don't catch on things as much as full length ones; and it's a lot cheaper that buying ready made 'stubbies' - !

 

[Drago]

I've always had at least one drop bar bike since I Got my first racer in the seventies.

 

[LouiseSJPP]

I used a flat bar MTB on the road for ages, but never liked the bars, they put a strain on my wrists. I got a very old racer with drops, and it was much better, but the drops were enormous. It was very hard to reach the brakes from either being in the drops or on the tops. They were half way around the drop and it was always debatable when needing to brake whether to walk over to them or wait for a bus. Things came to a head when an old lady walked out in front of me without looking and I didn't have time to reach the damn brakes. I knocked her down. It wasn't my fault, but her hip was broken in the accident and I felt awful because if i'd had my flat bars, I could have avoided her. I ditched that bike and got a Giant Defy with a compact drop bar which is great, I can brake from the tops, the hoods or the drops, and change gear, too

In use, I mainly cycle on the tops, with my wrists in a nice relaxed position. For sprinting, I drop down, as I do for planned hard braking and fast downhills: it's safer down there.

 

[Dark46]

Ok I've sold the motorbike and bought a Orro Oxygen and now have a Boardman MX Comp and the new full carbon woohoo and now belong to 2 cycling clubs

 

[Cyclist33]

Get some of these bad boys (image from SJS - I'm sure others sell them too)

LOL!!! Now you're talkin'. Suppose cyclo-cross maybe the answer for me at some stage.

Classic find though but not sure about the lack of brakes when on the drops and going flat out though! [/QUOTE]

I've got a pair of those if anyone wants... Free except postage...

 

[Cyclist33]

I was a flattie, tried a drop bar bike for six months, sold it, went back to flats, had a wonderful couple of years on a cannondale quick, it was as fast as the road bikes but you could flick on a pair of knobblies and hare around the trails on what was basically then a 29er without suspension. I regret selling it especially as @toeknee who bought it, sold it on a month later, but it was an economic decision that was right at the time and now I have two drop bar road bikes that are different sizes with different geometries but both fit me well and aren't uncomfortable. The main things I've learned about drop bar bikes are they can be tuned to your size and that you need to give time and effort to your body adapting to them. I hadn't done any stretching since school p.e. Classes but now I do a few stretches and press ups most days.

Your body and attitude is the main blocker to most physical constraints!

 

[Sim2003]

I have used my Mongoose Crossway 100 (straight bar) for the past 2 years and it has served me well, 12miles 5 days a week .At the time I didn't know what to get so went with a cheapish Hybrid 300£ all in :- pannier, mudguards, lock, lights, helmet etc. This bike is now being used for me to test on and just dissasembled and a back up .

Just got me a lovely dropped bar Trek 520 disc and done my first week on it . Bloody hell my legs did hurt from it for the first few days, I didn't know I had those extra muscles in my legs lol. I was a little unsteady on the balance for the first ride out and a little cautious on stopping and starting effectively. 5 days in now and I have to say I am loving it the drop bar gives you more options for comfort and also the ability to give yourself that extra ummpf to get you home. I have also found I can actually Balance at traffic for a longer time with no feet on ground . Im a fat guy too.

My advise to anyone that is unsure is to just give it a go. You may be pleasantly surprised.

 

[McBrian]

Been riding a Claud Butler hybrid with straight bars with short bar ends for the last year, I like it a lot, feels safe and good for the road or trails but it's a monstrously heavy thing even without the rack and carrier.

I've just taken delivery of a Synapse 105 Disc, didn't feel too safe for the first few miles, a lot different in the handling, it's going to take me a while to get used to the drops (if I ever do), especially hard braking and I've also learned that my back and bum is not as supple as they used to be :-)

 

[jim55]

I've got a pair of those if anyone wants... Free except postage...[/QUOTE]
I was actually thinking of adding these to a flat bar I've got , il b doing a wee mini tour shortly and the bike is good but I'd imagine I'd want drops to change grip , can I have them ,do they just fit over reg flat bars

 

[Cyclist33]

I've got a pair of those if anyone wants... Free except postage...

I was actually thinking of adding these to a flat bar I've got , il b doing a wee mini tour shortly and the bike is good but I'd imagine I'd want drops to change grip , can I have them ,do they just fit over reg flat bars[/QUOTE]
ive never tried them but i think so!

 

[Tojo]

Perhaps the clue is in during adulthood. This is aimed at adults who have taken up cycling later in life. We don't get many beginners on here who are 10

I've just looked at this thread, I think I'll just unwatch it ( no offence meant ) as I don't really know anything else but drop bars, as my Dad was a keen cyclist and wouldn't let me have other bikes when everyone had the likes of Choppers, I was taken to the LBS to get my Sun racer when I was about 8yrs old, I must admit I never looked back after that, as I got a made to measure frame from the same shop when I was 15, so I will duck ot of rhis thread as I cannot get away with flat bars unless they are on a MTB.......