Straight Bars v Drops

[rh100]

Thanks for the info

 

[Muddyfox]

I like the drops on my Panorama but i do sometimes get a bit of an ache at the base of my neck on longer rides ?

I'd like to try butterfly bars as they do look very comfy

Simon

 

[Moodyman]

As someone already pointed out it's a British thing as most continental European expedition bikes come with flat bars.

I find flats more comfortable, though drop riders say the same. Personal choice I guess.

 

[andym]

Bar ends are worth fitting if only to give you a choice of hand positions - although it's also good to try to practice supporting yourself from your core muscles and minimisinf the weight you put on your hands. easier said than done though.

 

[m_j_sykes]

Cant see why not as long as your current gear set up is Shimano. Would consult LBS before spending money though.

Coming back to the bars. Concur re straight bars with Ergons as the most comfortable set up. Have just come in from a jaunt on a rode bike with drops and even with Bar Phat tape the handls are suffering after an hour. Can ride all day on straights and not a problem.

 

[Crankarm]

Well if anything is clear it's that there is no definitive answer. It's as clear as mud. You have to use the set up which best suits your body whether it be drops, a flat bar or the other type.

 

[andrew_s]

rode bike with drops and even with Bar Phat tape the handls are suffering after an hour. Can ride all day on straights and not a problem.

I'm the other way round.
Ride on drops all day (and longer), but a couple of hours of flats and my hands are going numb.

I put it down to the way the nerves and bones in the wrist run - I'm better holding a front/rear bar rather than a side to side bar. Bar ends on flats (or presumably the tops with drops) aren't an answer - you don't ride off the controls for long enough.

 

[psmiffy]

I have not ridden drops for years but when I was a kid any problems I had with my hands and drops was alleviated by changing to a bike with slightly higher bars and a slightly more upright position.

My tourer has "flat bars" but allows me to get stretched out when I want due to them being wrap around - when I want to be upright on the brakes I retreat to the bar section

When I bought my light hybrid I tried a lot of drop bar bikes but could not find a bog standard one of the right frame size with the handlebars high enough for me - so I plumped for the hybrid

most european tourers with butterfly bars have a very upright position.

 

[Tim Bennet.]

. . . and I never see cyclists on tourers, with drops, riding in the drop down position anyway.

You should have been in Holland these last few weeks!
Incessant northerly head winds and hours spent on the drops trying to eek out some forward progress.
I'm glad 'sit up and beg' wasn't my only option!

 

[PpPete]

When I returned to cycling after a few decades absence (apart from being bewildered by all the drive train technology) I found the drops on my Galaxy were not as comfortable as I remembered.

I was very tempted to try butterfly bars (as a flat bar bike was comfortable - but only with bar ends) but could never decide how I would organise gear & brake levers.

In the end I never tried them, because I realised that the problem with my drops was one of width. A 45 cm bar(Nitto Randonneur) instead of the original 42 cm (Dawes-branded but Randonneur shape) and I was fine.

For me, the Randonneur shape is right on a tourer. Surprised they are not more popular/available.

I make a point of using the drops, not only downhill, but also into any headwind. It does help! And a change of position now and again helps with any shoulder issues or "saddle interface" problems. I wouldn't get that option with flat bars+bar ends, because I don't find holding the flat bar comfortable.

My fixed wheel now has an (even wider) bullhorn bar. That works for me too, as on the fixed I'm always on and off the saddle so that's a change of position in itself.

One day I might try a butterfly bar.... but I doubt I'll admit it on here. Certain members like to take to the p...

 

[jay clock]

I used to have a Saracen Skyline (same as Galaxy) and swapped it for a Koga Miyata World Traveller. It does generally seem to be UK cyclists who go for the dropped bars, and Germans etc seem to travel the world very happily with straight ones. I find a huge adavntage of the straight bars is much better braking using V brakes. My cantis were a) not very good, and required me to move to the drops on steep downhills to exert enough pressure. My XT v brakes are readily to hand and allow gentle pressure to give great braking.

I have Ergon bar ends which I plan to replace for Cane Creek Ergos at some point

 

[yello]

Something mentioned on the CTC link, and not so far mentioned here so worth repeating, is that drops enable you to rotate your wrists by riding on the hoods. This itself can give a relieving change of position.

Bar ends on flats probably offer this option too but with flat bars being, generally speaking, wider it means you're widening your reach, opening up the chest area and leaning forward a little more. That may or may not present different aches!

I have flats and bar ends on my ex-mtb tourer but do actually prefer the drops of all my other bikes. The flats aren't a problem though, just different. I've not tried butterfly bars but neither do I feel a need to do so, but perhaps one day.

But whatever your choice, and I agree it is a personal one, I don't think there is a right or wrong answer - there's only what suits you.

 

[Crankarm]

If flat bars with or without bar ends or those butterfly bars were so comfortable then why aren't all the Pro riders using them as they ride thousands of miles in a year? Since they don't I rest my case.

With a flat bar even with bar ends one's wrists are constantly bent at 90 degrees thus restricting blood flow to the hands causing numbness or pins and kneedles which I have even found occuring in my elbows if riding for many hours in the saddle on my flat bar bike with bar ends. However, riding on the hoods of drop bars your lower arm and wrist are in line, thus not bent, allowing blood to easily flow to your hands and there is little pressure on the palms. Like wise if one actually uses the drops themselves. Flat bars are fine for short leisure cycling a mile or two to the shops but for serious touring drops are a far better option. And drop bars are not a curiously British fad. Many Yanks, Kiwis, Aussies, Canadians tour with drops as well as Germans and Swiss. Josie Dew uses dropped handle bars IIRC or she used to when touring.

 

[Anthony]

If flat bars with or without bar ends or those butterfly bars were so comfortable then why aren't all the Pro riders using them as they ride thousands of miles in a year? Since they don't I rest my case.

With a flat bar even with bar ends one's wrists are constantly bent at 90 degrees thus restricting blood flow to the hands causing numbness or pins and kneedles which I have even found occuring in my elbows if riding for many hours in the saddle on my flat bar bike with bar ends. However, riding on the hoods of drop bars your lower arm and wrist are in line, thus not bent, allowing blood to easily flow to your hands and there is little pressure on the palms. Like wise if one actually uses the drops themselves. Flat bars are fine for short leisure cycling a mile or two to the shops but for serious touring drops are a far better option. And drop bars are not a curiously British fad. Many Yanks, Kiwis, Aussies, Canadians tour with drops as well as Germans and Swiss. Josie Dew uses dropped handle bars IIRC or she used to when touring.

I don't know if you meant that as a joke, but pros don't use drop bars for their comfort, it is because they offer much better aerodynamics.

Personally, I would rate butterfly bars as the most comfortable, then drops and lastly normal flat bars. But it is really a matter for individual taste, there is not a right answer.

 

[rh100]

If flat bars with or without bar ends or those butterfly bars were so comfortable then why aren't all the Pro riders using them as they ride thousands of miles in a year? Since they don't I rest my case.

With a flat bar even with bar ends one's wrists are constantly bent at 90 degrees thus restricting blood flow to the hands causing numbness or pins and kneedles which I have even found occuring in my elbows if riding for many hours in the saddle on my flat bar bike with bar ends. However, riding on the hoods of drop bars your lower arm and wrist are in line, thus not bent, allowing blood to easily flow to your hands and there is little pressure on the palms. Like wise if one actually uses the drops themselves. Flat bars are fine for short leisure cycling a mile or two to the shops but for serious touring drops are a far better option. And drop bars are not a curiously British fad. Many Yanks, Kiwis, Aussies, Canadians tour with drops as well as Germans and Swiss. Josie Dew uses dropped handle bars IIRC or she used to when touring.

The only long distance rider I know of is Beaumont (sorry, I know, but I just don't know of any others ), he is a clear example of someone not using drops, it must have worked out well for the world tour as he used them again on the America's trip.

Surely there are bar ends that angle inwards a bit to give a more relaxed angle?

I wonder if the OP would be willing to add a poll to this thread, I would be interested what the tourers who visit this forum favour. It would also be interesting to see how many have tried the different ones available.