riding position

Dan Daniel said:

If more bikes came with the drop bars
raised up to seat level or so, I think more people would buy them
after seeing how comfortable they are.

I agree. Many people seem to have their bars set low enough that the
drops/hooks are beyond comfortable reach. Why lug that metal around if
you're never going to be able to use it?

By raising the bars, you can be more upright when relaxing on the tops,
yet have access to the bottoms for headwinds or for trying to go fast.

Lots of people think drop bars are only for racers. They don't seem to
know that enthusiastic tourists have always used them - and that
enthusiastic tourists need to be comfortable during long hours on the bike.

Related: We bought a new Terry bike for my somewhat
vertically-challenged daughter. She actually wanted a touring bike, BUT
for some inane reason, Terry specs all touring bikes with detestable
straight bars!

Terry seems to say "After five hours of riding with your hands _here_,
you can move your hands to .... um, the exact same place."

--
--------------------+
Frank Krygowski [To reply, remove rodent and vegetable dot com,
replace with cc.ysu dot edu]

Libuser said:

I am wondering if the crouching riding position on a pro-like road
bike is necessary for an amateur. I am new to riding road bikes,
and my neck was in pain while test riding. I was told I would
eventually strength my neck and get used to it.

I am just interested in getting some exercise, and am not after speed
itself that much. Do I have to force my head that low? Or will a
different frame geometry that allows a more upright position be better?

You may just need to be properly fitted to the road bike. You don't need to
have the road bike set up like a pro racer. Raising the handlebars and/or
switching to a shorter stem may make a big difference. Being new to road
bikes, you should expect the position to feel strange. You will acclimate to
some extent. But if you're in pain during a test ride, something is not
right. Age and flexibility are also factors. What make/model were you
testing?

It would help to know more about your previous riding experience (mileage,
type of bike, etc.) and what you plan to do with the road bike (mileage,
terrain, road quality).

All road bikes are not alike. Perhaps a more touring-oriented road bike
(like a Trek 520) would be more appropriate for your kind of riding. Or
maybe a hybrid bike would be better for you than a road bike. For rides over
30-40 miles, a road bike will probably be more suitable due to better weight
distribution.

Art Harris

(Libuser) said:

They did raise the handlebars, trying to make it work for me. If I
insisted, I think they would make more changes. I was not sure if
neck pain was part of the deal :-)

Well, from what you said, the bike shop thinks that pain *is* part of
the deal and that it will go away over time.

If you have the option, do yourself a favor and visit another bike
shop. If you do buy from this first shop, you will have a better idea
of its strengths and weaknesses.

Frank Krygowski said:

Bill Baka said:

Another consideration is "Are you sure you will never get the urge to
follow a dirt path?". If the answer is "Yes!", then get a road bike and
go
for the speed, if not, a general purpose 26" wheeled bike should work.

Just a detail, but I've done quite a bit of dirt path riding on a road
bike with 32 mm tires. Sufficient care on a halfway smooth path can
make this workable.

I wouldn't try it on 2" rocks, but most people don't really want to ride
that sort of stuff.

Maybe, but my road bike has tires that I would consider more like TT, at
700 x 25 (?), I think, since the bike is outside. Smooth path is possible
but some of the paths lead to rougher stuff and who wants to turn
around and not finish the exploring? Not me. I will carry the bike over
rocks up to a half mile just to see if there is more good trail beyond.
I do get into some ridiculous situations sometimes, but that is just my
way of riding/adventuring.
Bill Baka

--
Using M2, Opera's revolutionary e-mail client: http://www.opera.com/m2/

"Bill Baka" <[email hidden]> wrote>

Quoted message said:

I will carry the bike over
rocks up to a half mile just to see if there is more good trail beyond.
I do get into some ridiculous situations sometimes, but that is just my
way of riding/adventuring.

Long "like-a-bike" sections are very common on some trails. On our group rides
people often jog or climb pretty steep trails while shouldering bikes. I think
you'd find it a good deal more enjoyable with something nicer than a Huffy.
You can get some pretty nice entry-level MTB's for $300 or so if you shop
around. You might also be able to ride some of the sections you carry now,
too.

"Frank Krygowski" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Bill Baka said:

Another consideration is "Are you sure you will never get the urge to
follow a dirt path?". If the answer is "Yes!", then get a road bike and go
for the speed, if not, a general purpose 26" wheeled bike should work.

Just a detail, but I've done quite a bit of dirt path riding on a road
bike with 32 mm tires. Sufficient care on a halfway smooth path can
make this workable.

I wouldn't try it on 2" rocks, but most people don't really want to ride
that sort of stuff.

I've done it on rocky trails. It's not really that hard to ride 32mm tires in
that stuff, especially if you've done a lot of MTB'ing, it's just not that
much fun.

Peter Cole said:

"Frank Krygowski" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Bill Baka said:

Another consideration is "Are you sure you will never get the urge to
follow a dirt path?". If the answer is "Yes!", then get a road bike and go
for the speed, if not, a general purpose 26" wheeled bike should work.

Just a detail, but I've done quite a bit of dirt path riding on a road
bike with 32 mm tires. Sufficient care on a halfway smooth path can
make this workable.

I wouldn't try it on 2" rocks, but most people don't really want to ride
that sort of stuff.

I've done it on rocky trails. It's not really that hard to ride 32mm tires in
that stuff, especially if you've done a lot of MTB'ing, it's just not that
much fun.

Here's another resource for the OP:

http://www.bgcycles.com/access.html

All the best,

--
Kenneth

If you email... Please remove the "SPAMLESS."

Did you try the 1200C? It is in the middle of the 7700 and the 1200.

"Mark Jones" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

"Libuser" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

They did raise the handlebars, trying to make it work for me. If I
insisted, I think they would make more changes. I was not sure if
neck pain was part of the deal :-)

I recently got a Trek 7700 hybrid and I had the LBS add a stem riser to
give me a more upright riding position. I do not want a road bike
with drop bars because I never intend to ride in a position that low.

I also have a Trek 1200 road bike and it is equipped with a
horizontal bar for the same reason.

"Libuser" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Did you try the 1200C? It is in the middle of the 7700 and the 1200.

"Mark Jones" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

"Libuser" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

They did raise the handlebars, trying to make it work for me. If I
insisted, I think they would make more changes. I was not sure if
neck pain was part of the deal :-)

I recently got a Trek 7700 hybrid and I had the LBS add a stem riser to
give me a more upright riding position. I do not want a road bike
with drop bars because I never intend to ride in a position that low.

I also have a Trek 1200 road bike and it is equipped with a
horizontal bar for the same reason.

I didn't try the 1200C because I was wanting a high end hybrid.

If they had them, I would even go for a much higher end hybrid.
The truly exceptional bikes seem to be limited to racing road
bikes. It would be nice to have something like the 7700 but
with some more advanced technology applied to reduce weight
while still providing its features.

Take a look at a Giant Cypress LS. It has a carbon fork & seatpost. Ultegra
rears & 105 brakes. I forget what the front is. Very light for a hybrid.
Runs around $850. My wife has a Trek 1200C. She recently bought a full
carbon roadie and is going to use the 1200C for rail trails etc. The 1200C
has a carbon fork, extra brake levers on the straight part of the handlebars
and I think Tiagra (unsure of spelling) components. The seatpost has a shock
absorber in it. The rider position is upright much like a hybrid.

This happens as a result of the idiotic trend away from threaded/height
adjustable stems to save a few meaninglesss grams.

George LitwinskiGeorge Litwinski "It's good to want things." S. Barr
(philosopher, poet, humorist, chemist, Visual Basic.Net programmer)
"Rich Clark" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Libuser" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Hello,

I am wondering if the crouching ridingh position on a pro-like road
bike is necessary for an amateur. I am new to riding road bikes,
and my neck was in pain while test riding. I was told I would
eventually strength my neck and get used to it.

Lazy bike shop.

Part of the expected service of selling you the bike is making you
comfortable on it. It's common for road bikes to be sold with the

handlebars

Quoted message said:

set too low, in an attempt to make it look more racer-like. This is stupid
and unnecessary.

Go back to the shop. Insist on the installation of a new stem that raises
the bars to a comfortable position which, for most people, is somewhere
within an inch or so of the same height as the saddle. This should be done
without charge. If they won't do it, come back here and post the name and
address of the bike shop.

If there is no stem available that will get the bars to that height, then
the shop sold you a frame that's too small for you, and/or a bike with a
fork steerer tube that had been cut too short. They should rectify the
problem at no cost to you.

Quoted message said:

I am just interested in getting some exercise, and am not after speed
itself that much. Do I have to force my head that low? Or will a
different frame geometry that allows a more upright position be better?

You should not be uncomfortable on a properly fitted bike, unless perhaps
there's something unusually stiff about your neck.

RichC (for whom shops that don't know how/aren't willing to properly fit a
bike are a hot-button issue)

"GRL" <[email hidden]> wrote in news:10jmu5h6n8p09e6
@corp.supernews.com:

Quoted message said:

This happens as a result of the idiotic trend away from threaded/height
adjustable stems to save a few meaninglesss grams.

A lightweight threadless fork can be hundreds of grams lighter than any
threaded fork, not just "a few".

The main reason for threadless forks, however, is lower manufacturing costs.

"GRL" <[email hidden]> wrote in message news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

This happens as a result of the idiotic trend away from threaded/height
adjustable stems to save a few meaninglesss grams.

The transition to threadless is now complete, I don't
know of anyone riding that old threaded stuff.

Anyway, you should have your bike sizing measurements
documented out before going to the bike shop. Only
a newbie doesn't have measurements. And if you're over
the age of twelve there's no excuse for being a newbie.

I don't like measurementless newbies, they don't look good.

In article <[email hidden]>, Ken <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

"GRL" <[email hidden]> wrote in news:10jmu5h6n8p09e6
@corp.supernews.com:

Quoted message said:

This happens as a result of the idiotic trend away from threaded/height
adjustable stems to save a few meaninglesss grams.

A lightweight threadless fork can be hundreds of grams lighter than any
threaded fork, not just "a few".

The main reason for threadless forks, however, is lower manufacturing costs.

Fabrizio and debatable weight considerations aside, Jobst Brandt has
repeatedly noted an interesting (though apparently inadvertant (or at
least secondary)) benefit of threadless: the quill can't seize in place.

Jobst himself has had this problem so often (caused by sweat dripping
into the stem, he suggests) that he converted his otherwise fairly
retrogrouchy bike to threadless.

For the vast majority of users, the adjustability of threaded stems is
moot: you get a proper fit done once, and if there's any doubt, you
leave a few spacers above and below the chosen stem and don't cut the
fork too much.

Indeed, reach is as important as height. Maybe by encouraging more
people to get the stem adjustment right the first time, it will make
sure more riders actually figure out the right reach rather than
adjusting the stem height to compensate for reach issues.

I also like removable stem faces,
--
Ryan Cousineau, [email hidden] http://www.wiredcola.com
Verus de parvis; verus de magnis.

Ryan Cousineau said:

For the vast majority of users, the adjustability of threaded stems is
moot: you get a proper fit done once, and if there's any doubt, you
leave a few spacers above and below the chosen stem and don't cut the
fork too much.

Unfortunately, that last point is often ignored. Is it just me, or do
most bicycles come with the fork already cut within the stem? Then, you
can't raise it at all without buying an extender, and I'm a bit
reluctant to buy one without knowing what it would be like to ride with
the handlebar a bit higher.

It's that chicken and egg thing again...

--
Frederic Briere <*> [email hidden]

=> <[email hidden]> IS NO MORE: <http://www.abacomsucks.com> <=

"Frederic Briere" <[email hidden]> wrote in message ...

Quoted message said:

Unfortunately, that last point is often ignored. Is it just me, or do
most bicycles come with the fork already cut within the stem?

Why are you buying a pre-built bike? Only
newbies do that.

Don't do that. Go to a good pro bike shop,
there they will have bare frames and you will
then get the bike built up for you with Campy
components.