Jim’s Tech Talk
By Jim Langley
Last week’s column on dropped handlebar lever positioning received some most helpful tips and thoughts in the comments, thanks for sharing! If you missed the story and/or comments, here’s a link (Basic Tips for Drop Bar Brake Lever Positioning) to catch up.
This week I want to answer a question that reader Tom Crespi asked and make a suggestion that might help if you’re in Pete and Brian’s position and like to cant your levers inward.
Tom’s question
“Not directly related to your column, so maybe this is the topic for another article, but another current trend is towards narrower handlebars, to reduce frontal area in any position but also to allow for an aerodynamic “TT-ish” position WITHOUT the need to tilt in the brake levers for the same effect. It’s a compelling concept for those of us racing. However, just as the tilted-in brake levers can make for an uncomfortable wrist position, I’m concerned that a too-narrow handlebar can cause issues with shoulders, and maybe can compromise steering ability.”
My thoughts
Thanks for the great question Tom. I’ve done a lot of road racing in all disciplines. I’ve also fit hundreds of riders to their bikes as a bike fitter at a pro shop.
I believe that the most important thing in any racing situation is being able to get the most out of your body. And, the risk you run when going to narrower bars than what actually fit your anatomy properly is that you could lose power – the ability to put out your maximum/optimum effort. The reason is that too-narrow bars compress the chest, which is very likely to reduce your lung capacity. And if you can’t get enough air you’re not going to race your best.
Also most road racing involves pack riding until you sprint for the win or breakaway and go off on your own. When you’re in the pack you don’t have to worry about your aerodynamics that much because you’ve got people blocking the wind for you. When you sprint, you need to be able to make a maximum effort and while wind resistance matters I don’t think it’s as important as getting enough air to produce maximum watts.
I wasn’t a very good sprinter but breaking away was one of my strengths. Once off the front aerodynamics are definitely important, but again, it’s more important that you can both maintain as aero a position as possible and also maximize your effort to stay away for the win. Staying on the drops, keeping your back flat (which is mainly a result of a proper position) and keeping your head and elbows out of the wind are the best ways to make sure your escape ends with you on the top podium step.
If you go to too-narrow handlebars you might get a little more aero but again, trying to maintain a faster pace than the pack in hot pursuit is going to be way more difficult if you can’t rev your engine to the max till you cross the line. A breakaway is usually a do or die effort. You can’t give anything away if you want to do rather than die. Personally I wouldn’t even consider bars that would limit my breathing.
Maybe for an event where you know that the finish is a long descent, you could suffer on the too-narrow bars and get off the front and then use your skinny bar position to descend faster than everyone else. But I think for most road racing the best path to good results is sticking with handlebars that fit you. And I would recommend a dropped handlebar width that matches the distance between the bony protrusions on top of your shoulder blades.
Keep in mind that handlebar shapes have changed and there are lots to choose from and shapes that might even be more aero just by nature of their shape which I get into next.
Pete and Brian’s questions
Regarding my recommendation last week NOT to angle your brake levers inward, Pete Royer commented:
“I have canted my levers inward for years for ergonomic reasons. I found by turning them inward my hands and wrists were in better alignment. If it was more aero, it was not a major factor in my decision.”
And reader “Brian” agrees:
“I actually find that my wrist position is more neutral and my hands are more comfortable with the levers turned inward slightly.”
My thoughts
Thanks Pete and Brian, I’ve heard this from other riders, some that I ride with. The good news for anyone who feels this way is that the popularity of gravel riding has fueled more dropped handlebar shapes. And, one of the things you often find is flared drops, which means that the drops are a lot wider than the hoods.
And because the drops are angled to the outside like this, the natural position for the levers is canted in. So if you like that position for the levers you get it and the levers are also in line/aligned with the bar rather than set at a different angle than the bar (which is what can happen if you angle levers on non-flared dropped bars).
To show an example, I found a pair of very inexpensive gravel bars by Satori. They included this nice diagram showing some basic measurements. Since I used their photo and graphic, it’s only right that I provide a link to learn more too. Here it is: https://amzn.to/442ubwi
You can find a lot of dropped handlebars shaped like the Satori bars. And they come in a wide range of widths and drops. Just search on gravel bike dropped handlebars and look for the ones that are flared. You don’t want to buy handlebars without getting a feel for them so that you can get the best fit. For this you might have riding friends with the bars you could try or your local bike shop, if it carries gravel bikes, should have a few different models on bikes you could check out. With luck you might find a pair of new bars that are more comfortable and more aero too.
Jim Langley is RBR’s Technical Editor. A pro mechanic & cycling writer for more than 40 years, he’s the author of Your Home Bicycle Workshop in the RBR eBookstore. Tune in to Jim’s popular YouTube channel for wheel building & bike repair how-to’s. Jim’s also known for his cycling streak that ended in February 2022 with a total of 10,269 consecutive daily rides (28 years, 1 month and 11 days of never missing a ride). Click to read Jim’s full bio.
Brian Nystrom says
Jim, you make an interesting point about flared bars, which I hadn’t considered. Although I’m not wild about the shape and dimensions of the Satori bars, I may try a flared bar the next time I need to replace mine. Thanks for the idea!
Jim Langley says
Thanks Brian, please let us know what you get and how they work for you if you get a pair. Thanks!
Jim
Free says
Flared, and wider bars are essential on loaded touring bikes because they allow better stability with loads and better control. The flair allows you better grip which will also be essential on gravel bikes, but you also don’t want to go to an extreme flair thinking that if flair is better more flair is better yet. Zipp did some testing on these type of bars and found that the combination of 5° flare and 11° out sweep provides the greatest differential between the hoods and the drops, but without negatively impacting the ergonomics. But on a touring bike where you’re not racing a bit more flair can be advantageous. Flair gives you a bit more hand positioning as well which is important on long rides, while a flair and or wide bar does help keep a load more stable when riding, it does, however, slow down the responsiveness of the bike so for racing you won’t have as good of control, which takes us back to the Zipp study for the supposed idea handlebar.
This stuff I feel is all subjective, what might work great for one person may not for the next. I know on my touring/gravel bike it has flared handlebars, and I like it, but I’m not racing.
Jim Langley says
Thanks for the great comment Free. Some interesting trivia about flared handlebars is that Charlie Cunningham of Wilderness Trail Bikes (WTB) who was one of the pioneers of oversize aluminum all road/gravel bikes (called Indians) – was making flared bars 50 years ago by standing on one drop and pulling up on the other on standard non-flared aluminum bars. I rode with Charlie and he flew down and up trails on that setup as did the racers on his bikes and bars!
Thanks again
Jim