# Climbing in the drops?



## Banjo (7 Aug 2013)

I like to change positions a lot including doing bits of a long climb in the drops.Usually end up on the hoods or on the bars towards the top of the climb.

A guy I sometimes ride with says its all wrong to climb in the drops as it restricts breathing etc.

Anyone else do the same out of interest?


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## Hacienda71 (7 Aug 2013)

I only climb using the drops on fairly shallow climbs where there may be some aero advantage, otherwise I will be on the tops of the bars or the hoods.


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## jowwy (7 Aug 2013)

tops or hoods for me too - like to sit up and spin up climbs


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## Rob3rt (7 Aug 2013)

If the speed is high, get in the drops or drop your elbows to get aero. If you are going slow, you may as well give up the aero advantage, as it is minimal, in order to increase power capacity by opening up your hips and also making breathing easier.


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## VamP (7 Aug 2013)

I often stay in the drops throughout a whole ride. This should be possible without interfering with your breathing too much. The guy you sometimes ride with might want to look at his riding position.


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## MickeyBlueEyes (7 Aug 2013)

90% climbing on hoods, 10% on tops, big fat 0% on the drops.


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## on the road (7 Aug 2013)

I sometimes alternate between drops and the hoods when climbing, sometimes I stay on the drops all the way up, it doesn't seem to restrict my breathing, in fact I've never noticed any difference between the two methods when climbing.


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## Spinney (7 Aug 2013)

on the road said:


> I sometimes alternate between drops and the hoods when climbing, sometimes I stay on the drops all the way up, it doesn't seem to restrict my breathing, in fact I've never noticed any difference between the two methods when climbing.


 
Me neither - it's always slow!


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## Davidc (7 Aug 2013)

Tops or hoods climbing.

The drops get used downhill - often when going too fast to pedal, and also useful when going into a headwind.


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## BSRU (7 Aug 2013)

Didn't realise they had names for all these hand positions .
http://lovelybike.blogspot.ro/2012/06/drop-bar-hand-positions-introduction.html


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## Boris Bajic (7 Aug 2013)

We will all ultimately ride in the position we choose.

On my road bike I have the bars quite low, but spend most of my time on the hoods. I have never climbed on the drops unless at the very bottom of a slope when trying to eke out a little residual velocity to help me up the climb.

Even when many are on the drops, I usually stay on the hoods but drop my elbows, with forearms horizontal. Drops are for 20mph+ only. My own daft rule, but one I take seriously for reasons I do not know. I lack the courage to descend over 30mph on the drops - I always pop my hands back up on a fast descent. I envy those who don't.

I like to climb on the hoods or the back of the bars. If_ 'en danseuse'_, I am always on the hoods or just behind them, for stability.

I like to sit up when climbing, to ease breathing. I often poke my elbows slightly out to open my chest. I also slide rearward on the saddle if it begins to get tough.

To each their own. If you like to climb on the drops, do it!


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## fossala (7 Aug 2013)

VamP said:


> I often stay in the drops throughout a whole ride. This should be possible without interfering with your breathing too much. The guy you sometimes ride with might want to look at his riding position.


Or maybe you need to look at your position. The drops aren't there to ride all day in. AFAIK you are "supposed" to spend most of your time on the hoods, use your drops to go into an aero position. Maybe you have you bars too high for your style/flexability.


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## HLaB (7 Aug 2013)

I think Pantani done it (climbing in the drops), OK he was on something  but it didn't harm him.


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## VamP (7 Aug 2013)

fossala said:


> Or maybe you need to look at your position. The drops aren't there to ride all day in. AFAIK you are "supposed" to spend most of your time on the hoods, use your drops to go into an aero position. Maybe you have you bars too high for your style/flexability.


 
And maybe I do it to train my body to be efficient in that position?

I'm not advocating that people ride in the drops all day, I am just saying that it should be possible to stay in the drops for the duration of a climb (even a long one) without a significant impact on power output.


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## lukesdad (7 Aug 2013)

I only climb in the drops out of the saddle.


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## cd365 (7 Aug 2013)

I climb in the drops when I'm going for it up the hill, I've never noticed it impacting on my breathing


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## ayceejay (7 Aug 2013)

There is no rule regarding hand position but if you watch the guys who spend 6 or more hours in the saddle you will notice a pattern: most people climb with their hands on the flat bit midway between stem and bend. The variable is whether you are pushing or pulling and this depends on style and personal preference I think.


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## cd365 (7 Aug 2013)

http://www.roadbikerider.com/riding-skills/climbing-descending/should-i-climb-using-tops-or-drops


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## Norry1 (7 Aug 2013)

Mainly hoods. Drops and flats occasionally.


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## gaz (7 Aug 2013)

I'll only use the drops on a climb if i'm out of the saddle and pushing it hard.
Otherwise I'll be on the flats mostly and occasionally on the hoods.

A nice relaxed upper body position helps a lot with being fluid with climbing.


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## GrumpyGregry (7 Aug 2013)

Since I fitted On-One Midges to the fixed seated climbing on the drops got a whole lot easier. And quicker/faster. I've not yet encountered any restriction to my breathing. And they work damn well when honking too.


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## Shut Up Legs (7 Aug 2013)

VamP said:


> I often stay in the drops throughout a whole ride. This should be possible without interfering with your breathing too much. The guy you sometimes ride with might want to look at his riding position.





fossala said:


> Or maybe you need to look at your position. The drops aren't there to ride all day in. AFAIK you are "supposed" to spend most of your time on the hoods, use your drops to go into an aero position. Maybe you have you bars too high for your style/flexability.


I do the same as VamP, i.e. spend whole rides using the drops. I find them more comfortable than the top parts of the handlebars. My body's now used to this riding style, and I've done some fairly long and hilly rides this way. Perhaps I'm breaking some unofficial rule by doing so, but this doesn't bother me.


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## Accy cyclist (8 Aug 2013)

The hoods or the near centre of the bars are best for me,unless the wind is so strong that the drops are used.


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## Poacher (8 Aug 2013)

In my teens I used the drops 90% of the time.
Nowadays I only use the drops on fast descents, i.e. when I don't have to pedal, which involves my thighs painfully thumping my enormous beer-gut.


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## JoeyB (8 Aug 2013)

My drops are for show only lol, don't find it comfortable down there at all.


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## GrumpyGregry (8 Aug 2013)

I can't help but think that for most mere mortals modern race bike geometry and the riding position that results renders the drops all but unusable for many. Simply too low.


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## fossyant (8 Aug 2013)

GregCollins said:


> I can't help but think that for most mere mortals modern race bike geometry and the riding position that results renders the drops all but unusable for many. Simply too low.


 
Do your stretches !


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## Herzog (8 Aug 2013)

HLaB said:


> I think Pantani done it (climbing in the drops), OK he was on something  but it didn't harm him.


 
He did, though his bars were set higher than normal.


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## GrumpyGregry (8 Aug 2013)

fossyant said:


> Do your stretches !


I've no need. Not a mere mortal.


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## Banjo (8 Aug 2013)

Thanks for all the responses .

Big diversity of opinion there as normal for the forum, I doint allways climb on the drops I just like having more options of hand position and back angle to keep moving around . Not being a racer out and out speed isnt as vital to me as comfort on a long ride .


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## Matthew_T (8 Aug 2013)

I climb on the drops but only when I am going up a very steep hill or I want to accelerate a bit.

There was a thread before about sprinting in the drops. Both are perfectly fine to do and I have never heard anything about restrictions to breathing.


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## BSRU (8 Aug 2013)

I may have to start using the drops more often after my little experiment at lunchtime, didn't realise the increased speed benefits would be so noticeable.
Only normally use the drops if battling a strong headwind.


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## Rob3rt (8 Aug 2013)

Matthew_T said:


> I climb on the drops but only when I am going up a very steep hill or I want to accelerate a bit.
> 
> *There was a thread before about sprinting in the drops. Both are perfectly fine to do and I have never heard anything about restrictions to breathing.*


 
You should always sprint in the drops.

When people say, restricting your breathing, this is not a sudden inability to breath properly.


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## Sittingduck (8 Aug 2013)

Yeah, but only on short punchy little climbs when I'm carrying a lot of momentum to the crest.


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## VamP (8 Aug 2013)

Sittingduck said:


> Yeah, but only on short punchy little climbs when I'm carrying a lot of momentum to the crest.


 
Are there any other kind?


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## T.M.H.N.E.T (8 Aug 2013)

VamP said:


> Are there any other kind?


Richmond Park has thousands of ft worth apparently


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## Banjo (8 Aug 2013)

VamP said:


> Are there any other kind?


 
That will be the kind we call mountains


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## HLaB (9 Aug 2013)

Did almost the whole of a TT in the drops last night, cant quite remember what I did on the climbs (nothing major) but I don't think it was any disbenefit if I did


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## cinelli (9 Aug 2013)

Hoods and Tops. Never on the drops. Doesn't it just make things harder when you are crunched up like that? I feel on the hoods and tops I can breathe easier.


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## ianrauk (9 Aug 2013)

cinelli said:


> Hoods and Tops. Never on the drops. Doesn't it just make things harder when you are crunched up like that? I feel on the hoods and tops I can breathe easier.


 


Yup, on the tops open's your chest and lungs.


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## Sittingduck (9 Aug 2013)

I use the drops a lot, compared to many folk I ride with. Much better braking and aero. Always on downhill bits and lots of situations when you're moving relatively quickly or into a headwind. It will feel weird at first but you soon get used to it!


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## Dan B (9 Aug 2013)

Boris Bajic said:


> We will all ultimately ride in the position we choose.


I don't


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## HLaB (9 Aug 2013)

cinelli said:


> Hoods and Tops. Never on the drops. Doesn't it just make things harder when you are crunched up like that? I feel on the hoods and tops I can breathe easier.


Depends a lot on the individual and the bike fit, for some people it will make it harder, for others it wont and they'll benefit (I fit into that latter category)


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## PhunkyPhil (9 Aug 2013)

I have just started using my drops more to up my average a bit and am starting to add sprinting up shorter hills using the drops to get more speed. Not sure if I would want to grind out a big hill on the drops though as its more relaxing to me to use the hoods.

I guess different people are able to maintain different positions and ultimately there isn't a correct way to do anything. I can happily go along at 20+ on the hoods when others need the drops to get that speed, this is why I never really started using the drops till very recently.


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## photonergy (25 Nov 2013)

It was by accident by now i'm usually climbing in the drops, especially when the pace gets hard. 

My saddle-stem drop is about 12cm, and I've not had a problem climbing in the hoods/top until I've switched to my current bar, Pro Vibe 7s traditional drop. The hood area near the top is flat unlike the real traditional bar, where it drops down, so now i'm about 2cm at the hood compared to before. This setup have been a problem for me during climbing and i usually find myself unable to generate the power i did before. One day, out of frustration and determine to try any other position before re-installing my previous bar, i dropped down to the drops, and it was night and day. Couldn't believe the difference it made and how much easier it is to generate/maintain power.

I think there isn't a "right" position, it's whatever you find most effective.


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## Dusty Bin (25 Nov 2013)

Surely it all depends on where your 'drops' are and how they are set up. I've seen some riders riding on the 'drops' in a position which is actually higher the me riding on the hoods. There are some shocking bike setups out there...


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## Shut Up Legs (25 Nov 2013)

Dusty Bin said:


> Surely it all depends on where your 'drops' are and how they are set up. I've seen some riders riding on the 'drops' in a position which is actually higher the me riding on the hoods. There are some shocking bike setups out there...


Mine's one of them. I have several headset spacers to raise the stem (which is angled up), and the handlebars angled down so I can use my preferred position (i.e. on the drops) all the time. I just find it more comfortable that way. Other people can act as shocked as they wish, but I'll continue riding my bikes in the way that suits me best.

Taken a few years ago, but the stem and handlebar setup are more or less the same now:





I've done 67,000km over 5 years with the bike setup like this, including some fairly long rides, and it works for me.


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## Dusty Bin (25 Nov 2013)

There we are then. If the position works for you , then that's fine, although the bike does look too small for you anyway. But we now have photographic proof that threads like this are meaningless..


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## Rob3rt (25 Nov 2013)

victor said:


> Mine's one of them. I have several headset spacers to raise the stem (which is angled up), and the handlebars angled down so I can use my preferred position (i.e. on the drops) all the time. I just find it more comfortable that way. Other people can act as shocked as they wish, but I'll continue riding my bikes in the way that suits me best.
> 
> Taken a few years ago, but the stem and handlebar setup are more or less the same now:
> 
> ...



I feel nauseous!


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## Shut Up Legs (25 Nov 2013)

Dusty Bin said:


> There we are then. If the position works for you , then that's fine, although the bike does look too small for you anyway. But we now have photographic proof that threads like this are meaningless..


No, I was just presenting my particular setup, and never claimed that it was suitable for anyone else. As others have already mentioned in this thread, different people can use very different bike configurations, and there's no one correct way to do it. So your sarcasm was misdirected.


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## Dusty Bin (25 Nov 2013)

victor said:


> No, I was just presenting my particular setup, and never claimed that it was suitable for anyone else. As others have already mentioned in this thread, different people can use very different bike configurations, and there's no one correct way to do it. So your sarcasm was misdirected.



For once, there was no sarcasm in my post whatsoever. Not sure which bit you think was equivocal? Like I said, that's your position - nobody else's. Although I still think you could do with a taller head tube.

You did, however, inadvertently confirm my point that 'drops' self-evidently means different things to different people. But your position would certainly look a lot more 'normal' with the right size frame.


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## Shut Up Legs (25 Nov 2013)

Dusty Bin said:


> For once, there was no sarcasm in my post whatsoever. Not sure which bit you think was equivocal? Like I said, that's your position - nobody else's. Although I still think you could do with a taller head tube.
> 
> You did, however, inadvertently confirm my point that 'drops' self-evidently means different things to different people. But your position would certainly look a lot more 'normal' with the right size frame.


Sorry, I guess I misunderstood your comment "_But we now have photographic proof that threads like this are meaningless_" - it sounded sarcastic to me. The frame is an XL, by the way. I don't know whether they had a larger one than that, and too late to change it now, of course.


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