Did you change from Hybrid to Drop Bar Bike

[HonestMan1910]

Bought my Merida Speeder I8 late February this year and picking up a Merida 880-24 tonight after work.

My wife thinks I'm daft, so do I sometimes, but I LOVE IT !

 

[GrasB]

I've had all kinds of bikes & have used drop bars, flat bars, riser bars but I'm starting to settle on bull horns. The bulls suit the riding style I have & the way I support my self on the bike, I almost pull the front of the bike towards me making a really solid base for my legs to spin from, it also means I'm tending to lean into the corners rather than steer into them which helps with maintaining a smooth leg motion.

 

[Headgardener]

It may have already been mentioned here if so I am sorry but one of the things that I found difficult to get used to when I got my Dawes Horizon was not having an indicator on the shifter to let me know which gear I am in. Whereas on the Sarecen it involved just a quick glance down. Has anybody else found this hard to get used to?

 

[Garz]

It may have already been mentioned here if so I am sorry but one of the things that I found difficult to get used to when I got my Dawes Horizon was not having an indicator on the shifter to let me know which gear I am in. Whereas on the Sarecen it involved just a quick glance down. Has anybody else found this hard to get used to?

Yeah I admit to that too HG, but you will get varying opinions from the pro's 'you should know what gear your in without having to look' down to the casual sunday rider who relies on a very clear dial.

 

[Crankarm]

A Shimano Flight Deck computer or the all new Dura Ace Di2 shift system will give you all this info without ever having to look at another sprocket or ring ever again. Alternatively buy a brown tweed hat, ride along in top or first the whole time and claim ignorance as do many coffin dodger motorists .

 

[GrasB]

Why do you need to know your gear? If you know your leg cadence & if you want to go faster or not. The only real issue is knowing when to swap chainrings.

 

[doyler78]

Why do you need to know your gear? If you know your leg cadence & if you want to go faster or not. The only real issue is knowing when to swap chainrings.

It's pyschological - finding you are on the bottom gear (or not knowing) is very disconcerting if you have no idea that's where you are at!

 

[eldudino]

YEAH! I can finally say - YES, I did go from a hybrid to a drop bar!

The hybrid is being kept though for commuting purposes/winter bike.

 

[pancras1972]

I have my own bike in my home that feels good !

 

[Willo]

As per my pleas for advice on other threads, I've recently purchased a road bike after owning a mountain bike for many years (but mainly using it with slick tyres on the road). For my needs of general fitness, a hybrid would've probably sufficed, or maybe a cyclocross, but I went for a road bike as I found that more inspiring in terms of getting me out and keeping fit which was the idea of a new bike. I was a little intimidated both a) in terms of moving to drop bars etc. and having to get a little bit techy in order to look after a more delicate bike. Re the former, from my limited experiences so far I've found it a joy to ride a road bike and have really taken to the drop bars - I mainly ride with my hands on the brake hoods but I like the flexibility to be able to move position. Re the technical side, my first flat tyre this morning means I have to bravely tackle that at the weekend (I'm disastrous at anything technical so that's a big deal for me, but knew I'd have to do it at some point). Once I'm over the excitement of the new bike, over the winter I'll probably settle into using my old mountain bike for commuting when it's really grim, with the odd longer spin on the road bike when it's a bit fairer. Then by the time spring comes round, hopefully I'll be more confident at road side emergency maintenance to enable me to start venturing further from home.

 

[Wowbagger]

I have a straightish-barred Thorn and a Mercian fitted with Randonneur bars from the 1980s. I ride the Thorn a lot more than the Mercian. There are several reasons.

1. I occasionally find that the forward position on the Mercian gives me wrist pain.

2. The Thorn has 26*1.5 tyres which are very comfortable, and I'm a lard-arse. I built a rear wheel for the Mercian and the rim broke after about 1000 miles. I've built another and so far it's OK.

3. Quite a lot of my miles are laden commuting and the Mercian isn't up to taking the weight of luggage I carry about with me.

I read somewhere that fatties like me tend be better off with straight bars because if we ride with drops our bellies get in the way of our knees. In spite of the size of my belly, I've never had this problem.

 

[dav1d]

Whilst I haven't converted from a hybrid, I've converted from a mountain bike to a road bike with drop bars. When I was younger, I could never ride road bikes from the drops, had to use the top. But tried it just to see how bad it would be when I fixed the old road bike up, and found it so easy that I nearly always use the drops now! Which is weird cos I am used to mountain bikes and flat bars.

 

[Banjo]

Been riding Hybrid Trek Valencia or commuting and fitness/fun.Done about 3000 miles this year.

Just treated myself to a Scott Speedster S30 ultegra triple and loving it.Trek will still be commuter and general purpose bike with the Scott for Sunday best :-)

Only done about 35 miles on the Scott so far no real problems in adapting to the drop bars.rode a few miles into strong headwind down on the drops today.Mostly will be riding on the hoods I think.

Surprised how comfortable it is,I expected a harsher ride.Handling is superb really inspires a bit of confidence to get going :-)

 

[shouldbeinbed]

I've gone the other way, I rode drop bars from first one at 10 until 31 when I mildly broke my neck in a car crash and haven't been able to cope with the stretched out and craned neck position of drop bars since.

I've gone to a variety of hybrids and found the joys of the more lumpy roads and trails that I'd never have considered on 700 x 23 @ 130psi.

 

[cathmack]

I was commuting using a hybrid and wanted a touring bike for weekends. So I bought a Trek tourer. It was a bargain as it is a small bike and had been ordered for someone who then decided they did not want it. It has drop bars which I was a little anxious about but now dont like to ride with flat handlebars. Since then I have also bought a Trek 5.2 Madone which of course has drop bars.