Did you change from Hybrid to Drop Bar Bike

[ChrisRicho]

I have in the past year been through a massive scale of bikes:

I started looking for the cheap of the cheap in February, i purchased a discounted apollo front suspension mountain bike from halfords. (What i had always ridden didnt know or i suppose want to know about drop bars or hybrids)

This turned out to be after two weeks a total nightmare and falling apart (i was warned but i ignored advice) i had to wait a very long time to get a refund from halfords!

After this i decided to give evans cycles a try and ordered a pincaccle mean streak hybrid bike, which i love its a great hybrid bike (using this for 4 Months).

This week i have just purchased with the cycle to work scheme the giant tcr 2 which is lovely so far! Only had it a week. It seems a bit like i am learning cycling all again though as i seem to be using different muscles than the hybrid!

 

[DaveC]

I like all the hand positions you can have with drop bar. That eliminates a lot of hand fatigue.

 

[tweedsteed]

Swapped from my Ridgeback Velocity to drop bars and though I sometimes miss the comfort of cruising along on my armchair - esque hybrid, drop bars make me feel like I should speed like a beast of hell.

 

[Easytigers]

Started on an old cruddy mountain bike that cost £90 from a LBS...haven't changed anything except from brake blocks and is still going strong though (don't even think I've ever really cleaned it either! Then bought my first road bike...little known firm 'Cross'. Was a dream and really got hooked on cycling. Bought a hybrid from Halfords (Raleigh Pioneer) for cycling to work...needed the rack and panniers for the laptop and books etc. This kept falling apart and had to take it back 14 times in the year I owned it :-( In the end I sold the hybrid and the road bike and have bought my first proper bike (in my eyes anyway!) Looked at road bikes and hybrids and eventually bought a Specialized Sirrus Elite. Love cycling even more and get the best of both worlds...it's great for the commute and fast and comfortable for weekend rides! Don't miss the road bike as much as I thought I would but next purchase will probably be a return to drop bars!

 

[ajwilcox]

Have been riding a heavy steel road bike in recent years with drop handlebars. Comfortable but heavy. I was looking a round for a lighter frame e.g. 531 to rebuild.

In our local auction I bought a hybrid, a Trek 750. Nice light bike chromalloy, nice bits on it. Sold it a few weeks later. Never felt comfortable on those straight horns.

Have now rebuilt a Dawes Imperial 531 with drop bars. Nice and comfy especially with 2nd hand Tiagra gear/brake shifters. Still reaching for the levers on occasions.

 

[richo_rider]

I started cycling last year and got a SCOTT hybrid... about 12mths later I was so in love with cycling I upgraded to a sparkly new Scott Speedster drop bar road bike and am LOVING it. Probably wont go back to flat bar bikes now.... not for serious road cycling anyway

 

[leeky]

I decided to stick with the normal bars for now!! but the might change very soon!!

 

[I like Skol]

I have just ordered a drop bar road bike but the flat bar Hybrid is still here to stay and will be the work horse of the fleet. The drop bar bike will be the 'open-top sunny day only car' in my garage. Then of course I always have the old faithful MTB for the times when I want to get down'n'dirty!!!!

 

[MissTillyFlop]

I'm with Waffly - I find the drop handle bars and the seating position in general a lot more comfy on my road bike and the fact it weighs less than half my hybrid bike is also a winner for me.

Buy if I'm going out with friends or I'm not going far, or I want to wear a dress, I'll go out on the hybrid. I just find it a lot less enjoyable, as I feel somehow detached from the cycling experience somehow.

 

[Scilly Suffolk]

My flat-bar hybrid was stolen and I replaced it with a drop-bar road bike and waved "goodbye" to the back and wrist problems I'd had.

I'd like another flat-bar for going to the shops etc. but for my 10 mile commute the drops are a winner!

 

[miremare]

I started off with a Cube SL Cross Race.
had ultegra gear set and was a very nce bike.

recently changed to a cannondate super six.
shimano 105 gear set.

cube was alloy, cannondale is carbon.

performance was similar except in winds and going up hill.

super six is much easier to get up hill and tucked down in high winds also makes things more tollerable.

 

[Ziggy]

As you will see from the amount of my posts I am a silver haired novice.
But.... is it not possible to change from one type of handle bar to another, rather than buying another bike.

 

[CopperCyclist]

I never thought I'd get on with drop bars. Now I'd never go back. They just have superb versatility - commuting through trafic and want a comfortable position? I ride on the hoods or on the bars. If I'm against the wind or getting some speed, I move down to the drops.

Additionally, on long ride, being able to change hand position really helps avoid them going numb or getting pins and needles!

 

[MsLDN]

I didn't get on too well with the flat bars on my sirrus comp and determined to buy a drop bar bike when I replaced it. I test rode several different tourers with drops (a challenge because most manfacturers don't seem to think petite women are interested in proper quality touring bikes so don't make small frame sizes, grrr!) but came to the conclusion I didn't like being that stretched out. The only bike I came close to considering was a custom built job, but that was more suited for audax / light touring rather than camping based tourers. So anyway, I eneded up with another flat-bar bike - a Fahrrad Manufaktur T400. It's a heavy beast but I LOVE it. So comfortable and smooth to ride, and brilliant at carrying heavy loads. I don't have any of the wrist numbness I used to experience on the Sirrus and it's completely comfortable for rides up to 100km (it doesn't get uncomfortable after that, I just haven't ridden it further).

 

[david k]

I didn't get on too well with the flat bars on my sirrus comp and determined to buy a drop bar bike when I replaced it. I test rode several different tourers with drops (a challenge because most manfacturers don't seem to think petite women are interested in proper quality touring bikes so don't make small frame sizes, grrr!) but came to the conclusion I didn't like being that stretched out.

im the opposite, im 6foot2 and 17 stone. played rugby when i was younger and i carry a lot of muscle from those days, its not really that useful on a bike, just makes you heavy and clumbersome. i prefer to be stretched out, i start to ache quickly if im not careful, a lot of weight on my hands. i have a subway2, i want a drop bar but not sure which. i was thinking of a tourer as they are a bit more robust, what do you recommend from your looking round? id like a fast sporty tourer should one exist