Elbows on handlebars.

[Emmanuel Obikwelu]

Yes but my point is, if you go and clip them onto a normal road bar setup, you will be bent excessivelly at the waist and your will suffer discomfort and loss of power so it will fel harder to pedal. You need to be careful about which set you buy and how you set your bike up to suit them. Notice a TT'ist or triathletes possition is almost identical to a normal road possition but rotated forward at the hip. This is acheived by a large change in bike geometry. You will want a fairly tall touring/audax type set of clip ons, something like the Profile Century bar, rather than the TT/Tri setups.

Yes i see that because the body is leant forward it will make the hip angle more acute. Isnt the same true if you use drop bars . How can you tell if your hip angle is correct in any setup ?

 

[Angelfishsolo]

Yes i see that because the body is leant forward it will make the hip angle more acute. Isnt the same true if you use drop bars . How can you tell if your hip angle is correct in any setup ?

The tri bars are much longer than the reach to the drops.

 

[Emmanuel Obikwelu]

This was on my first bike and it is no longer in use. I flipped the bars back and forth on a number of occasions. I was able to rest my forearms on the bars with that setup.

Thanks. Food for thought.

 

[Angelfishsolo]

Thanks. Food for thought.

Pleasure. They are not for everyone but they served their purpose. I still have the bars as I may use them again on another project.

 

[Matthew_T]

What an amazing story.

+ 1

 

[Rob3rt]

Yes i see that because the body is leant forward it will make the hip angle more acute. Isnt the same true if you use drop bars . How can you tell if your hip angle is correct in any setup ?

A road bike is built to be used with drop bars, thus the geometry accomodates riding this way, by putting your elbows on the handlebars you are leaning much further forward and the hip angle is closed. If you were this far forward while using drop bars, it would only be during an all out sprint or climbing a hill, hence you would be out of the saddle and leaned forward which opens up the hip angle. Tri bars are made to be used when seated so to open up the hip angle a tri bike or modified road bike would have the saddle pushed forward over the bottom bracket and raised a bit to account for it. The front end might also be lowered and a longer or shorter stem used to adjust possition. This makes tri possition comfy, aero and powerrful but makes normal riding possitions uncomfortable.

There are many guides for tri possition, general rule is, side on photo, line from ankle to hip, hip to shoulder and shoulder to elbow. All lines should be roughtly 90 degree's to each other.


Like i said if you get touring/audax clip-on's they are less low profile and aggressive and dont require much if any adjustment to bike. Vorsprung on here uses them I think.

 

[lejogger]

What an amazing story.

+1

 

[Emmanuel Obikwelu]

A road bike is built to be used with drop bars, thus the geometry accomodates riding this way, by putting your elbows on the handlebars you are leaning much further forward and the hip angle is closed. If you were this far forward while using drop bars, it would only be during an all out sprint or climbing a hill, hence you would be out of the saddle and leaned forward which opens up the hip angle. Tri bars are made to be used when seated so to open up the hip angle a tri bike or modified road bike would have the saddle pushed forward over the bottom bracket and raised a bit to account for it. The front end might also be lowered and a longer or shorter stem used to adjust possition. This makes tri possition comfy, aero and powerrful but makes normal riding possitions uncomfortable.

There are many guides for tri possition, general rule is, side on photo, line from ankle to hip, hip to shoulder and shoulder to elbow. All lines should be roughtly 90 degree's to each other.


Like i said if you get touring/audax clip-on's they are less low profile and aggressive and dont require much if any adjustment to bike. Vorsprung on here uses them I think.

Thats very informative and well explained - thanks.
The way you explain it seems like an either or choice , one or the other., tri or normal , where normal encompasses flat and drop bar stance. And i can see the reasoning behind this.
I guess i am looking to incorperate if as a temporary releif relax mode to offset the pain of long distance one position riding.
I feel i have a better knowledge and appreciation of the considerations involved now - thanks to everyone whos offered advice.

 

[Emmanuel Obikwelu]

What an amazing story.

+1

 

[Rob3rt]

Thats very informative and well explained - thanks.
The way you explain it seems like an either or choice , one or the other., tri or normal , where normal encompasses flat and drop bar stance. And i can see the reasoning behind this.
I guess i am looking to incorperate if as a temporary releif relax mode to offset the pain of long distance one position riding.
I feel i have a better knowledge and appreciation of the considerations involved now - thanks to everyone whos offered advice.

You can get what you want with bars like the Profile Century bar and equivalent, it comes down to careful choice of bars. You want to avoid tri bars like the the Profile T2+ which are designed to get you low and aero and are more aggressive.

You could also look at draft legal mini tri bars, these are designed for use on normal road bikes in draft legal triathlons where the riders are allowed to ride in a bunch. Normally drafting is illegal and riders cannot group together, hence the special bikes to gain an aero advantage when riding solo rather than relying on a drafting advantage in a pack.

 

[lejogger]

Just to throw a different perspective in here... when I first started riding I used a small old MTB with slick tyres, and I added Profile Aero Bars to the flat bars.

I used this bike on End to End so that I had some different positions to ride in. Flats are restricting and I found I got numbness in my hands from having them in the same position hour after hour. With the aero bars I found I was able to rest my hands on the forearm pads as well as dropping into the lower aero position.

As long as you get yourself into an efficient position for when you're on the aero bars, the effect while on the flats is only really a slightly more upright position.

I agree with the comments quoting geometry, but everyone is built differently, and the chances of your road bike being set up for 100% efficiency and effectiveness are fairly remote even with a professional fitting. For the sake of £20-£30 it may be an experiment worth trying in order to find a comfortable position. You may find that you have a weaker pedal stroke initially, but you should build up the muscles and be efficient fairly quickly. Remember that the geometry of a TT position is designed to get the maximum speed and efficiency whilst pedalling flat out over a specific course, when the OP is not actually after this. They just want to be able to alter from a repetitive position to avoid cramping and injuries and the aero bars could help with this like they helped me.

 

[Emmanuel Obikwelu]

You can get what you want with bars like the Profile Century bar and equivalent, it comes down to careful choice of bars. You want to avoid tri bars like the the Profile T2+ which are designed to get you low and aero and are more aggressive.

You could also look at draft legal mini tri bars, these are designed for use on normal road bikes in draft legal triathlons where the riders are allowed to ride in a bunch. Normally drafting is illegal and riders cannot group together, hence the special bikes to gain an aero advantage when riding solo rather than relying on a drafting advantage in a pack.

Yes the profile aero does look the right kind of thing with its upward pointing hand grips. It looks similar to what the tdf riders use on time trials. The only reservation i would have about buying an all in one unit is that the potential for adjustment is limited , specifically the distance from elbow rests to hand grips.

 

[Rob3rt]

Yes the profile aero does look the right kind of thing with its upward pointing hand grips. It looks similar to what the tdf riders use on time trials. The only reservation i would have about buying an all in one unit is that the potential for adjustment is limited , specifically the distance from elbow rests to hand grips.

I believe the whole thing should slide back and forward in the clamp hence moving the hand grip area closer to or further away from the elbow pads? Best to double check though.

 

[Emmanuel Obikwelu]

Just to throw a different perspective in here... when I first started riding I used a small old MTB with slick tyres, and I added Profile Aero Bars to the flat bars.

I used this bike on End to End so that I had some different positions to ride in. Flats are restricting and I found I got numbness in my hands from having them in the same position hour after hour. With the aero bars I found I was able to rest my hands on the forearm pads as well as dropping into the lower aero position.

As long as you get yourself into an efficient position for when you're on the aero bars, the effect while on the flats is only really a slightly more upright position.

I agree with the comments quoting geometry, but everyone is built differently, and the chances of your road bike being set up for 100% efficiency and effectiveness are fairly remote even with a professional fitting. For the sake of £20-£30 it may be an experiment worth trying in order to find a comfortable position. You may find that you have a weaker pedal stroke initially, but you should build up the muscles and be efficient fairly quickly. Remember that the geometry of a TT position is designed to get the maximum speed and efficiency whilst pedalling flat out over a specific course, when the OP is not actually after this. They just want to be able to alter from a repetitive position to avoid cramping and injuries and the aero bars could help with this like they helped me.

Yes similar to me. Although the price has gone up since you bought yours , theyre now £50 to £60.
Thanks for the advice.

 

[Emmanuel Obikwelu]

I believe the whole thing should slide back and forward in the clamp hence moving the hand grip area closer to or further away from the elbow pads? Best to double check though.

Roger that.