Pain on riding my first road bike...

[drkash]

Thanks for all of the excellent advice. I certainly have a list of things I can adjust and get on with.

 

[drkash]

First off are you trying to ride in the drops most of the time?

I started off mainly in the drops, thinking this was meant to be the best position for this type of bike. Then when I started to get pain I started to rotate using the bars and hoods. However when cycling at speed or needing to brake or change gear I always felt more in control switching back to the drops. I just didn't feel I had as much control doing this in the hoods. I'm not sure if this was because the hoods were a bit far (elbows almost locked out) or just that it was my first time using the hoods?

 

[T4tomo]

I started off mainly in the drops, thinking this was meant to be the best position for this type of bike. Then when I started to get pain I started to rotate using the bars and hoods. However when cycling at speed or needing to brake or change gear I always felt more in control switching back to the drops. I just didn't feel I had as much control doing this in the hoods. I'm not sure if this was because the hoods were a bit far (elbows almost locked out) or just that it was my first time using the hoods?

most people ride on the hoods the majority of the time - like 80%+. never lock your elbows that may be part of he problem (I realise the reach is making you do this) the bend in your elbow acts as a natural shock absorber.

if you're feeling stretched, two things you can do.

One is moving the saddle forward a bit - there looks like there's still a bit of scope there for that. The other is to rotate the bars back towards you so that there's less of a reach to the hoods.

A good basic rule-of-thumb if you're riding multiple bikes (especially across bikes with different geometry), is that the distance from the saddle nose to the centre of the headset should be more or less the same, likewise the distance from the top of the saddle to the centre of the bottom bracket. I've a vintage steel MTB, plus modern hybrid and road bike, and both those measurements are in the same ballpark for all three.

good advice above, although really you need the saddle set for what is comfy for your knees (google KOPS - knee over pedal spindle) and then work reach with stem and bars, but you can steal 5-10mm this way.

As well as simply rotating bars towards you, which can leave your wrists at a funny angle on the hoods, you can also rotate them away from you, remove part of the bar tape and slide the brake levers and hood back up towards the stem, and rewrap the bar tape. this maintains a good hood angle but shortens the reach to them. Its easy to steal 20mm+ this way. (i got this tip from a professional bike fitter!)

 

[Ming the Merciless]

I can never understand why anyone would buy a bike that has had the stem chopped that much

Don’t you mean steerer tube chopped?

 

[cyberknight]

https://bikedynamics.co.uk/guidelines.htm

 

[HLaB]

I started off mainly in the drops, thinking this was meant to be the best position for this type of bike. Then when I started to get pain I started to rotate using the bars and hoods. However when cycling at speed or needing to brake or change gear I always felt more in control switching back to the drops. I just didn't feel I had as much control doing this in the hoods. I'm not sure if this was because the hoods were a bit far (elbows almost locked out) or just that it was my first time using the hoods?

Probably, as you say because it was the first time on the hoods. I actually feel more in control on the hoods. At a guess 90% of my riding is on the hoods, 7% is on the tops and only 3% on the drops.

 

[I like Skol]

Probably, as you say because it was the first time on the hoods. I actually feel more in control on the hoods. At a guess 90% of my riding is on the hoods, 7% is on the tops and only 3% on the drops.

I actually considered cutting off the drop portion of the bars below the brakes on my first bike, just to leave enough of a stub to enable braking if required. Although I am not particularly weight weenie conscious, I spent a long time wondering why I was carrying around all that length of bar and tape that was NEVER used? Not a consideration with my current style of flared drop bars where I use the full length of the drops a lot of the time.

 

[cyberknight]

default position is on the hoods nowadays

 

[vickster]

I’ve probably spent about 2 miles on the drops in total…out of 20k+ riding but I use crosslever brakes

 

[I like Skol]

I’ve probably spent about 2 miles on the drops in total…out of 20k+ riding but I use crosslever brakes

But then why not get a flat bar road bike (a proper flat bar road bike, not a hybrid)? If you're only riding on the tops there's no reason to even have drop bars and your riding position will be the same anyway, except you will be in better control of the bike and brakes.

 

[presta]

The times I use the drops are

• Headwinds
• Emergency stops when I need maximum leverage
• Long steep descents, (same reason)

But then why not get a flat bar road bike (a proper flat bar road bike, not a hybrid)? If you're only riding on the tops there's no reason to even have drop bars and your riding position will be the same anyway, except you will be in better control of the bike and brakes.

I prefer to hold a tube that's longitudinal rather than lateral, it's more comfortable, and easier to get more leverage when accelerating.

 

[Grant Fondo]

I used to get a pain in the neck riding an old Spesh Allez. Hope the chap in Bristol that bought it got on better than me.

 

[vickster]

But then why not get a flat bar road bike (a proper flat bar road bike, not a hybrid)? If you're only riding on the tops there's no reason to even have drop bars and your riding position will be the same anyway, except you will be in better control of the bike and brakes.

Because I like narrow drops esp in traffic (I am rarely not in built up areas), the position on flat bars doesn’t work. Oh and I have 5 roadbikes now.
I’m perfectly in control of bike and brakes.
I’ve had numerous flat bar bikes to see if I like them and have always moved them on quickly. Proper flat bar bikes with the same frame geo as a roadbike actually don’t really exist and the one conversion I did was an expensive disaster as it was far too small as a flatbar. I know and ride what I like

 

[I like Skol]

The times I use the drops are

• Headwinds
• Emergency stops when I need maximum leverage
• Long steep descents, (same reason)

I prefer to hold a tube that's longitudinal rather than lateral, it's more comfortable, and easier to get more leverage when accelerating.

Which is why my hybrid had a set of stubby bar ends fitted. Best of all worlds and a strangely overlooked/ignored option. I always assume this solution is looked down upon as it doesn't match 'the look' so is dismissed by 'proper' cyclists? A big mistake IMO as drop bars don't suit everyone and it is a very good alternative.

 

[T4tomo]

there will a dead horse along soon....