flat vs angled aero bars

alanford

looking to buy my first set of aero bars and wanted to see what people thought of either the flat type compared to those which angle up at the ends.

I'm a reasonable bike rider so bike handling not really an issue for me. I currently ride a Specialised Roubaix and post a 40km in 1hr 5mins.

Anyone recommend a decent first set of aero bars without braking the bank?

Zacnici

http://www.bikesportmichigan.com/features/sbend.shtml

All the young studs go for the flat type but the article concluded that they risk long term damage to the wrist and tendons. I have a 'ski' type bar which is much more sensible in my opinion





[image]local://1974/7D5056EB922043C88BC65A84A5517A1E.jpg[/image]

MG

Its a comfort issue really, some prefer angled bars and some flat (flat looks better IMHO). That said I use angled (profile stryke), proper comfy even on 100+km rides, not that much aero benefit between them really. If you get the oppertunity to try different styles then give it a go, there's plenty to choose from!!

treefrog

Once again its all about comfort. Flat bars get you into a more aero position (faster), although proponents of the praying mantis position might disagree, curved bars may not be as aero but are more comfortable and more aero than "raw drops". Generally use the Olympic distance as your benchmark. Olympic distance and shorter go for flat, long distance go for curves. No matter what you opt for it takes time to get used to them and it takes time to tweak your position to perfection - and then keep tweaking it as you get better or experiment with new positions. Small changes can and do make huge differences! Keep a record written and photo0graphic of all your dimensions. Also if you intend to use and race with aero bars you must train on them otherwise it will get very uncomfortable and you'll end up wondering why you got them. (I do a mid week turbo session on the bars and go out in the group at weekends)

alanford

Thanks for all the advice - think I'll go for the ski option as I'm toying with a long distance race next season. When I get used to them and think I can up by bike power then I might try a set of flats for shorter distance.



Excellent article Zacnici - very thorough and well researched. Made the choice much easier.

Zacnici

Glad to be of assistance, I am in turn very grateful to those who have helped me out in the past and pointed in right direction, or at least a direction. Let's give ourselves a collective hug.