Advice For Tri Bars & Mtb Pedals

[furryduck]

I wonder if anyone here can help, i find resting on the bars of my road bike very comfortable although it adds wobble which = falling off. I wondered if tri bars my be suitable for my road bike although i am not racing or any such thing, still learning and practicing. The other question i have is pedals i tried road pedals and found great difficulty getting out and even fell off going up a hill of all things I have read a few articles about mtb pedals on road bikes as they are easier to clip into get out of, anyone had any experience of them on road bike.
Furry Duck

[alpinerabbit]

Bars: Sure you can - my new aero bars installed on drop handlebars (plain road bike but I will do tris on it) help me relax at times. Ultracyclists use them. However, a good fit is worth much more.

Pedals: getting OUT should be quick, perhaps your tension is too high. Getting IN (and taking off) in a tricky situation is much harder.
If you are speaking of MTB pedals do you mean Shimano SPD's without any type of platform? I find these much less amenable than my Looks, which "fall into place" because they are weighted.

YMMV.

[sundial]

I have read a few articles about mtb pedals on road bikes as they are easier to clip into get out of, anyone had any experience of them on road bike.

I have Speedplay Frogs which are mtb pedals but I use them on my road bike. They are very easy to clip in and out of. If you go this route, you may be limited to primarily mtb shoes with this pedal. Many road shoes will take a different cleat that will not work with this pedal system.

[NbyNW]

I also have Speedplay Frogs and they're easy to get in and out of, but recently I did the same thing as you did -- fell off when I lost momentum going up a hill.

I've decided to temporarily go back to platform pedals until I'm a bit stronger and improve my climbing technique, then I'll try switching back.

[aicabsolut]

Tri bars can be more dangerous. For one, you are away from your brakes. Secondly, they won't do a ton to help with the wobble factor because of how close your arms are to your sides. They will give you a little more surface area for your forearms, but that's about it. You can't climb in them, shouldn't ride in traffic in them, and should never take them on a group ride. If you're comfortable resting on the tops and if you run Shimano, try lightly holding on to the shifter cables for some more stability. Try wing bars (with wider, flatter tops). Or, just try lowering your stem to achieve a more comfortable body position while you have your hands in a safer location.

Any 2-sided pedal system can be easier to get into than 1-sided. In general, I've heard MTB pedals are harder to get out of if you have the tension tight enough such that you won't rip out of them accidentally under load. Try loosening the tension on your road pedals more. I don't think you can over-loosen those really unless you're some massive sprinter demon .

[RoadRaven]

Tri bars/aero bars will give you a different place to rest your arms/relieve your body from the more upright positions...

They do take time to get used to... your centre of gravity is affected and it takes time to get used to (when I first used mine, I would stay on them only in straight lines for short stints. Now I ride a 30-50minute time trial on them (17-26kms) without moving, sweeping round corners and regardless of wind.

But do be aware because (as Aica has already pointed out) you are not near your brakes, that you shouldn't ride on these when with others. Our racing club does not allow people to use areo/tri bars in road racing because it is so unsafe in bunch/group racing.

Aica, I do disagree about not climbing on them. I regularly climb on my aeros in training rides, though nothing steeper than about 8%. This gives me a very focused power workout. So you can, but it might take more effort...

[aicabsolut]

I guess the image that came to mind for me with climbing was the one woman I passed on the road a few months back going up a moderate (but short) hill in her aero bars. Ok, that's fine, it wasn't a significant climb. EXCEPT she was also standing out of the saddle. That just boggles my mind.

Anyway, for a new rider, I wouldn't suggest doing anything over a false flat in them really, especially if she's afraid of wobbles, because the more power you're putting into the cranks, the more likely your upper body will do some swaying, and then you don't have the stability of a wide grip. Plus, you can't breathe as well as when you're more upright.