uh oh! i don't like my new bar phat!

[caligurl]

hmmmm ok... so i've mentioned i don't like to wear gloves in the summer cuz i get icky tanlines.... (so please don't recommend that as a solution!) but my hands tend get sore on longer rides..... (i can do 40-50 with no gloves... no problem)

also.... when i switched over to pretty silver fizik tape on ruby.... it is the type with holes in it.. the stupid OEM bar phat (which is just globs stuck on the bar... NOT like the nicely packages stuff you buy in the store) started oozing through the holes.... also... the fizik take is MUCH thinner than the nice cushy tape that came on ruby...

sooooooo i was in the bike store looking at the bar phat display.... they had a handlebar with one side 2.5, the other 4.5.... i really liked the feel of the 4.5 stuff! nice and cushy... thought it would be nice for non-glove rides!

sooooo i bought some.... also had read at bikeforums about double wrapping my bar... thought i'd do that! extra cushy! well... it's not double wrapped yet... need another package of silver fizik first.... but with just the 4.5 bar phat and cushy tape... i THOUGHT i'd like the bar... just holding it after hubby did it... felt nice... but last night i went for a ride after work.. and my hands were.... not sore... but bothered.. and all red on my palms... now part of me things MAYBE it's cuz i did two longish rides sat and sun.... but the other part worries that the cushy bar is actually hurting my palms not helping!!!????

now i'm considering taking the black off and just wrapping the thinner silver over the bar phat! that should result in a thinner diameter bar but still cushy from the bar phat! i'd better get this sorted out before saturday! i have a double metric to do and don't need sore palms/hands!

if you've made it through all that... any thoughts on the bar phat actually hurting my hands? or do you think it's just they were irritated already from the weekend?