Quote Originally Posted by Sardine View Post
When I decided I wanted a touring bike with drop bars many years later, being able to hold on to the top of the hoods was a real revelation to me. The transition from a straight bar didn't seem so daunting then. This may be irrelevant in your situation but I thought I'd share that experience just in case.
Same here! I had only ever tried my dad's vintage road bike as a child when all the neighbor kids got 10 speeds and I still had a kid's bike with pedal brakes. It was very scary to ride on my dad's bike and I've only had a mountain bike since. When I went to my LBS to try road bikes I explained to them about my fear of drop bars and had no idea you hold onto the hoods! They put me on a bike around the block and made sure I was comfortable (put the seat down enough that I could comfortably touch my toes even though that's not exactly proper positioning) they wanted me to feel confident when trying out the new style. Lo and behold that bike was light and fast and a blast to go ride on the pavement unlike my heavy knobby tired mtb. 3 weeks later I bought the next model up of that very bike. Yesterday I took it out for my 3rd ever ride for 20 miles and enjoyed several stretches on the trail in the drops!!