argh... the continuing saga of bike fit

**Bicyclette** · 08-01-2006, 06:31 AM

Knotted - I am seriously looking at the trekking handlebars also .... Nashbar has them on sale right now - makes it even more tempting.

**mimitabby** · 08-01-2006, 06:43 AM

my sons and husband have both suggested moustache bars, but they are 50+ cm across!! I'm looking for a mini-moustache; a compromise, maybe 44 cm?

**mimitabby** · 08-01-2006, 06:57 AM

Oh, because i thought you didn't want your arms sticking out?
(if i am supposed to be on a road bike handlebar of 38 cm....)

**Kathi** · 08-01-2006, 07:22 AM

I don't know anything about these bars but what range do you have for the placement of the shifters on these bars? Can they be placed in the proper position for correct reach? Sounds like that's MimiTabby's concern.

I went from a 38 cm bar to a 34 cm and I'm so much happier. On my mtn bikes I had to have my bars cut narrower and the shifters moved closer to the stem for good hand placement, so I wonder if this size of bar would work for a small person.

MimiTabby, it's not that expensive to change your bars, the cost of the bar + tape + labor. If you need a wider bar it might be a good consideration. But you'll have to decide if 2 cm, 3/4" according to my ruler, is that much of a difference.

**Kathi** · 08-01-2006, 07:27 AM

I use my drops in wind, so what do you do to get low enough to get out of the wind?

That's a guy in the picture with broad shoulders. Show a picture of a woman.

Also, look how his elbows are locked and his shoulders rounded. I hope this is not an ad for the bars. He doesn't look comfortable.

**mimitabby** · 08-01-2006, 07:32 AM

Originally Posted by Kathi

That's a guy in the picture with broad shoulders. Show a picture of a woman.
.

I had the same thought

**mimitabby** · 08-01-2006, 07:35 AM

Kathi,
on my downhill commute today my hands were still complaining. but i did promise EVERYONE to not change anything for awhile..
I just might get those mini brake levers that triskelion showed me last month. you attach them up on the top. . .
But first, just keep it the way it is...

**oxysback** · 08-01-2006, 08:13 AM

Originally Posted by mimitabby

It was a fun ride. Now he wants to take me on some hills (eeep)

Say, I hear there's a very nice hill in Kent you can try out. James St., I remember it being called...hehe.

(I used to live in Kent many moons ago)

**mimitabby** · 08-01-2006, 10:52 AM

Originally Posted by oxysback

Haha!! Don't blame ya one bit! That hill was horrible enough to get up with my little stick shift...can't imagine it on a bike!

That's one thing about our neighborhood, there's always another hill... bigger than the last one you overcame..
(sigh)

**Kathi** · 08-01-2006, 12:14 PM

Originally Posted by mimitabby

Kathi, it is holding my hands in a position over the brakes as i am in a high traffic area and moving fairly fast. The brakes themselves are easy enough...

thanks

Are you braking from the hoods? If yes, try braking from the drops. You'll will have more braking power.

It's scarry at first so when you're on a "little non -threatening downhill" and your feeling comfortable, no traffic, stop signs etc. take your right hand off the top of the bars and put it in the drops, position it so you can reach the brake lever to slow down, then put your left hand in the drops.

Practice until you get comfortable then do it on longer hills and traffic.

I use my right brake first as it is the rear brake and I don't worry about throwing myself over the handlebars.

If your wrists and hands are still hurting then have your cable adjusted.

The cable will slacken with time, mine already have.

I brake from the hoods on flats but when I'm on serious downhills I'm now more comfortable in the drops.

I feel better if I get in my drops at the top of the hill, before I pick up speed.

Hope this isn't too much more to worry about

**mimitabby** · 08-01-2006, 12:19 PM

Originally Posted by Kathi

Are you braking from the hoods? If yes, try braking from the drops. You'll will have more braking power.

It's scary at first so when you're on a "little non -threatening downhill" and your feeling comfortable, no traffic, stop signs etc. take your right hand off the top of the bars and put it in the drops, position it so you can reach the brake lever to slow down, then put your left hand in the drops.

Practice until you get comfortable then do it on longer hills and traffic.

Kathi,
good ideas! I'll try it on my commute home. Sunday night i was actually going into the drops for the first time.

**BleeckerSt_Girl** · 08-01-2006, 12:28 PM

Originally Posted by mimitabby

I just might get those mini brake levers that triskelion showed me last month. you attach them up on the top. . .

MimiT,
I think you mean the interruptor brake levers like I have on my new bike. Here is a picture of them:
http://harmonias.com/LisaBike_6.jpg
I just LOVE them! I feel very secure cruising around slowly in traffic with my hands on top of the bar with those brakes right within quick reach. I think having two different braking places to choose from is great, just like having various hand positions available on one's bars.

**mimitabby** · 08-01-2006, 12:42 PM

Originally Posted by Lisa S.H.

MimiT,
I think you mean the interruptor brake levers like I have on my new bike. Here is a picture of them:
http://harmonias.com/LisaBike_6.jpg
I just LOVE them! I feel very secure cruising around slowly in traffic with my hands on top of the bar with those brakes right within quick reach. I think having two different braking places to choose from is great, just like having various hand positions available on one's bars.

they look gorgeous on your new bike!!! thanks for sharing that foto with us!!!
we love the pictures of your bike!

**xeney** · 08-01-2006, 01:49 PM

This has been a really helpful thread. I'm a little taller than you are, and I also ride a Veloce, and I've been having fit problems for the last couple of months. We changed some things around, including sliding the saddle back a bit, because I started having knee pain, and ever since I've felt really nervous on the bike. I finally figured out that it's because I feel like I don't have a good reach to the brakes, which makes me nervous in traffic. I have an old Specialized Allez that is configured to be almost the same size in every way to the Veloce, except the distance on the Allez is 2 cm shorter from the saddle to the brake hoods, and I am much more secure on the Allez. The steering is a little squirrely but I find that easier to deal with than this brake reach issue.

I had my "eureka!" moment when I borrowed my husband's bike, and it was about another 2 cm further to reach the brakes, and I had to actually come out of the saddle in order to get any braking power. THAT is what is wrong with my Veloce, although it's not quite that bad.

Anyway, I think a shorter stem is going to solve my problem, which is a huge relief because I love my bike. I hope you find a similar easy solution, or an answer that lets you know for sure that it's not the bike for you.

**mimitabby** · 08-01-2006, 03:17 PM

xeney
thanks for writing. Since several people have now suggested the brake levers
and it's a lot smaller change than the moustache handlebars; i think that's what i will change next.
That's the main time i have trouble is while braking, or preparing to brake.
So when you're waiting at a red light, for example (which could be forever)
you have one foot on a pedal, the other on the ground, and your hands stretched all the way out to the brakes, with at least one compressed to keep you from rolling forward. There's where those levers would be particularly handy!

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