drops/brakes

[SadieKate]

Short Reach is the horizontal measurement from the horizontal top of the bars to the front curve. It accomplishes a couple of things: decreases the total length of the cockpit (seat to hoods) and decreases the volume of the drop so someone with small hands isn't hitting her forearms on the top bar when riding in the drops (a bit of flare of the drops can help here also).

Short Drop is the vertical measurment from the horizontal top to the bottom of the drop.

The reach to the levers has more to do with the bend of the drop. As you research bars, be very careful that you understand that reach can mean different things.

The very elegantly translated Deda Elementi site talks about the bend's affect on reach to the lever:
The use of anatomic bendings has been spreading for many years and has supplanted the bendings conceived by past champs. Neverthless the last ones had and have the advantage of an easier gripping of the brake lever, if necessary. The gripping of all anatomic bendings is more difficult in case of users with small hands and not so easy for the other ones.
Deda Elementi has conceived an ANATOMIC version of any of its bendings with easier gripping thanks to a distance which is 13 mm. shorter than the one of all other bendings on the market.

[TxDoc]

Are those f you who have drop bars able to reach your brakes from the drops?

I can't.....

My guess is that if your bicycle is properly fitted (frame size, saddle height, fore/aft position, stem length, right spacers on the headset... and such) - you should be able to use your brake levers and shifters comfortably both from the hood and from the drops.
I would suggest that you get with your LBS and ask them to fit you properly. That may include some simple changes like re-orienting the handlebar or moving the position of the levers on the drops - or something more complex like adding/removing spacers, changing stem, moving the saddle back or forward...
Good luck!

[elk]

I'm a little puzzled, I suppose, about where my hands go....
If you look at the HB on this Aurora, you see there is a ledge where the curve straightens. I cannot reach from there...but heck, I can't imagine any hand that could looking at the config....Yet it looks like the right place to rest a hand.
If I put my hands inside the upper belly of the curve I can reach.

[aicabsolut]

I'm a little puzzled, I suppose, about where my hands go....
If you look at the HB on this Aurora, you see there is a ledge where the curve straightens. I cannot reach from there...but heck, I can't imagine any hand that could looking at the config....Yet it looks like the right place to rest a hand.
If I put my hands inside the upper belly of the curve I can reach.

That's kind of what SK was talking about with the ergo bends being not so ergo. Part of the problem in that picture is the mounting of the hoods. Part of it is the design of the bars. The final part is your hands. Ideally, you should be able to reach the brakes even resting on the flat part of ergo bend bars. The only place where they should be out of reach is way down near the bar ends, but most of the time you don't ride there. WSD bars have very short drops, so there isn't even much between the ergo bend and the bar end.

So long as you're comfortable up on the top part of the curve, I wouldn't worry about it. That tends to be a more aero position than being lower on the drops.

[SadieKate]

I'm a little puzzled, I suppose, about where my hands go....
If you look at the HB on this Aurora, you see there is a ledge where the curve straightens. I cannot reach from there...but heck, I can't imagine any hand that could looking at the config....Yet it looks like the right place to rest a hand.
If I put my hands inside the upper belly of the curve I can reach.

Yes, those are Ergo curves. I hate that "ledge" or bump as you call it inside the curve. It's really more of a place to rest your hands when cruising. If you are descending, you'll want your hands tucked up inside the curve to access the levers with the best grip and because this is the most stable descending spot for most people

It is not uncommon for those of us with small hands to have the best braking power up inside the belly of the curve also.

Maybe Shaq can reach his levers from any place in the drops, but no one else can. You have to find the optimal place for you to grip the levers for the situation. Cruising along on the flats in the countryside with no traffic? Put your hands where they are the most comfortable.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Elk. I have short fingers too.
With my regular drop bars and regular Shimano brake levers on my Rambouillet, i was just barely able to grab my brakes and get two fingertips around them. Those Shimano brake levers do not have shims that are made for them. Not good.
I switched to a short reach bar (Salsa Poco) and that helped a little bit. But still it was scary going downhill fast with just the ends of two fingers barely wrapped around the brake levers. And believe me, I tried putting the hoods in all different places.

Fast forward.....
On my new Luna I again had Salsa Poco bars put on, but this time with Shimano Short Reach brifters (R600 9-speed in my case, R700 for 10-speeders) with their shims installed. OH MAN what a difference. Like night and day. I can get all my fingers nicely gripped around the levers now.
If I were you I would go for it. Juggling bars and angles just didn't cut it for me. On steep downhills it is safer to be braking in the drops.

[elk]

Elk.
Fast forward.....
On my new Luna I again had Salsa Poco bars put on, but this time with Shimano Short Reach brifters (R600 9-speed in my case, R700 for 10-speeders) with their shims installed. OH MAN what a difference. Like night and day. I can get all my fingers nicely gripped around the levers now.
If I were you I would go for it. Juggling bars and angles just didn't cut it for me. On steep downhills it is safer to be braking in the drops.

do you mean change brifters and bars?

[VeloVT]

Elk,
I actually think it might be a good idea to switch bars and brifters. Start with the bars because that wil be much cheaper, and who knows, it could fix the problem...

I have had those Biomax bars on two bikes. They are nice, comfortable bars, but if you have the hoods fairly high, it will put the levers a bit far away -- there's actually not a very wide range of adjustability for the hoods, assuming you need the levers fairly close.

I haven't actually seen the Salsa bars Lisa talks about, and I know they are short reach, but in spite of the shorter reach, they are still an anatomic style bend that can have a tendency to put the ramps a bit far from the levers. I would not assume that changing bars could not make a significant difference for you just because the Poco's didn't make enough difference for Lisa -- I would suggest looking for a more traditional bend (which, sadly, can be hard to find in smaller sizes, for some reason they think men like these things more than women. grrrr).

Edit: in any setup, you may have to slide your hands up a little to use the brakes. I will note on my ride this afternoon whether or not I slide up the ramps to shift/brake or whether I can do it from the natural cruising position, and will report back. In any case, I ride in my drops often and can easily shift and brake in the drops -- I'm sure you will be able to find a setup that allows you to do this too.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

do you mean change brifters and bars?

If you really want to solve the issue completely.....yes.

You need short reach brifters with their shims put in.
The good news?- they are a lot easier to get now than they were a few years ago.

[elk]

the top of the salsa bar looks really short...is it comfortable for riding the hoods...which is where I am 80% of the time?

Also...I am a bit consternated about the shim...where does it go? Can I do it myself?

tia

[Flur]

That's kind of what SK was talking about with the ergo bends being not so ergo. Part of the problem in that picture is the mounting of the hoods. Part of it is the design of the bars.

+1 on this. I'm looking at my bike and the flat parts of my drops where my hands should go are not angled so far back. They're much closer to vertical than what's in the pic above. And my brifters/hoods are mounted lower, so that there's almost a straight horizontal line where the hood meets the bar that's level with the top of the bar. I can keep my hands in the flat of the bar and reach the brakes pretty easily.

[Zen]

Bontrager FIT VR w/BzzzKill damper inserts
Tiagra integrated shifters with shims.
I gots small hands and these are rated 5 stars (by me)

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

the top of the salsa bar looks really short...is it comfortable for riding the hoods...which is where I am 80% of the time?

Also...I am a bit consternated about the shim...where does it go? Can I do it myself?

tia

Here's my setup, it's really comfy for my small hands:

I personally love my ergo Poco bars. I get 5 different hand positions with them, and yes they are VERY comfy for me on the hoods.

Whoever installs your new brifters can put in the shims that come with them. I think it's not rocket science to put the shims in though. They are just simple molded plastic pieces.

[elk]

lisa, when do we get to see your hands on the bars? and you on yr new bike, eh???

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

lisa, when do we get to see your hands on the bars? and you on yr new bike, eh???

I know, I've been very bad.

Sorry, I will try harder, I promise!