Carbon bars - bar tape etiquette?

LardLover

Morning all.

New to the "road" scene (convert from.......ahem, .............mountain bikes :roll: )

Anyway, just bought my first bike which has carbon bars (with flat bits on the top).

My question is thus:

Where do you stop with the bar tape?

When I bought it I had the bar tape changed to that Specialized one with the gel inserts. When I picked it up I wasn't sure. The bar tape goes right up neary to the stem (to cover the gel pad on the top).

Is it normal etiquette to leave the "flat spots" clear of bar tape? How does that work with Shimano cabling? ie bar tape holding the cables nice and neat.

Thanks for your advice.

redddraggon

LardLover wrote:

Where do you stop with the bar tape?

When you want. I tape my wing bars all the way, some tape just past their hoods.

bahzob

I just tape the hoods. I find the flat bars quite comfortable, even on long rides. I actually find it helps a bit on long climbs when it reminds me keep my hands relaxed on the bar, not gripping like grim death.