Drop bars, brakes, and riding (im)postition

Confusedboy

I have just bought my first ever proper modern road bike after riding various types of flat bar bikes for many years. I am having serious problems with the drop bars, as I cannot reach the brakes, or for that matter the curvy bits of the bars, comfortably. The only part of the bars I can properly reach are the tops, despite having the seat as far forward as it will go and having replaced the original stem with a much shorter one with a bit of rise to it, thus moving the bars and brakes backwards about 6" and up by an inch. I am a wierdly shaped little specimen, and have short arms in proportion to the rest of me; I have never been able to touch my toes without bending my knees even when I was young and supple (I was never subtle), failing by about 9". Despite several gym teachersadists insisting I was not trying, that is how I am put together......

Several solutions suggest themselves, but I would greatly appreciate the experience and wisdom I know I will find here, and would welcome solution suggestions that have not occurred to me. I could:-

Fit a headset extension. This would bring the whole set-up up by 4" or so and back by another inch. An adventage is that it is an easy job; undo 4 bolts and do up 8, or

Fit brake levers to the tops of the bars. My bike has Shimano AO50 gear changers, so this would have the advantage of having the brakes and gears in the same, easily accessible, place that I am used to on hybrids and mtbs, but the rest of the drops would still be out of my practical reach, and I would no doubt have to re-tape the bars as well, or

Fit Aero type bars. On these, from the pictures I have seen, the brake levers fit out on the bar ends sort of angled back towards the bike. Do the existing brake levers fit here or do I have to get new ones for the purpose. I could, of course, still fit levers to the middle bit.

I am going to have to do something as the bike is frankly dangerous in traffic set up as it is now. Before I replaced the stem it was virtually unrideable, by me anyway. I don't want to fit hybrid type handlebars as I want to be able to lean forward a bit to cope with headwinds on this faster bike. My initial instinct is to fit a headset extension, but I am concerned that this may have adverse effects on the steering. Comments please...

CarlosDSanchez

Sounds like your frame is to big. I'm assuming that you feel to stretched out, not that the brake levers are to far from the bars. What bike is it? Also you should position the saddle so that you are in the correct position relative to the pedals rather than to get closer to the bars, you will get sore knees!! What are your measurements and what size is the bike?

Confusedboy

Yeah, that sounds about right CarloD, but it is a small (54cm) frame and it is not so much the fault of the frame, which is the correct size for me in terms of straddle height, seat height/pedalling position and stance, or distance from the floor, but of my odd body shape and stumpy little 9" too short arms (at least no one can say I'm a knuckledragger). The bike is a (Halfords) Carrera TdF 2009 model. I need to know if my preferred solution of extending the headset clamp postion upwards with an extension piece will work without adversely affecting the bike's handling, or if another solution might be better.

I have no problem at all riding my hybrid, which has a similarly sized 54cm frame, albeit of a different geometry, and flat bars with brakes in the normal position for such a bike. In fact, on this bike I need the seat to be adjusted quite a way to the back for maximum comfort. Of course, a much more sit-up-and-beg riding position is the order of the day in this case. It is a bit of a dissappointment, having read of and been convinced of the arguments for the advantages of drop bars to be unable to reach anything but the closest part of them, and, as I have said, frightening in traffic where you need prior notice to use the brakes; I refuse to believe that there is not a simple and effective answer to this problem.

davis

Sounds like the geometry of that bike is a long way from what you need.

Head over to the Competitive Cyclist Bike Fit page, and try getting those measurements. It's much easier to get a friend, should you have one, to assist with the measurement taking, because you basically can't do it by yourself.

Then, share those measurements with us. That way, if you really are a freakishly-shaped fellow, you can enjoy the pleasure of knowing you made all of us laugh. By way of encouragement, here are my measurements (picture's in the post), all measurements are in centimetres:

Inseam: 85
Trunk:  63
Forearm: 34
Arm: 63
Thigh: 59
Lower Leg: 56
Sternal Notch 144
Total Height: 177.5

Try also measuring between the nose of your saddle and your bars, but using your forearm & hand (ie measure it in cubits) to compare the relative distance. The good bit about that is that you'll usually have your arms with you when viewing a bike, so it's a handy (boom, and indeed, boom) measure.

Confusedboy

This looks more like the sort of information I need to know; thank you davis. Competitive Cyclist BIke Fit web page is not something I would ever have thought of visiting had you not suggested it, as I do not think of myself as a competitive cyclist, but it is a Mother Lode of knowledge which I need to use. My initial scan reveals that my problem is one that is recognised at least, and I will return to do some proper research later.

Ok then, let's measure me:-

Inseam,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,81
Trunk.................... 83
Forearm................36
Arm.......................61
Thigh.....................53
Lower Leg.............50
Sternal Notch........130
Total height........... 171

That was more fun than I have ever had with my upstairs neighbour.

It looks as though the frame is not far off the right size in all respects bar the reaching the drops/brakes issue, but I will go away now and study Competitive Cyclist Bike Fit. My instinct is that what I am looking for is to have the drops level with the seat, something you never see on road bikes, but let's see what Bike Fit says. I will report back later.

davis

Remember that CC-recommended fit are more likely to be towards the more aggressive (head down, arse up) positions, and the ultimate guide is still how you feel on the bike. They're useful as a starting point, but if you can't reach the brakes on a bike that's "ideal", then the fit isn't worth listening to.

If you're after something that brings the bars up, then perhaps a more touring-oriented bike, such as the Surly Long Haul Trucker (purely because I'm being a bit of a Surly fanboy at the moment) or the venerable Dawes Galaxy

I think I remember you saying you really couldn't go to N+1, so if you're entirely restricted to the bike you've got, Sheldon has, as usual, got the info on raising your bars.

Confusedboy

Sheldon, as always, talks a lot of good sense, and has alerted me to the potential of having to replace the cables it my proposed steerer tube extension idea is used.

In the meantime, I have been putting some effort into finding the best positions within the limits of the existing set up.I have raised the stem clamp as high as I think is safe, so that the topmost of it's two clamp bolts is level with the top of the tube. The flat part of the bars is now just above the top of the seat. This needed an extra spacer of course, and I have temporarily pinched one from the other bike. I have also turned the bars in thier clamp so that the brakes are actually a bit lower/further round the curve of the bars. This looked counterintuitive but in fact, because I do not have to reach under and upwards to grab the levers, may be a lot easier; it certainly feels so sitting on the bike. I will go for a ride to find out later when the evening gets a tad cooler; I do not like the heat and the temperature is 83F here just now. I was out in the front garden earlier doing a bit of lubing on the hybrid, and came in soaked in sweat.

Confusedboy

NOW we're getting somewhere. The extra height, only about an inch, has made a world of difference; I can now reach the brake levers and do not feel contorted by getting down that low. Returning the bars to thier original position, I found I could still reach them comfortably, but had the added advantage of being able to ride on the hoods and perform all but the most panicky braking from that position if I want.

Beyond slackening the gear shifter clamps and rolling them a little forward, I don't think there is much more to do. And I went down Rhydypenau Road hill (Cardiff) at the sort of speed that would have embarrassed me as a teenager, with a silly grin on my face. And a bloke in the pub at the bottom (3 Arches) offered me £600 for the flash bike (he was showing off in front of his mates, but he showed me an impressive wad of cash and might have done it had I not been too stupid/honest to take the money). Anyway, now it is starting to come together I want to keep the bike......

Result. Thanks for your help, guys.