Tribars for road bike

chatlow

Looking to add clip on tribars to my specialized tarmac sl4 road bike. I've reserved both Deda Parabolica uno and due to see which I prefer/ look best.

I have my saddle set to the perfect height and position (previously had knee issues due to it being wrong) right now but I've been advised that I should tilt the saddle nose down a bit and bring it further forward so that the pelvis rotates and it's a better overall position.

Would you guys agree?

keef66

I wouldn't go faffing with the saddle unless you're turning it into a TT bike and plan to spend most of your time on the aero bars.

simon_masterson

You may want to adjust your saddle position, but a lot of people think that if you ride TTs then you have to slam your saddle forward excessively - you don't. The bottom line is that you will not get a great TT position on a road bike. Try leaving the setup unaltered to begin with, and make any adjustments from there - though you'll end up with a bit of a mediocre halfway house.

chatlow

thanks both. Will leave it alone so it's perfect for when I use the hoods and see how it feels using the tri's. Was always under the impression that a saddle too far forward can cause knee pain at the front but then also got told you can get more power with this setup too.

I have 2 spacers below my stem so can always add/remove these if needs be

cgfw201

I've got clip on Deda bars I use every now and again. I find moving the saddle forwards an inch or so does make a big difference to how effective the TT bars are. With seat back in normal road position it's an uncomfortable stretch onto the bars and certainly feels less powerful.

Have taken minutes off my Richmond Park times on bars vs on the drops.

chatlow

good to know. I will prob keep the duo bars as they offer a few places to rest your hands so you choose how stretched out you want to be

AK_jnr

Yeah if you dont move your saddle forward it will feel awful! You would be robbing yourself of power.

simon_masterson

chatlow wrote:

thanks both. Will leave it alone so it's perfect for when I use the hoods and see how it feels using the tri's. Was always under the impression that a saddle too far forward can cause knee pain at the front but then also got told you can get more power with this setup too.

I have 2 spacers below my stem so can always add/remove these if needs be

You won't be more powerful with your seat forward. Doing this can reduce reach and alter effective seat tube angle, but this is why TT bikes are different to road bikes. If I were you, I would leave my seat as is to begin with and see how I got on with the position on the extensions. The key is to realise that some power loss is part of the compromise, and not to expect instant results; it takes time to adapt to the position.

ravey1981

You haven't said for what reason you are adding clip-ons? Is it for TT's, triathlon or just for general riding? What are you hoping to gain from the clip ons?

mamil314

I don't see many people do this, even though it seems to me to be a good idea for longer straight stretches of the ride. Is there some downsides that outweigh that?

debeli

chatlow wrote:

Looking to add clip on tribars to my specialized tarmac sl4 road bike. I've reserved both Deda Parabolica uno and due to see which I prefer/ look best.

I have my saddle set to the perfect height and position (previously had knee issues due to it being wrong) right now but I've been advised that I should tilt the saddle nose down a bit and bring it further forward so that the pelvis rotates and it's a better overall position.

Would you guys agree?

As others have asked, it isn't clear why you are doing this or what you want to achieve by it.

Broadly, Tribars are quite tricky to learn to use, but they do offer some speed advantage on a flat ride. Some people feel unstable descending with them and few people use them to get up much more than a little bump or kick.

There are many on the market that will fit a road bike, so the choice is yours. You may find you want to adjust your seat position (and even the position of the bars you're mounting them on) as you get into using them, but to start with I'd recommend learning how to use them and seeing if they answer the question you're asking of them.

Be aware that many people find a bike harder to control on tri-bars - and they may also take your hands further from the brakes and other controls. Likewise, swerving to avoid poor surfaces or oncoming vehicles can be amusing. You may find that you don't feel 100% safe at first.

Buy them, try them and then see if you want to change the saddle or handlebar position. It's often worth being in a club where you can get set-up advice from some of the old codgers who've been there and bought the t-shirt.

fenix

I bought tribars back when they first came out.

Didn't bother with any other adjustments - just slapped them on and in v unscientific tests we'd go 1 or 2mph faster for the same heart rate.

When you're not using them they do hog your handlebars though unless you get the flash flip up pads - so they're annoying for climbing.

You'd not use them in a group ride but if all you do is ride flattish terrain alone then go for it. You can get cheap ones for £25.

(I was young and more flexible back then though)

You see plenty of people riding flash TT bikes in triathlons and not down on the tribars as they haven't the flexibility to use them.

svetty

I use an aero road bike to ride TTs. My solution to this problem is to buy another seatpost and saddle. When I ride on the road I use the normal seat-post and saddle and just swap seatpost/saddle when I ride TTs or want to use the tri-bars. It only takes a couple of minutes to swap and I can have a reasonable position for whatever I'm doing. I have an in-line seatpost for TT use as it enables me to get into a better aero position using the tri-bars. There is a reason the TT regulations limit the saddle from being too far forward.....

DeVlaeminck

For club TTs I used to slam the seat forward and raise it - then I used to slam the stem. Without doing that I didn't feel I had enough weight on the bars and control, power and comfort weren't as good. Play about with it and see what suits you though. I'm assuming you are doing this for TTs otherwise I wouldn't bother.

Either way don't tilt the saddle forwards - doing so means you have to constantly tense the body to stop sliding forwards - you want to be relaxed and just let the legs do the work. Setting it up with a turbo and getting your kids or partner to video you can help.

meesterbond

The purpose of having the saddle further forward (or a more upright seat tube - same thing effectively) is so that the hip-angle can be maintained whether you're much lower at the front.... if you imagine you're in a good position on a normal road bike, draw a line between your BB and hip and another between your hip and shoulder. To maintain that angle but have a flatter back, you need to rotate the lines forward about the BB and in order to do that, the saddle will need to move forward (and up slightly).

If you don't move the saddle, then you're closing that hip angle and potentially reducing both comfort and power.

Whether it's worth doing is probably more down to how low you can actually get the extension - there are some which clip under the bars rather than on top - some of the earlier riders in the Rio Mens TT were using them.

chatlow

Sorry, been away, yeah - main reason for the aero bars is for TT's. Will eventually look at a tri bike, but see these as a good intro. When my running gets stronger then I will be looking to do some triathlons.

Went for a quick spin this morning and can definitely see a slight improvement. The bars are wide enough to crush my chest but not too far apart to keep it aero and be able to use the hoods for climbing.

Only two things I have found annoying so far:

Sore gooch :-/ - might be the angle of my hips (I'm trying to keep them rotated backwards and curve my back somewhat. Is this correct? Seat has slight cut out to help blood flow.

Knee's hitting elbows - can fix by shuffling my arse to the back of the saddle but no my preferred position. Seat is flat and I haven't moved it at all since adding the bars.

Also, I have 2 spacers below my stem - worth slamming the stem? Can imagine this will cause even more issues with knees hitting my elbows.

cheers

DeVlaeminck

I would slam the stem and put the seat forwards as far as possible as a starting position

chatlow

like the gains I am getting with these bars on my second bike. Tempted to add a pair to my main bike. How many here would add a set to their standard road bike which they use for all around stuff, not TT's?

ravey1981

What you are finding out is that tri-bars on a road frame with no other changes don't really work that well. You don't want to slide back on the saddle as that closes you're hips up and makes putting the power down difficult. Ideally you need to be right on tip of the seat and then adjust the bars to suit that position. That obviously is not really possible on a bike you use for all around use. A few years ago I ran clip ons on my road bike, it was faster on the flat but a massively compromised everywhere else...standing and climbing with aerobars on isn't really possible as you end up hitting your knees on them....

I've started dabbling in TT again and so have set up an old road frame as a TT bike...seat forward, bars low etc, and it works just about but isn't ideal...I have bought a proper TT frame to build up over winter.... This is the position I managed to get on the road frame... not bad, but not great either. Ignore the non aero kit....that will come later....