Do you ride on the tops with your aero bars?

[Shrike]

Tell the truth now.

Trying to weigh up if I'd be suited to them. Used to use the tops more for climbing, but seems naturally I'm doing that less. However.. I have a habit, maybe a bad one.. of grabbing the tops with my elbows in and pulling them towards me a touch while really mashing hard on the pedals when I'm feeling frisky. Not sure why it feels good, just feel like I can put out more power at the end of a longer ride, maybe because the position is fresh?

Dunno much about body mechanics or whatever. Anyway, what's your experiences with aero bars? And I'm I ruled out because of odd riding habits?

[cmcdonnell]

I don't have aero bars but am considering some. Personally I only use the tops when I'm taking it pretty easy or on long Alpine length climbs and in those cases I'm pretty much just resting my hands lightly.

[cyclespeed]

Soon to be getting aero bars, and I only ever use the tops for long Alpine (or Majorcan!!) climbs.

[mimason]

I'll assume you mean aero shaped handlebars and not tt bike style aerobars.....but yes I ride on the tops during easy efforts and climbing all the time. I make it a routine to constantly change hand positions so I don't get numbness, fatigued or cramps etc.

In group riding you have significantly reduced reaction time to get to the brakes and have limited handling so be warned or just don't. For climbing, this provides good hand location for the leverage and smooth efficient pedal strokes I am trying to achieve and it helps reduce back pain.

[Shrike]

Do your hands ever slip on the tops?

Some of you guys live in pretty hot areas, like Florida there. Pretty chilly where I live all but a couple months of the year so don't think that would be an issue but have had my hands slip off my shifters once recently when covered in sweat

[Marin]

I ride with gloves. I have aero drop bars on 2 bikes, but I hardly ride on the tops - for me it says "giving up"

However, when I do, I like the feel of the flat aero sections better than a round, taped bar.

[mimason]

Curious why you say "giving up". Its not for hammering or sprinting but you certainly can climb and ride at tempo pace. You can also tuck low for fast descents and rest your forearms on the top at high speeds for tt efforts. When you want to look behind at all the peeps its where you can get a good hand position to look back and drop your opposite arm off the bars.

[Vermu]

Some aerobars are quite shallow. When riding on drops I'm not feeling spectacularly aero compared to riding on hoods or tops.

[mrgray]

Isn't it accepted that
1. Hoods position is quite low on the modern bike
2. Hoods is more aero than drops for most?

In terms of being on top very rare I find.


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[McNamara]

I just tried bars with 'aero' tops for the first time the other day. Streamlining benefits aside, I found them very comfortable compared to round-section bar tops (specifically, these were Zipp SL-70 Aero bars). The flat cross section distributes the pressure on your hands much better. If I change the bars on my bike, I'll definitely consider bars with flattened tops.

The one thing that concerns me is sprinting. I could see the airfoil-like trailing edge of the tops potentially hitting your wrist.

[mimason]

Isn't it accepted that
1. Hoods position is quite low on the modern bike
2. Hoods is more aero than drops for most?

In terms of being on top very rare I find.


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I think this is accurate. Hoods with forearms low is supposed to be more aero than drops. With respect to the OPs question I don't think he was asking about how long anyone rides on the tops but merely if and possibly when. I'll agree that using the tops is for very limited durations so as not to confuse anyone with my post that I frequently ride on the tops but for a short amount of time.

[bas]

Just switched to a Vias with aero bars, tops are definitely not as comfortable as my previous 3T bars. I used to ride in the tops climbing and when just cruising along, still trying to find a comfortable position on the new bars but i suspect I'll be using the hoods instead.

[4151zero]

I this what I have to look forward to, my LBS is building up a frameset with zipp sl70's, hope I didn't choose the wrong bars.

[sawyer]

Sometimes for climbing, though usually climbing is done on the hoods.

Never for anything else - hoods and drops are more comfortable for me