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Road Cycling “It is by riding a bicycle that you learn the contours of a country best, since you have to sweat up the hills and coast down them. Thus you remember them as they actually are, while in a motor car only a high hill impresses you, and you have no such accurate remembrance of country you have driven through as you gain by riding a bicycle.” -- Ernest Hemingway

Riding the drops

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Old 04-22-14, 06:04 AM
  #26  
RJM
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Originally Posted by Will Goes Boing
You said your bars are not high, but my bet is they are. If your setup is even mildly aggressive you wouldn't want to be on the drops 80% of the time. As somebody already mentioned my hood position is lower than most people's drops. When I go to the drops.... I do it solely for the purpose of speed.... it is anything but "comfortable".
Sounds like your bars are too low.

Last edited by RJM; 04-22-14 at 06:37 AM.
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Old 04-22-14, 06:18 AM
  #27  
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Riding the drops is a lot like wearing a thong:

If you're comfortable with it, do it.
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Old 04-22-14, 07:44 AM
  #28  
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Originally Posted by Will Goes Boing
You said your bars are not high, but my bet is they are. If your setup is even mildly aggressive you wouldn't want to be on the drops 80% of the time. As somebody already mentioned my hood position is lower than most people's drops. When I go to the drops.... I do it solely for the purpose of speed.... it is anything but "comfortable".
You're right. My bars are high. I just say that they aren't to impress people on the internet.
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Old 04-22-14, 07:50 AM
  #29  
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Originally Posted by heffdiddy
My bars are not high, I just prefer the feel of being lower. I guess I made it seem like I was asking for everyone's opinion on how I should be riding.

I was only asking how everyone else rides.
No, you asked what you were missing, i.e. why do you find it more comfortable to ride in the drops while 99+% of other riders spend most of their time on the tops or hoods when cruising on a MUP.
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Old 04-22-14, 08:00 AM
  #30  
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Originally Posted by heffdiddy
My bars are not high, I just prefer the feel of being lower. I guess I made it seem like I was asking for everyone's opinion on how I should be riding.

I was only asking how everyone else rides.
When you're lower, regardless of where you hold the bars, you recruit more muscles for pedaling. This is why riders of all types, even kids, lean forward instinctively when they're riding hard (like up a hill, where aerodynamics isn't as much a factor). So when you're lower you end up using more muscles less intensely for a given speed.

For comfort reasons (bad back) I mainly ride in the drops, the second place I ride is the tops, the last place is the hoods. I do any normal standing climbing on the hoods, I do my seated climbing on the tops, but I spend a lot of time on the drops. If I don't I can't do things like take my shoes off comfortably or pull on a pair of jeans without leaning against the wall because my back is a bit jacked.
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Old 04-22-14, 08:03 AM
  #31  
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Seems right.
JRA time in drops - no idea
Racing time in drops - 95% unless it's a hillclimb, then less
Thong: 100%

Originally Posted by thump55
Riding the drops is a lot like wearing a thong:

If you're comfortable with it, do it.
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Old 04-22-14, 08:14 AM
  #32  
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Originally Posted by snidely
Holy ****, you keep some detailed ride logs! Is that function available on Garmin Edge?
I update an Excel spreadsheet each day after my ride. I can tell you wind velocity, power output, and number of roadkill passed on each ride.
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Old 04-22-14, 08:37 AM
  #33  
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Originally Posted by thump55
Riding the drops is a lot like wearing a thong:

If you're comfortable with it, do it.
Even if the thong was comfortable and felt great, I'll never wear one.
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Old 04-22-14, 09:05 AM
  #34  
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Originally Posted by zymphad
Even if the thong was comfortable and felt great, I'll never wear one.
Everyone's bucket list is different....
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Old 04-22-14, 09:37 AM
  #35  
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Originally Posted by zymphad
Even if the thong was comfortable and felt great, I'll never wear one.
This is similar to people trying to justify wearing shorts over their bibs and such. Its your choice but you're the one missing out.
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Old 04-22-14, 09:44 AM
  #36  
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The evolution of the roadie; in the drops, on the bars, in the cups, incontinent.
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Old 04-22-14, 12:51 PM
  #37  
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Invisible Aerobars ftw.
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Old 04-22-14, 01:08 PM
  #38  
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Originally Posted by valygrl
Seems right.
JRA time in drops - no idea
Racing time in drops - 95% unless it's a hillclimb, then less
Thong: 100%
So thong with bike shorts, then?
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Old 04-22-14, 01:21 PM
  #39  
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I ride in the drops about 90%. Don't know why it's just comfortable, and mentally, I am comfortable with the control and stability I get there.
D
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Old 04-22-14, 03:59 PM
  #40  
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I'm probably somewhere in the 50% hoods/40% tops/10% drops range. My bars have aero tops and are pretty comfy.
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Old 04-22-14, 04:53 PM
  #41  
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It might be shocking to some, but the most aero position isn't usually in the drops
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Old 04-22-14, 04:59 PM
  #42  
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Originally Posted by redlude97
It might be shocking to some, but the most aero position isn't usually in the drops
Planking.
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Old 04-22-14, 05:29 PM
  #43  
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i'm in the 99% hoods/tops 1% drops. YOLO
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Old 04-22-14, 06:13 PM
  #44  
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I see alot of people with their bars higher than their saddle riding in the drops.
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Old 04-22-14, 06:48 PM
  #45  
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Originally Posted by I <3 Robots
I see alot of people with their bars higher than their saddle riding in the drops.
For shame!
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Old 04-22-14, 06:57 PM
  #46  
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If I'm riding MUP, I rarely get into the drops because I need to stay heads up to avoid runners with headphones, children and dogs on leashes from running into me. If I'm on stretches of road or bike only paths where I can hammer down and go, I will get into the drops on flat and downhills. And hoods and tops on climbs
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Old 04-22-14, 07:19 PM
  #47  
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Originally Posted by woodcraft
So thong with bike shorts, then?
I do but I wear the thong on the outside.

Funny but no one notices if I'm riding in the drops or not
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Old 04-22-14, 07:23 PM
  #48  
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what if he has long monkey-arms?
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Old 04-23-14, 05:21 AM
  #49  
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People are different. Just do what you like to do. Personally I spend most of my time in the hoods, some time on the flats (typically my arms turned inward grabbing it near the stem, it is just comfortable for whatever reason), and the least amount of time in the drops. Additionally, when I go to the drops it is usually for specific circumstances as I move up to the nose of my saddle when I do so.
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Old 04-23-14, 09:43 AM
  #50  
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65% hoods / 20% tops / 15% drops

I switch to the tops when I'm just going for an alternate position and don't need to brake any time soon. The drops only see use when the wind kicks up and hunching down will be better than getting blown around or I'm descending something steep.

The percentages depend a lot on where I'm riding. If I'm 'in town' and around traffic, it's going to be 95% hoods for braking, heads-up, etc. If I'm out in the hills, the tops are gonna get used more while climbing and the drops are gonna get more while descending...
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