bikingMILF

ok, so being new to road biking (holy crap the bug has bitten me...this is way more of a rush than MTB...anyways....) the people at the LBS spent about 3 hours measuring me and fitting me on my bike, so i'm pretty sure i've got a good fit. but the posture change from MTB and road cycling is drastic. I have horrible posture as it is, you know, when sitting places other than my bikes, and i have a tendancy to roll my shoulders foward some. i guess its because i have always been self conscious about being 6 feet tall and towering over everyone.

ANYWAYS, I was thinking that maybe i could accessorize with those forearm thingies, but i dont know what they are called. and i dont know who uses them, so im not sure if it's an appropriate accessory for me or what. you guys have got to know what im referring to. its those things that some cyclists use instead of having their hands on the handle bars. they look SO comfy, being able to rest your whole forearm ...my big problem is i lock my elbows. i try very hard not to, but i do, despite how often i correct myself. im thinking that perhaps these forearms thingies might help with that, and i wont have to worry about painfull elbows every time i end a ride.

any help and/or advice would be appreciated. any giggling at my inexperience will not be. LOL!

bikingMILF

ps. how do they work? LOL

JayC

Aerobars

Id learn how to ride the bike without them first.

bdcheung

Definitely don't put aerobars on until you are comfortable riding the road bike. Your ability to handle the bike while using aerobars decreases drastically.

cedricbosch

P.S. you have a disturbing username

bikingMILF

yikes
ok
i thought it was a comfort thing. doh. guess ill just work on that posture and relaxing the elbows then. LOL hell, its only been two days.

thanks guys!

bikingMILF

and...?

grahny

aerobars as jayc said... and they're going to put you in the most hunched over position you can be in... more so that your drops, and air is more restricted as well due to the position. They take some getting used to and you lose a little control of the bike - plus your brakes are further away. They're mostly used for TT & Tri's. Rec riders use them mostly for another option in hand/arm position.... or because they think they're faster with them.

You can get "clip on" ones that bolt onto the tops of your handbars. I used them a couple times, but I find I'm faster and have much better control of the bike just using my drops.

rich007

You can get mini clip-on aerobars like these:



No experience with them, so no idea if they're any good...

oldspark

I like it!

bikingMILF

so aero bars ...whoa....i thought they had shifting and brakes on them. but they dont? so those who use them, constantly have to make the transition from the aerobars to the regular ones every time they want to brake or shift?

oldspark

You can get them with brakes and shifters if you so desire.

roadfix

.....remember....you're not on a mountain bike any more.

zimbo

Sounds like you're on your way. I'm impressed that they spent that long with you working on getting a good fit. Very nice.

You'll probably find yourself gravitating to just one hand position on the bike but while you're still getting used to things it's probably good to spend some time in the drops, the hoods, and the tops just to vary your position so as not to get too sore. Your hand position affects not just your hands and arms but also your back and the, um, taint. If you know all this stuff already, I apologize. I went through some serious hand numbness and taint soreness when I was first getting used to a road bike.

The weather this weekend has been cool and windy, but hopefully you were still able to ride both Sat and Sun. I certainly can't complain--much better cool and windy than hot and humid.

And, oh yeah, I agree with those who suggest holding off on the aerobars for a while. They're not necessarily more comfortable and they make steering more difficult. Plus it's not good to use them during group rides.

--Steve

JayC

You can get shifters and brakes on them.

If you plan to try to do any group rides, theyre really a bad idea. Like I said before, learn to walk before you run.

Come out to one of our group rides on Wed evening or Sat morning. There are some slower paced people and it's a good way to jump into riding with a group.

Wed night ride leaves from MacGregor Village at 6PM sharp. The Sat ride alternates between The Spin Cycle and CSH Cary.

Shemp

Unless he's a she, it is indeed a disturbing name. And if he were a she, it'd still be disturbing that she was publicly announcing it. I'm guessing the op's favorite number is between 68 and 70. -Beavis

grahny

They do if the bike is set up with a wing base bar + the aero bars, and then use bar end shifters, but not clip ons.

bikingMILF

you guys freakin rock. i dont know why the MTB crowd says that the road cyclists are hoity toity and snooty. i have never felt more welcome and accepted on an online forum in my life. i really cant wait to go on my first group ride. its just a matter of finding one that fits the schedule. CSH has a lot of weekly rides and im for sure going to get in on one. my plan is to do group rides twice a week and still have trail riding with my MTB friends twice a week as well.

steve, i totally got out to ride both yesterday and today. it was just a short jaunt yesterday to get a feel for my new bike, and today i gmap'ed out an 11 mile loop around wendell and zebulon and it was over in half an hour. LOL i wasnt expecting that. im so much faster on the road on a *road bike* than on my GF Napa. LOL Who woulda thought? Sorry, but I had to giggle at the numb taint comment. I've been lucky to avoid that on both bikes.

Jay, I'm also going to check out the link in your signature like you advised me to do before. It's nice to know there are so many options to ride with others. I totally feel the love.

bikingMILF

LOL I'd be a pretty spectacular dude, as I am a mother of two.

Surferbruce

this thread is worthless without pics....

bikingMILF

lol, this is the second of my very few posts on this forum that has mentioned that. maybe i'll throw one in my profile if this board is set up to do so.

oldspark

Since the poster said they were self conscious about being 6 ft tall I thought the person was a female and she had a sense of humor but I have been wrong before.

bikingMILF

lol you guys are silly. im just not a stereotypical cyclist, thats all. im a chick, thru and thru. trying to unload a little extra baggage via cycling...mom of two. tattooed, pierced, a lil crazy, a lot of fun. im just a bit of a perv...ok, im a big time perv, and sole proprietor of a fetish photography biz....but details pertaining to that are for another time, another forum.. and when i hit up the group rides, i dont think im going to publicly announce to any of them that i'm the girl posting as bikingMILF, as I'm also a little shy. go figure. but enough about me, dammit. im here to talk bikes!!

zimbo

Just ignore the peanut gallery. There are relatively few women who post to the road cycling forum and the crowd can sometimes get a little unruly.

--Steve

blonduathlongrl

yes constantly, take some getting used to. I sure wouldn't rush into getting those. To me they are not all that comfy, I cant ride on them for a long period and you cant always ride on them, specially not in busy places and cross winds makes you unstable. just my two cents that there is no rush into getting those.