Originally Posted by
koala logs
However, one factor contributing to OP's back pain is poor back posture.
I am not aware that OP's back posture is poor though I would recommend he gets a lot lower. In the second photo he looks like he is using a time trial position on his road bike by adapting it with his special handlebars.
Sir Bradley has his weight on his arms with his back arching down.
Originally Posted by
koala logs
And if you look at the top-seeded Pros, the vast majority of them arch their backs up. A few of them will have their backs more or less straight but not arching down.
Pros ride the Pro-tour mainly in large groups where it does not matter that their chest is facing the wind because they are drafting. Very occasionally they ride in breakaway groups. But when they are riding on their own they look more like Sir Bradley.
I ride almost exclusively on my own. The road bike riders I see on the road ride almost exclusively on their own. We should not be basing our riding style on those who ride in groups of 80 or so cyclists but on solo cyclists.