Originally Posted by
terrymorse
Interesting. Can you describe how you use drop bars to engage your back and torso muscles when climbing?
I do most of my climbing in the tops, or the hoods when out of the saddle. I don’t use the drops at all uphill.
When climbing it is more efficient to have your body's weight supported by the bike. Sitting in the saddle I can reach down and pull up on the drops for more power. With a straight bar that pulling up is not possible.
I stand up in the saddle only to stretch out my neck and shoulders and the rest of the time I sit down and put more energy into pedaling. In the saddle I can maintain a faster cadence than if standing on the pedals. When standing on the pedals and out of the saddle the rider needs to try to offset the lower cadence by using a much taller gear.
Standing in the pedals also increases the frontal area and increase the effect of any head wind. There was a very steep grade on Hwy 101 in California that faced directly into the wind coming off the ocean. Even big rigs had difficulty getting over the grade. On a bike I knew if I stood up in the saddle it was all over as I could not overcome the wind. At that point I would be walking up the remainder of the hill. The Division of Highways (now CALTRANS) cut down hundreds of redwoods to re-route the highway to the east so the truckers would not need to slow down.