shelleyspins

My little ride group hooked up with a larger group this weekend and rode on Sunday. My group is no drop but it is very small (5 - 10 riders) and with very few exceptions we know one another fairly well. The group we rode with is not no-drop and riders come prepared to finish the last 30 miles solo or with a buddy. For both groups aerobars are not forbidden but in a paceline riding in them is considered very bad manners.

When hit with strong headwind or crosswind I hunker down in my drops - which is I thought what you were supposed to do. At several points yesterday I was riding with people from the larger group and I didn't notice anyone else getting in their drops.

Is it bad manners to ride in your drops when you're riding in a group? By the time the wind was an issue we were so spread out it was more like 4 of us holding a line for a bit until one or two separated, riding solo for a while before coming up to another wheel.

Metzinger

It's not bad manners. It's good form.

botto 

correct.

rollin

This

datlas 

But I thought it was a "NO DROPS" ride??!!??

Just kidding, you did the right thing.

hodie21

Correct. I do it all the time with a nasty headwind. Others don't.

Terex

It depends on the group. For the recreational cyclist (like me), you typically ride with large variety of people. My recreational club friends can be very strong, but don't do a lot a paceline riding. With those guys, I stay on the hoods if I'm not in front. When I ride with people who race, I may feel more comfortable getting into the drops in a paceline.

For a windy, "recreational" ride, I'll stay on the hoods, but get down as low as I can, with forearms parallel to the ground. If the wind is coming consistently from one side, I'll put the windward side hand in a drop, and keep the other hand on the hood.

DXchulo

The other riders probably just aren't comfortable in the drops, which is their loss. You weren't doing anything wrong. Ride on.

RacerOne

Depending on the person and how well their bike fits, being in the drops is more stable, very different from riding the aero bars. Drops should always be welcome.. getting dropped, not so much.

umd

Incorrect. It depends on nothing more than your own personal comfort level in the drops. Some people like to ride in the drops all the time, and it would be ridiculous for any group to have a problem with that.

If you know what you are doing and everything is sized and fit correctly, handling is better in the drops. It's not like aerobars where the handling is worse.

dmotoguy

This sounds painful/awkward.

jfmckenna

You are doing it right Shellyspins. The drops are there for a reason.

botto 

..

roccobike

If you're capable of riding in the drops and grabbing you're brake levers quickly, then I don't see the problem. Some folks put their hands in such a position that grabbing the brakes takes an extra second or two. That can spell crash in a tight pace line. Pesonnally, I ride the hoods in a tight line. I'll ride in the drops if I know the riders and they ride a smooth pace line.

njkayaker

From my observations, people don't generally ride in the drops (they ride on the hoods). I'm talking about good/experienced riders. I think they do this because it's more comfortable. I try to encourage people to ride in the drops more frequently.

I'll ride on the ends when I'm in front (where being able to stop quickly is less helpful). There is much less need to ride in the drops if you aren't at the front.

umd

So you are one of the people who can't reach their brakes and have trouble handling the bike in the drops?

JacoKierkegaard

"No drop" doesn't mean handlebars. It's generally accepted that the drops give the best control of the bike, so I don't see why anyone would have a problem with you being a safer rider.

deep_sky

It isn't a crime or personal failing, you know

If I was to be able to comfortably and quickly reach my brakes in the drops, I couldn't ride on the hoods as they would be too far down the handlebar for me to reach comfortably. I am learning to get more comfortable in the drops for longer stretches of time, but if I am in a position where I might need to brake quickly, I am in the hoods. I could probably replace my bars, replace my shifters to ones that can take a shim properly, and be able to use the brakes in either the drops or hoods comfortably and quickly, but as a recreational rider, it's just not worth it to me.

umd

I know. The first part of his post said that it wasn't a problem if you could reach your brakes quickly, the second part said that he didn't ride like that. So I was just wondering if it was because it was one of those people.

It should be able to put your levers in a position where they can be reached quickly and comfortably from either position. Personally, I find heavy and consistent braking to be uncomfortable from the hoods. I can brake quickly from the hoods just fine, but if I have to brake a lot, such as on some descents, the drops are the place to be. I think it's because I use different fingers for each. The stronger index and middle mostly when in the drops, the weaker ring and pinky in the hoods.

njkayaker

It appears you are on the horizontal (lowest) part of the drops.

If you grab the bars at the bend, you should be able to reach the ends of the levers with your strongest two fingers. The brake lever is a lever, which means that it takes less force to operate them if you apply the force to the end of the lever. For long, sustained braking, like down hills, it's more effective and less tiring to operate the brakes from the drops. Braking from the drops also puts your body weight in a good position for braking.

Braking from the hoods has two disadvantages: a shorter lever arm and using the weakest fingers in the hand.

To each his own. Though, there isn't any reason a "recreational" rider can't be a more effective rider. I suspect that many "recreational" riders would benefit working to be comfortable in the drops whether or not they choose to generally ride in that position. (It's a cheap way to be a bit faster.)

It's also because you are pulling the levers from the ends rather than near the base.

umd

Yeah the lever thing too

shelleyspins

Thanks - good to know I wasn't pissing random people off by staying in the drops. My regular ride buddies weren't my concern - I'll know about it when I tick them off - I was more worried about the other group; we don't know one another well and I'm not so sure they'd say anything to me directly.

I find it's way easier to brake but had never really put 2 + 2 together to figure out why this is. Now I know! I find it easier to corner and I can relax more when I'm hunkered down - especially in the 25mph winds. I'm learning to love wind. (repeating to myself: I love wind. Man, I love wind. I love wind.....)

umd

I knew that, I just spaced when I wrote it, I swear.

deep_sky

I cannot do extended braking from the hoods, it hurts my hands too much, so I do brake in the drops for long descents with heavy and/or constant braking. Given the position of the brake levers on the bars, I can't just let the lever go, then reacquire it immediately if needed because its just slightly out of easy reach no matter where I put my hands on the drops. If I move the levers down so that I can, then I can't ride in the hoods because they are now too far to be comfortable on. When I am just riding along the flats (especially with a headwind) I am at the end of the drops because its the only position I can maintain without hitting my forearms on the tops of the bars, I have to get lower to use the brakes in descents to prevent that, so I get a little bit off the back of my seat when doing descents.

Replacing the bars with a shallower reach and drop would fix this problem, but I am unemployed right now, so I have to pick and choose carefully what I spend money on. Right now, my bars I can make work for me, even if they are not ideal, so they are down the list a bit.

umd

It sounds like the rotation of your bars could be an issue too. I hate to hijack the tread, but maybe you should post a picture of your bars from the side? With your hands in both positions too would be best.