Drop Bars

I’m sorry but you are not going to convince me that these are comfortable. You can talk about core strength and bike fit all you want, the average person is uncomfortable on drop bars and more comfortable on flat bars. That’s just a fact. You are likewise not going to convince the average person to get a bike fit, do crunches every day, and get padded gloves just to ride a bike to work. That’s ridiculous.

“But they are better for long distances because they have so many hand positions”. Sure, that might have been true 20 years ago, but in today’s market it’s trivially easy to find good touring flat-bars. I am of the personal belief that the Jones H-Bar is the best handlebar ever designed. I have toured extensively on it. No gloves or bike fit needed. Strange. And, I can still feel my pinkies at the end of the day. Weird. Plus I can sit upright and actually enjoy my surroundings with my eyes. Wild. And my neck? Feels totally normal. Wacky.

“But drop bars are more aero” 99.9% of people will never even get close to a podium at a bike race. This is completely irrelevant for normal discussions about bicycles. You need to be above 20km/h for extended amounts of time “aero” to matter at all.

From a home mechanics perspective, drop bars are way more work to maintain than drop bars. Want to make small adjustments on a flat bar? Loosen some bolts and slide stuff around. Easy. Want to change basically anything on a drop bar? Hope you have your calendar cleared cause you are going to be re-wrapping those bars at least once!

Not to mention the shear versatility that flat bars provide over drops. Drop bars are so disgustingly attachment-phobic that an entire industry of aftermarket parts exists simply to allow you to attach basic shit like bells to drop bars. And all of it requires you to take your hands off the bar to use because the entire bar is wrapped except for a little peak (a tease?) right where the stem connects. Guess what I do to ring my bell on my flat bars? I hit it with my thumb. I don’t have to move my hand. I don’t even have to think about it to be honest. Plus I have plenty of room to attach a light, a phone holder, a cup holder, and whatever else I want really. Most drop bar riders can’t even dream of such cockpit luxury.

I will admit that drop bars look cool. They are certainly part of the platonic ideal of a bike, at least in my mind. Most flatbar setups tend to look rather dorky in comparison. But thats ok, the rest of my bike and the rider himself look dorky too so it fits.