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I have recently built myself a road type commuter/tourer machine.
First ride out today was about 20 miles to work. I now have a trapped nerve/ache between my shoulder blades.
Any ideas/pearls of wisdom re. fit when using drop bars for the first time in 20+ years. Obviously need to play around with fit to some extent, as expected but does this automatically indicate some set-up faux pas?
I have already undertaken a course of MTFU..
Most people ride on the hoods most of the time.
I was on the hoods mostly. Will play around with stem height. seemed comfy enough travelling along.
Like a sharp pain between your blades when you turn your head? I get that on long rides sometimes, never been sufficiently bothered to mess with my position to see if that fixes it, I find it helps to stay on top of my stretching as I go along.
What's the frame? If you're using an MTB frame with drops you may want a shorter stem than you would with flat bars. My guess would be that the back pain is due to being too stretched out. I had something similar when I stuck some Midges on my 1x1. A shorter stem with a couple of mm rise sorted it.
Failing that see if you can fit a pack of sissy wipes and tub of man-up cream into your saddle bag for your next ride 😉
take the peak off your helmet.
Not an MTB-Salsa Vaya off the classifieds (cheers Flange). I'm ok re stretching as i do yoga a few times a week.
Its probably just needing to adapt to the new position (only ridden mtbs/riser bars for twenty years).
My route is mixed on/off road so i can't be bothered to take the peak on and off.
My route is mixed on/off road so i can't be bothered to take the peak on and off.
Fashion gone crazy!
i can't be bothered to take the peak on and off.
then leave it off, the peak does obstruct view on the road IMHO
Off road i can live without it
The peak stays on. It helps to keep the rain off my glasses.
I'm looking for sagely advice on bike fit, not fashion advice.
Peak off your helmet is not fashion advice, it's good advice because your in a lower position a peak forces you to ride with your neck in a raised position. Try it you can always put it back on.
zbonty - Memberi can't be bothered to take the peak on and off.
that is of course up to you and noone else - but you'll struggle to get comfy on a road bike if you leave it on.
i'm not saying it's impossible to get comfy on a road bike while riding with a mtb helmet peak, just pointing out that there is a reason most roadies don't use them, at least not for very long.
My guess would be that the back pain is due to being too stretched out ... A shorter stem...sorted it.
or, maybe a longer stem might help. it's all about getting it 'right' rather than a simple short=comfy / long=painful rule of thumb. i've got a 130mm stem on my road bike, much shorter and my back gets bunched up and crampy. and i've got a short back.
try stuff, see if it works. like taking the peak off, simply refusing to try it is just daft.
seemingly small things can make a big difference : my back/neck complain if i wear the wrong type of sunglasses; if the frame is too low andor thick, i have to strain my neck to see forwards.
I'm all up for little tweaks for achieving fit and wouldn't expect any bike to be 'right' from the initial build.
Re.not bothering to take the peak on off- just taking the piss due to the mixed nature of my Sustrans commute.
The peak off= improved visibility + potentially better fit/no neck pain are good points that hadn't occurred to me.
That's the advice I'm after!
Most people have the drops too low and too far away. The corollary of this is that most people ride on the hoods most of the time.
If your elbows have no bend when on the [u]hoods[/u], your bars are too far away. Place your hands on the hoods and lean forward into a tuck. the elbow angle should be 90-100 degrees.
Don't worry about saddle to bar drop. 3-6cm is a good start. 10cm is for pros.