Drop bars? Any good off road?

Any reason why you don't want to fit 'proper' wide and shallow cross drop bars?

The lack of flare means it's harder to climb or ride technical stuff in the drops.

Fair enough. It's quite a specific position though isn't it. I geuss you ride most of the time in the drop looking at the tape.
Know what you mean about flare though. My bling bars went onto the hack and I've put my heavy old Bell Laps on my race crosser and it gives me more time in the drops. Oddly I've never seen another racer with bell laps.
Edit'
In after season training guise with cage and spacers (Bell Laps fitted)

I geuss you ride most of the time in the drop looking at the tape.

I spend pretty much 100% of the time in the drops. Flat bars with the same sweep as Midge bars would probably work the same, although I think they would feel subtly different. There are slightly different places on the drops that I hold and these might not work on swept flats.

Think everyone has covered all the points, I used to run a rigid Kona with some WTB drops, worked pretty well except on really steep stuff where it got a bit sketchy.

Google Jaquie Phelan – she has been riding drop bars on mtb pretty much since mtbs were invented, by her husband and a few other people in marin County.

[Just for the record in case anyone else comes upon this thread.]

Great for going up hills or accelerating – the hooks are much better for that kind of thing than risers, which in comparison are a bit rubbish.

Pointed the bars up a bit this morning which helps. Same bar tape (new stuff not yet arrived). But still slipping off the end of the bars just on flat – but bumpy – bridleways.

I also suspect the bars are not quite high enough. Stem is 90×35.

Children are not terribly impressed but who cares what they think?

Try tilting the nose of your saddle up a bit. They way you've got it set up now, you're probably sliding forwards and putting more weight on your hands, which means you're sliding off the hooks. You may need to lower your saddle slightly to compensate for the change in angle. I doubt you need to get the bars any higher.

Not got anything else to add about setup as most things seem to have been covered.
This gives a good view of my setup though.

[/url]

and being ridden.

[/url]

not much to add really i found bell laps to not flare enough (tho i had the 42cm ones to still comply with 3 peaks bar width rules. They did just ) and the midges have too much flare for me really. Something in the middle would be nice to try. I now just use wide shallow standard road bars.

I found drops ok offroad, especially smoothish singletrack. The Midges below were good except my hands are too fat to be comfy on the drops. Now for sale in the classifieds HERE if anyone wants to give them a go.

Hmmm
I can only speak from a cross view. It does seem a shame that the traditional hood position is lost with those bars. So surely an idea would to have a very wide shallow bar, but with a dog leg in the flare?
Edit; You wouldn't ba able to reach the lever in the drops would you 😳

oldgit – Member
I must ask and probably offend, but is there any point with those drop bar set ups?
All seem to have loads of stack and rise, and the levers look more than awkward to use. Couldn't you do away with all that and have a set of flats.

What I like about them is that I can ride with a looser grip on rough stuff (no suspension) so my wrists don't take a beating.

There is more fore and aft handlebar which helps with weight distribution. It also seems to help me with climbing. When I first tried them I reckoned it was worth a tooth on the back cog.

I think I have worked out why. Try this – hold your hands out in front of you as if you were gripping a drop bar, now rotate your hands as if you are holding a flat bar. You'll see that you would need a wider flat bar to have the same width of hand position.

I don't tape the top of the bar because I never use it.

Possibly a flat bar bent so the handles were in the same place would work – and also allow the use of hydraulic brakes.

It doesn't concern me that none of the top racers are using them because they work for me.

Definitely seem better for going up hills.

They do look daft though (unless you've got a bike designed for it with a longer head tube).

They do look daft though (unless you've got a bike designed for it with a longer head tube).

And shorter toptube.

Just like my gryphon up there^^^^

Yes – the drop bars look good on the gryphon.

I really, really want a Gryphon..

It does seem a shame that the traditional hood position is lost with those bars.

Agreed. That's why I have bell laps on the Pompino.

old set up with midges

now swapped for a karate monkey

Brant's working on a newer betterer version, the D62 (Luxy): http://www.shedfire.com/2010/04/23/da062-luxy-new-handlebar/

A few additional points;

1. the Midges are noted for having a very short flat section on the drops. This exacerbates any tendency for the hands to slip off the ends.

2. You don't have to lose the 'hoods' position. I ride my hoods regularly, just feels different from on the road/cross bike.

3. A well set-up drop bar mountain bike is a very different beast from a 'cross bike.

4. Tape the bars fully (and in the correct direction with some decent tape) before making any dramatic changes.

rad to the power of niche

If you have a read here – http://www.63xc.com/mattc/midge.htm – you'll get loads of advice on setting up a drop bar on an MTB.

Sam, is that you in that pic?

And yes I also thought the point of midges etc was to enable a low position when using gert big wheels.. so makes me wonder about having them witha high rise stem…

Class photo Sam. An expert at work there.

I just don't get why you 'need' flare, I ride stuff fine on std drops on my CX. I find that bar position massively secure and confidence inspiring, you get 'into' the bike and let it batter down just about anything. No need to hang on for dear life, I keep my hands pretty loose and never seem to have an issue with my hands shifting.

Sam, is that you in that pic?

No, it's Jacquie Phelan at SSWC '07 at Aviemore. It was taken by Trina Ritchie (aka Mrs dRj0n), she definitely takes some nice pics.

And yes I also thought the point of midges etc was to enable a low position when using gert big wheels.. so makes me wonder about having them witha high rise stem…

No, that's not really it at all. Most people who prefer to use drop bars off road do so because they like the comfort of the primary hand position, as well as the possibility of multiple others.

I just don't get why you 'need' flare

It's mostly so that your wrists don't hit the bars when you are climbing out of the saddle.

Again, just for the record if anyone else is trying this.

OK, seems better today. Cinelli cork/gel bar tape, bars angled down less. Saddle moved forward a bit. And no more slipping off the back of the bars! Yeah!

Still not totally convinced drop bars are going to work for me though; feels a bit as though I need either longer arms or a shorter stem. Maybe I'm just too short, being almost at the bottom of the range of heights Sam suggests for this frame.

I should say that aside from struggling with the bars, the bike is lovely to ride. Very happy with it!

EDIT: in case I forget, thanks go to Sam himself, and Roger at Head for the Hills for this bike. Plus a number of people on the classifieds selling me other random bits (including one item which still had the original free packet of sweets and was practically brand new, and another which came with a free waterbottle).

Loooks nice Luke! Let me send you some black headset spacers 🙂

Sam – thanks!

I actually kind of like the silver spacers. They look better in the flesh than they do in the picture.

Cheers!
Luke

I went riding with italspark and Jacquie P in Marin. She was awesome riding on dropped bars.

Salsa Bell Laps are pretty good.

For sure. These would be my recommedation for offroad riding on drops. They have a little nudge in the drop which stops your hand sliding down the bar and onto the bottom bar. Extremely useful for keeping your hand right on the brakes. I laugh when people slag them off, try some proper rocky descents you errmmm, discenters.

I know it's a different shape bike, but I ride my Peregrine on all kinds of surfaces on a set of Midge's. I use cross-top levers too, which give me options (and it's geared).

I've only ever found things difficult, when I've underbiked myself anyway – by which point the fact I'm on drops has become irrelevant – and 90% of the time I've put myself in that position is because I've had my road tyres on, and not *quite* stayed on the road. I can't recall slipping off the bars tho' …

If I could find a remote reservoir operated brake levers to fit drops, I'd had a set on my SS too.

Well, there must be something to this 29er drop bar thing.

Went to Brandon Country Park with my eldest son last night. After swapping bikes he thoroughly crushed me on Plumb Buster. Normally it's the other way round.

Saw a badger though, so that made it all right.