Hi All:
I've seen drop bars that flare to the outside as the bars curve down and back towards the rider. The drops didn't seem as deep as many others I've seen either. What's the rationale behind this design, particularly the flare?
Same question (why) with respect to bars that just curve back and down - like the ones on Ernest Czuka's blue porteur daily rider.
I'm curious as to the logic behind these shapes. What, exactly, was being accomplished by placing the rider in these positions?
By way of example my touring bike has "commuter bars" (a slight rise, slight sweep back, fairly wide) with long MTB bar ends for specific operational reasons:
1) 95% of the time I'm not going very fast, want to be fairly upright and therefore want the brakes and shifters positioned so I don't have to reposition my hands to use them. This is my profile in any congested area too, and since there are no aero concerns this hand and control placement fits most of my riding. 2) I only go fast when in uncongested areas and not in pacelines. I can stretch out and get aero on the bar ends; I rarely need the brakes or shifters urgently under these conditions so I don't mind the hand reposition required for use. 3) The bar ends give several positions so that provides hand relief.
Those are the operational reasons that drove my choices. If one looks at the bars in question, what were the goals that drove the shapes?
Thanks John Clay Tallahassee, FL
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