Aero Bars

EMPM

Hi All,

I am thinking about getting some aero bars for my bike. I would be interested in hearing peoples opinions on them. this is my second year in tri and i think that they might make a difference to my bike time. If anybody has any recommendations on what ones are good, that would be great.

Thanks

tunney

They make a huge difference, but only if you are going to stay down on the for the entire duration of a bike leg and if your position is good.

Good ones depend on your budget to be honest and your style of riding.

I've Vison Tech TT Bars with Ski bends and Hed Aerobar S-bends. Both good.

Bambaata

Seatpost is also important isnt it? I'm told not much point getting the bars with out the seat post. That right?

EMPM

Thanks for the advice guys.

I had never thought about the seat post, what would the difference be there?

tunney

Eh no. Seatpost isn't that much of a biggie. Helmet, wheels and frame would all come before seatpost.

Bambaata

EMPM wrote: »

Thanks for the advice guys.

I had never thought about the seat post, what would the difference be there?

as far as i know the tri ones are angled further forward but dont take my word for it, i have only recently got into them properly myself so i dont have too much knowledge on it. my boss is giving me his tri bars so i'll let you knwo when i get them ;-) im going to hold off on the seatpost for a while and see how i go.

tunney

Okay thats something completley other than aeroness related. Thougfht you meant an aero seatpost

Aerobars generally push you down and forward, the ideal way to achieve this position is to rotate your entire body forward........you take you road position and pivot forward and achieve an aero position.

If you are retro-fitting tri-bars to a road bike, you can either add stubby bars on that make you a litle more aero and don't screw with the geometry. Or you can replace the entire cockpit with a TT setup (or add long clip ons to road bikes), this will probably result in a cramped position. if you add a fast forward seatpost this will make the effective seat angle steeper and have the effect of rotating forward - you'll be lower, flat backed and still be in a powerful position.

If you have a tri geometry frame but a road cockpit (it happens) then you don't need a fast forward seat post if you replace the cockpit.

Jesus Wept

I thought this thread was about chocolate

sham08

The-Rigger wrote: »

I thought this thread was about chocolate

So did I, thought they might give you loads of energy or something

daymobrew

I started with Profile Design Century aerobars (55 euro). I liked them but I could no longer access my top handlebars. I then upgraded to Profile Design Airstyke aerobars where the pad arms spring up, revealing the top of the handlebars.

I like the aerobars - I can get a aerodynamic position and even relax my upper body. You can also focus your energy on pushing the pedals.
And they make you look more serious about the sport (just don't get beaten by too many people on mountain bikes and knobbly tyres).