I have always liked a high front end on all my bikes, I mainly ride trails, alpine decents and bike parks. I have a 40mm riser bar on my DH bike and always ride with at least a 30-40mm rise on all my MTBs. I've done this for 10 years plus at this point.
I also commute ~20km on my XC bike every day to work, and after changing bikes last year, have been having some wrist pain.
I am 176cm, and ride a M or L for DH bikes. My current XC bike is a M/18" https://www.bike-discount.de/en/radon-jealous-al-9.0-3 I am using a 40mm stem and 30mm riser bar cut to 760mm wide. I have found that after a fitting, my saddle has been raised nearly 1.5cm (!), which puts me in a much more aero position than I have had previously, with a lot more pressure on my wrists. I am 46, and my back isn't as flexible as it once was, so after ~30 mins riding, I am having to shake out my hands, wrists etc even on flat roads. The pedal/knee position is much better, so no need to change this. I tried to alter brake lever angle etc, but no dice.
I have a 40mm stem on the bike and a 30mm riser bar… but I have seen a 60mm riser bar I am very tempted by. My reservations are that I'll look a bit silly with so much rise (although maybe I can do full Dakota Norton!), and if it will really help get me more upright with less wrist issues?
Just wanted some input to see if anyone has faced/fixed the same!
by Sosu2211
4 Comments
It’s pretty obvious that more rise than you have wouldn’t be too much.
Unless you’re racing at the very pointy end then dropping the bars for aero/muscle engagement isn’t worth it for that discomfort.
OTOH if you were racing XC for an hour or so you might find your hands and wrists more comfortable as the hard pedalling takes some weight off your bars.
I have a bad back too and need riser bars. 40mm rise is the lowest I’ll go, I usually run 50mm.
The DMR Odub 50mm riser bars are my favourite at the moment.
It is your bike and you can do whatever is good for you. The less weight, the less grip you have. For commute grip is not important. I ride on wet flat trails, therefore I don’t use rise bars at all, bars are 5 cm below the seat level.
Anything positive…
Just kidding. Whatever allows you to control the bike while still being comfortable.