There is not much is talked about the Ultimate Sports Engineering R1’s so I though I would share my thoughts. I have been testing/trying different bars for years in a search for one that is highly adjustable, fast and UCI legal. Those three things typically don’t mix well. In my quest to find that unicorn I have a new favorite. The R1’s are adjustable, and UCI legal. I didn’t get to test them earlier this year at the tunnel but I have no dough they are super slick. In many of the latest hour record attempts where people aren’t bound by sponsorship a familiar sight is the USE Bars. This prompted me to give them a try. I typically don’t buy products without lots of reviews and or independent data, but the use of them by pro’s who have done testing and solely want the fastest products was compelling.
Background -I am not a Triguy but a TTer looking for every ounce of speed. I got the R1 bars for my Track TT bike with the goal of making the fastest rig I can.
When I got the bars they can in a fancy zipper molded soft case. It’s nicer than my laptop case. While its sexy, I see little use for it as once you install the bars, it’s tossed into a closet and forgotten. Give me a cardboard box and a lower price.
Once you unzip the case the beauty is exposed. The first thing I noticed is how thin the bars are and how little surface area they have. They have the Bomb shape handles on the ends which are large but the shape is very aero and I suspect much more aero than just the typical round shape. The bar is very thin, at the end it is approximately one inch wide, and at the stem area it’s approximately one and a half inches. With being so thin one would wonder if they are stiff? After riding them for several weeks, I say they are on the stiffer side.
Adjustably- They came with a boat load of spacers to raise the pad to preferred height but my concern was how low can they get. With the bars setup with the pads on top of the extensions and the extensions on the base bar they are about the same stack as my current 3T’s slammed. I was really hoping to get lower by putting the extensions under the base bar but there was no hardware for this. After contacting USE, I was able to get the hardware to put the extensions under the base bar. I don’t know if my bars were missing this hardware or if it’s a special order/request item. This situation caused me not to be able to test the bar in the tunnel. (A side note, the lower pad height and extensions under the bars looks like it saving me about 10w, with my testing at the track). The pads have significance adjustablity to go super narrow or wide. The reach of the pads is limited to a few cm but it fell into my sweetspot.
Integrated Stem- The base bars are not round in the center stem area but maintain the narrow profile so you need a special shim to use a regular stem which was provided or you can use the R1 integrated stem. I went with the integrated because typically stems and bars that are integrated have lower drag numbers. The integrated stem is one fancy stem and maybe too fancy, it has 9 bolts,. It can be very frustrating and time consuming when you are wrenching on it. But when all together it is a very aero looking and sleek design.
Pads- The pads are small and not very plush. Coming off my 3T pads that are large and soft, the R1 pads took some getting use to. Some riders may need to add additional padding to get comfortable but their small form function has a purpose in reducing drag, and I will take that trade off. Now that I am use to them, they don’t really bother me much and especially when I am at race pace and nothing is comfortable.
My thoughts:
PS- Since there has been little discussion about the R1 bars I want to give the good people of this forum a DC rainmaker review but because of my lack of time and inattention it turned out to be more like a Cliff Note to Cat In The Hat.
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BoulderCyclingCoach.com
Background -I am not a Triguy but a TTer looking for every ounce of speed. I got the R1 bars for my Track TT bike with the goal of making the fastest rig I can.
When I got the bars they can in a fancy zipper molded soft case. It’s nicer than my laptop case. While its sexy, I see little use for it as once you install the bars, it’s tossed into a closet and forgotten. Give me a cardboard box and a lower price.
Once you unzip the case the beauty is exposed. The first thing I noticed is how thin the bars are and how little surface area they have. They have the Bomb shape handles on the ends which are large but the shape is very aero and I suspect much more aero than just the typical round shape. The bar is very thin, at the end it is approximately one inch wide, and at the stem area it’s approximately one and a half inches. With being so thin one would wonder if they are stiff? After riding them for several weeks, I say they are on the stiffer side.
Adjustably- They came with a boat load of spacers to raise the pad to preferred height but my concern was how low can they get. With the bars setup with the pads on top of the extensions and the extensions on the base bar they are about the same stack as my current 3T’s slammed. I was really hoping to get lower by putting the extensions under the base bar but there was no hardware for this. After contacting USE, I was able to get the hardware to put the extensions under the base bar. I don’t know if my bars were missing this hardware or if it’s a special order/request item. This situation caused me not to be able to test the bar in the tunnel. (A side note, the lower pad height and extensions under the bars looks like it saving me about 10w, with my testing at the track). The pads have significance adjustablity to go super narrow or wide. The reach of the pads is limited to a few cm but it fell into my sweetspot.
Integrated Stem- The base bars are not round in the center stem area but maintain the narrow profile so you need a special shim to use a regular stem which was provided or you can use the R1 integrated stem. I went with the integrated because typically stems and bars that are integrated have lower drag numbers. The integrated stem is one fancy stem and maybe too fancy, it has 9 bolts,. It can be very frustrating and time consuming when you are wrenching on it. But when all together it is a very aero looking and sleek design.
Pads- The pads are small and not very plush. Coming off my 3T pads that are large and soft, the R1 pads took some getting use to. Some riders may need to add additional padding to get comfortable but their small form function has a purpose in reducing drag, and I will take that trade off. Now that I am use to them, they don’t really bother me much and especially when I am at race pace and nothing is comfortable.
My thoughts:
- Expensive, but what top bars are not?
- Very adjustable
- UCI legal
- Not the most comfortable pads, more of a (911 and not a Cadillac)
- I think they are fast but have no hard data comparing them against other bars but I know the lower position I can get on them is faster.
- I think they are sexified and am saving my coins to put them on my road TT.
- If speed is your thing, you should put these on your short list.
PS- Since there has been little discussion about the R1 bars I want to give the good people of this forum a DC rainmaker review but because of my lack of time and inattention it turned out to be more like a Cliff Note to Cat In The Hat.
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[/url] BoulderCyclingCoach.com
