I’m sure I can’t be the only one who has had this problem so I’m turning to the faithful ST collective for an answer. This year I’ve gotten myself a new Felt IA Superbike and after my first few hard outdoor rides and a race I’m noticing a problem. My position is very far forward and pretty aero and my fitter an I have discovered this is where I put out the most power at the lowest CdA.
Now that’s all good and well but when I’m really hammering on rides over 30 minutes or so my arms start to sweat and the arm pads become like ice rinks. My forearms don’t cement themselves well and I find I’m enduring a game of “try not to slip” and there have been a few hairy moments to say the least. My question is if anybody else experiences this and what their remedy has been. On my old bike I had a set of CeeGee pads which seemed to “soak up” the sweat. Besides new pads has anybody got any quick DIY tips?
Thanks in advance to any responses.
I’ve had that issue and just purchased some Cee Gees. I’ll let you know once I ride with them.
see above…cee gees are your answer. I have an IA and noticed immediate relief in shoulders and neck with the CeeGee pads versus the stock IA pads. It will raise your stack height, which is easy to fix on an IA, but you may then need different aero bar extensions depending on your wrist posisition. I installed TriRig gammas from the get go and the increase on stack height hasn’t affected my hand position too much, though I may put on some Zipp J Bends.
If you do go with the Cee Gees be sure to order their hook and loop add on…its like $7, as the hook and loop on the Cee Gees is reverse from the stock IA.
Placed the order and I’m now just anxiously awaiting the arrival. This weekend I have my first A race of the season so I’m going to stick on some grip tape from a skate shop to get by until then. Do you happen to know what the difference in stack is stock vs CeeGee pads?
probably 1cm increase at least
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FYI, it is Felt aerobar pads in general (all of them) that have that gel-type tacky surface only if your arms are perfectly dry. Mine slipped even on the trainer indoors during the winter (budget won’t allow an IA in my stable, just a lowly B12 for me). But, I switched to Cee Gees also and a world of difference. Also, I would recommend against Cee Gees brand hook and loop velcro because the adhesive and the quality seemed lacking (I bought it and they are crap/waste of money). Instead, i bought industrial strength Velcro in 4x2 (or was it 2x2) inch strips and cut to size (the ones with the picture of a fire extinguisher being held up by velcro). Superior adhesive backing and better holding power on the velcro surface itself. It is about the same price or maybe even cheaper than Cee Gees offering.
Great feedback thanks! I’ve already placed the order but if it isn’t holding up how I’d like I’ll swap out the velcro for better stuff.
Thanks everybody!
Good luck,
I just bought the new IA-FRD, and noticed the same problems, and found the same solution. Cheers!
I just learned this one the hard way. After some near slips, I bit it this week as my left arm slid forward on a hot and humid ride in FL while on vacation with my family. My bike and my body are still in tact, with the exception of some pretty bad road rash on my right arm, hip, and ankle. I am going to switch out my pads as soon as I get home, which will hopefully solve this problem in the future. Thanks for the suggestions from everyone.
It blows my mind that felt continues to think that these slippery gel pads are a good idea. Anyways, if anyone doesn’t want to change out the pads and just cover them up with a fabric surface, I just bought a pair of those women’s no show stretchy socks (like this: http://amzn.com/B006L3V612) and stretched them over the arm pads. Fit perfectly doubled over, and I got the thinnest, stretchiest fabric I could find. I couldn’t spare the extra stack height of cee gees pads. It is nice that my arm pads don’t absorb all my sweat and reek.