For me, I just find a road bike with drop bars so uncomfortable. whether on the top bar, hoods or on the drops
Yet a TT bike with aerobars just feels so right
is it just me? maybe i’m not seeing the benefits of a road bike with drop bars
Once I got my TT bike set-up to me it know feels good. My road bike is good in any position on the bars.
Especially on a nice flat surface, the TT is like a race car flying down the road and just enjoying the moment.
You probably have something set up wrong or are just accustomed to your tri bike.
I would rather ride my road bike on a long day, but in reality it is the same.
Possibly, I only recently got into triathlon and I didn’t cycle at all before then. Also, as soon as I bought my road bike, I strapped a set of clip on tribars too it
Yes, I love TT bikes compared to road bikes. Much more comfortable in my opinion.
Yes the TT bike does seem to be more comfortable right up until the moment there is a hairy decent screaming for you in the name of thrill seeking. To me the TT is a “Set it and forget it” kind of ride. Get on a flat or false flat with rollers and go aero and move forward with grit. However whenever I’m climbing or decending or even just in a group setting its much more controlled on the road bike.
To me, they are equally uncomfortable.
For me, it’s WAY more comfortable on the road bike than the TT bike. Part of that is just the time I spend on each (very little on the TT bike). But… If you’re not comfortable on your road bike, I suspect that your position isn’t dial and/or you just have a weak core. Laying down on aero bars does nothing for your core.
50-50.
I like the arm support on the TT bike position. It takes all of the weight off my hands and I feel that my back is better supported, if that’s the right word. On the TT bike, my neck can get sore from looking up the road. The TT bike sucks on rough roads, maybe this is partly because of the skinny tires. Sometimes it feels like bumps get transmitted up through the armrests, straight to my spine. On a road bike you have a chance to absorb them with your bent arms.
Hip angle between tri bike and road bike with clip-ons can be substantially different, which could account for your discomfort. I tell my athletes (who are transitioning from road bike (road bars) to tri bike) that it will take up to 6 months of riding to get fully comfortable and muscle groups to adjust to the hip angle change. I made the mistake of training one winter on my road bike exclusively and while I had good power increases, when I got back on my tri bike I had some bad races until I readjusted to the tri position.
Its actually a moot point for me now anyway, as my road bike is pretty much set up as a TT bike and I ride my P3 more than anything
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Hip angle between tri bike and road bike with clip-ons can be substantially different, which could account for your discomfort. I tell my athletes (who are transitioning from road bike (road bars) to tri bike) that it will take up to 6 months of riding to get fully comfortable and muscle groups to adjust to the hip angle change. I made the mistake of training one winter on my road bike exclusively and while I had good power increases, when I got back on my tri bike I had some bad races until I readjusted to the tri position.
Is this true with road bike without clip-ons also? Just bought a road bike 2 months ago. Been riding it exclusively on the trainer. May need to switch up the 2 every so often.
I do find my tri bike set up more comfortable. My quads hurt so much more on the road bike.
Almost certainly. Now, everyone is different and adapts differently depending on age, flexibility, past athletics, etc., but it makes sense that even subtle and small changes take time to adapt to. I have one female athlete who has been riding in our CompuTrainer studio with her road bike (it was too much hassle to bring her tri bike, etc., etc.) and she could only manage 160-165 watts FTP for most Sufferfest videos. She is mostly a triathlete and her road bike is secondary. When she brought over her tri bike, here FTP increased immediately to 200 FTP and she was much less sore in the back, quads, and hamstrings. She commented, “what a big difference riding my tri bike!” And that’s mostly (ignoring any fit issues, of course) because she hardly ever road her road bike (geometry).
For me, I can take naps on my tri bike, it’s so comfortable. But I have ridden it almost exclusively for the past 3 years. Before that, I was a roadie and had about 80,000 miles on my Merlin before switching to triathlon (got too old to road race and got tired of racing against kids half my age). It took almost a year to adapt, but then again, I’m old.
So, yes, cycling comfort is bike and geometry specific.
Just IMHO (of course): if your TT bike feels more comfortable then road bike, then either the TT fit is not aggressive enough, or the road fit is bad (or some combination of both)
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I like all of my bikes but I normally choose to ride my tri bike on the road
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Just IMHO (of course): if your TT bike feels more comfortable then road bike, then either the TT fit is not aggressive enough, or the road fit is bad (or some combination of both)
+1. I don’t see a lot of tri positions that are narrow enough to be really aero. There probably aren’t a lot of people that could do an IM distance with their shoulders dropped and rolled like a Tony Martin. As a general rule of thumb, I would say that the distance between the aero bar pads is typically a couple inches wider for a comfy tri position (though there are always exceptions).
I am sure just about every male pro is looking at their position after Kona. Kienle’s position looked about as good as you could hold for 4+ hours.
I find my TT bike to be pretty comfortable except for long stretches of downhill, then my shoulders get really fatigued.
Yes
As opposed to say an iron maiden?
To me, they are equally uncomfortable.
This.
With CeeGee pads, I’m very comfortable on the tri bike. And I’d rather ride it than the road bike because I’ll cover more ground in less time with the same amount of effort.