Hi, I´m considering the purchase of a Hed Aerobar for my Moots Vamoots roadbike. Based on you´re writings about the grip on the base bar being identical with a normal roadbike position (because Lance wanted it that way) it should suit my roadbike very well, or not? Or is the HED only usefull for steep angle bikes? I guess my seatangle is about 74 degrees. Any opinions?
Regards
Martin
Seat angle doesn’t really enter the equation here except as ancillary to to the bike’s intended purpose. If you intend to spend 90% of your time in the aero position. . .then the Hed bars are a possible solution. If, however, you intend to ride this bike on slower rides, or in effect spend more than 10% of your time on the bike OUT OF the aero position. . .look at a different bar. You will find that the Hed bars are not comfortable for extended periods riding on the horns. Bottom line, I would use the Heds only for going flat out aero. If I had only one bike I’d go for a different aerobar solution. . .either drops and clipons or something like the Profile Carbon X. I had the Carbon X on a previous bike and found them to be comfortable on the horns as well as in the aero.
First things first, these are “aero” bars, so the main/only thing that you should consider is whether or not you will be able to get low enough in front to properly utilize them. The fact that the base bars are in the same location as the hoods on Lance’s road bike is pretty much irrelevant unless you plan on spending all of your time on the hoods. FWIW, the same position can be accomplished with the Syntace Zero base bars, though the elbow pads will be higher.
It is rare to find a road bike that will actually work well with aero bars like these -typically the head tube is too high and the top tube too long. You would probably be best served by some shorty aero bars, like the Syntace XXS. Think ITU tri bike rather than Kona tri bike.
Good luck,
John
If there is going to be any one-piece aerobar that would work on a road bike, it would be the Hed. The armrests are level with the base bar, which is not going to be the case with almost any other aerobar. This means you are as low as some frames with a shorter head tube and more traditional aerobars that put the armrests considerably higher. You would have to have the extensions shorter, as your cockpit is quite a bit longer with the road bike configuration. You would get as low as you could without a negative rise stem with the Hed bar.
One caveat- you would be best with a “slam” setup on this, as the road bike is best suited towards a “slam” setup. You may also max out how short your stem is on here, as you don’t want it so short that you have no control of steering. Also, you will have to commit to a bar end shift set-up, unless you like to switch your shift cables all the time. One solution would be to use the quick disconnects that one can get with travel bikes, but you would still need to make adjustments to your cables.
Remember this- UCI rules dictate that you can’t ride a steep seat angle. This bar is used regularly on road angled bikes in the pro peloton. Some guys don’t even change one dimension on their TT bikes opposed to their regular road bikes. I am not saying this is even correct, as I am only making an observation.
Thank´s guys. Based on your comments I decided not to follow my fashion dream (oh, this Hed bar is just soooo cool). Instead I´m going for a DEDA Newton dropbar, and stem, combined with the DEDA Clip Black, and staying with my Ergopower shifters. It´s not that cool looking but should work just fine at the Duathlon Long Distance WC here in Denmark with it´s multible short and powerfull 16% climbs.
Regards
Martin