i decided to upgrade to a tri bike recently but i can seem to assume aero position. i cycle fine on the handle bars and cycled fine on my old road bike.
but i just cant seem to assume aero on the tri bike, firstly i feel i cant balance or control the bike if i try to go into aero. & im pretty sure its not a fitting problem cos i got that checked by 2 fitters already.
im afraid if i just go into aero and fall, ill break the carbon frame.
is there any drill/exercise i can do to slowly get comfortable with the aero position?
practice at first on a straight road, safe location.
you will get used to it quickly
what bike are you on, and how long is the stem?
hi all,
i decided to upgrade to a tri bike recently but i can seem to assume aero position. i cycle fine on the handle bars and cycled fine on my old road bike.
but i just cant seem to assume aero on the tri bike, firstly i feel i cant balance or control the bike if i try to go into aero. & im pretty sure its not a fitting problem cos i got that checked by 2 fitters already.
im afraid if i just go into aero and fall, ill break the carbon frame.
is there any drill/exercise i can do to slowly get comfortable with the aero position?
First tri bike I test rode at a bike shop I thought I was going to fall over and break the bike as well! Another thing you might want to do is 1 leg drills on the trainer to smooth out your pedal stroke. If your weight is bouncing around that will also throw off your balance. Other than that it just takes time.
as someone who just got their first tri bike on saturday, i can sympathize! i don’t seem to be having as much trouble, but it’s certainly an adjustment.
if you can, push your sit bones back on the saddle a bit. having so much of your weight forward is one of the things that makes the bike feel twitchy.
try to relax through your shoulders while down in aero. my shoulders always like to creep up toward my ears (not just on a bike - anywhere! it’s a bad habit), and this makes you feel like you have limited steering room available. try to relax your hands as well - death-gripping the aero bars will actually make it more difficult to hold a line. just rest your hands around the bars, and let your shoulders drop a bit. this will actually help you get a bit lower.
the MOST important thing is to LOOK where you want to go. the steering inputs required on a tri bike are so minute that you don’t actually have to physically steer at speed - just turning your head will be enough. if you want to go in a straight line, look ahead of you as far as you can see, not at the front wheel. try to avoid “disaster focus”, where you stare at an object you don’t want to hit - it will have the opposite effect, and you’ll feel completely unable to avoid the object. look beside it, to the line you want to take around it.
in my limited experience, it is much easier to go from pursuit to aerobars if you lay one elbow in the pad first, rather than trying to get your hand in position first. for me, i’m most comfortable laying my left elbow in, then grip GENTLY with left hand, then lay right elbow in and grip with right hand. to return to pursuit bars, a quick core muscle contraction and popping both hands out seems to be the easiest way for me.
if you have an indoor trainer, i’d practice those two movements (pursuit to aerobars and back again) extensively. i don’t have a trainer, so i’m basically trying to ride on less-travelled roads while i acclimatize myself. unfortunately, all of these in my area have transport truck traffic, unpaved shoulders, and constant crosswinds!
You got it! It’s twitchy having all of your weight up there and close to the stem. It’s normal, just carefully learn to ride it.
I just don’t ride my TT bike around town…never have. I take it to a beautiful parkway nearby with no intersections, no commercial traffic, more cyclists than cars…and ride there. No need for tri-bar twitchiness around town! A true TT geometry bike is not super stable and safe. If it is, you’re probably set up slack like on a road bike.
I wouldn’t recommend this. You’ve got your fit looked at by 2 professionals, it’s probably at least ‘close to’ good, what you need is time in the bars to get used to them, not to mess around with your bike fit so that your tri bike fits more like a road bike… that just defeats the purpose of the tri bike and doesn’t address the root issue at all.
Go somewhere with a flat stretch of quiet road, get into the aerobars, and just pedal. It will start to feel better very quickly.
Good advice mistress. Looks like you have borrowed from your motorcycle experience.
you betcha! it’s really coming to my aid - i don’t have to get used to looking over my shoulder to pull a u-turn (which feels stupid at first), rake/trail and countersteering are familiar concepts, and i can even equate the shift from riding my MB to the tri bike to moving from my cruiser (feet out front, leaning back) to riding a sportbike (feet behind you, leaning forward on the tank)! very helpful!
Moving the seat back a few cm will not make it into a road bike position. he may have just gotten fitted like he was a professional (ie. 80 degree seat angle). This is unnecessary for new triathletes as they will not have the handling skills to manage this steep of an angle. Most good fitters will fit new triathletes around 77 or 78 and they can slowly move it forward as they get used to it.
Good info, guys…I was thinking about this just the other day since I will be buying my first tri bike soon.
Building on the OP’s comments, how should I go about a test ride of a tri bike? Would it be advisable to try both a road test and a second test on a trainer? My reasoning is the road test will be good to determine how it handles on a road surface while the test on the trainer can help me feel more comfortable while on the aerobars.
Am I way off base or does this seem like a reasonable course of action?
i’ve been wrong before, but i’d hazard that if you’re new to tri bikes, road testing them may not tell you a whole lot. if they fit correctly, the handling is likely to be similar across the board, with only very minor differences in feel by frame composition (stiffer/more flexible) and perhaps wheel/tire combos. getting a good fit is the most important thing - i was VERY lucky in getting mine to fit reasonably well having purchased over the phone based on educated guesswork and fiddling with saddle position in my livingroom after having the LBS build it for me.
Moving the seat back a few cm will not make it into a road bike position. he may have just gotten fitted like he was a professional (ie. 80 degree seat angle). This is unnecessary for new triathletes as they will not have the handling skills to manage this steep of an angle. Most good fitters will fit new triathletes around 77 or 78 and they can slowly move it forward as they get used to it.
I can only speak from personal experience. When I got my first tri bike I was fitted by a professional at a fairly steep angle. It felt twitchy and scary at first. I got used to it and now it feels extremely comfortable and natural, and I have no handling issues.
The OP stated that he got the tri bike recently - I’d say give it some time before messing with the fit. I don’t think you can assume that every fitter wants to do ‘pro’-style fits. Most fitters I’ve known deal with more newbies than anything else and are good at knowing what a newbie needs and can handle.
What mistresssk said is exactly how I learned too. Getting back upright is the same concept. Keep your elbow on the pad and move your hand over, repeat on other side. You will get faster and more comfortable with time. Also, I may get some grief about this, but I am a firm believer in visualization. Spend maybe 2 minutes relaxing before a ride and picture yourself getting on and off the aero bars smoothly. Hey, if it works, it works, right?
I found getting comfortable being in the aero position on the trainer helped me a bunch. Once you are comfortable riding in that position, moving it outside is not that difficult. If you don’t have a trainer, or just opt to learn outside, proceed with caution. Don’t overestimate your abilities. I made this mistake last summer when I got my first tri bike, and ended up going over the handlebars at about 20mph and nearly killing myself. There is a learning curve, keep that in mind and you’ll be fine.
Good info, guys…I was thinking about this just the other day since I will be buying my first tri bike soon.
Building on the OP’s comments, how should I go about a test ride of a tri bike? Would it be advisable to try both a road test and a second test on a trainer? My reasoning is the road test will be good to determine how it handles on a road surface while the test on the trainer can help me feel more comfortable while on the aerobars.
Am I way off base or does this seem like a reasonable course of action?
Sort of like Mistress said…if you test ride it on the road you won’t like the feel at first anyway so you’ll end up deciding to stay with a road bike or getting a ‘tri’ bike that’s really just a road bike.
The fact is that it takes getting used to, so don’t expect it to feel right initially…just commit to riding it regularly (in a safe setting) and it will become natural shortly.
My experience with a sight-unseen tri bike (that fits fine and worked out well for me) was that the first time I hopped on in front of my house after building it, It felt ‘OK’ on the bull-horns and then I stood up to crank and almost went over the handlebars. That’s just the nature of the beast…
I would say that if you are completely new to tri bikes, just riding it stationary will tell you if the position is comfortable. The handling is something that’s not going to be comfortable until you practice it (unless my tri bike is way out there and then everything I said applies only to my particular bike!)
when i got fitted, i told the fitters that im new and am looking for stability rather than aerodynamic performance or an aggressive stance for now. so i was told i was fitted “correctly” to utilize the tri geometry but “conservatively” so i will find it easier.
i was also fitted so that when pedalling, my hips “rock” less so i keep my balance centred instead of rocking/jerking left to right. aero bars are also as wide apart as they should be.
actually im not that afriad of falling cos ill heal, i more afraid of breaking my bike.
anyhow, i will go and try your suggestions. hope i get the hang of this soon.
