I wish you all the luck in resolving the hand pain Rene. For me, a double wrap of cotton tape on my Atlantis bike makes the bars noticeably easier on my hand than a single wrap. It increases the diameter and seems to spread out the load a bit.
Good luck! Angus On Feb 26, 10:41 am, Rene Sterental <[email protected]> wrote: > Thanks everybody for their feedback and suggestions. I don't get any > numbness or tingling; it's just pain on the palm from the pressure of the > bar. I do have to keep moving my hands, but in general no matter how I move > them, whichever part of the palm that is bearing the pressure hurts. When > riding hard it tends to diminish as I'm pressing harder on the pedals; when > riding leisurly they hurt more as I'm not pressing so hard on the pedals. I > usually try to pedal at higher cadences (90+) to relieve my knees, so the > hands end up bearing more weight, but it's not a huge difference. > > The saddle position is not an issue, as I had already learned to adjust the > B17 properly to eliminate sliding forward on it, and learned to accept the > nose up position as normal. I'm pretty much fit so that my knee is slightly > behind the pedal spindle; if I push the saddle further back to relieve hand > pressure, then my knees start complaining loudly. > > I had already considered rotating the M-bars but had been very conservative. > I'll try more aggressive rotation and see how that goes. > > The noodle bars on the AHH do provide more hand positions and bother me less > than the M-bars, so I may try setting the Bombadil with a set and see how it > goes if rotating the M-bars doesn't provide any relief. > > I'm hoping that losing weight and strengthening my core might help as > well... > > René > > On Thu, Feb 25, 2010 at 7:58 AM, Joe Bartoe <[email protected]> wrote: > > I haven't been following the thread, but I've found that higher bars, for > > me, cause hand and wrist pain. Keeping the bars about 2 inches lower than > > saddle height keeps me happy. > > > Just another data point, > > > Joe > > > > Date: Wed, 24 Feb 2010 20:21:07 -0800 > > > Subject: [RBW] Re: Bar height and hand pain... don't know what else to > > do... > > > From: [email protected] > > > To: [email protected] > > > > 'Butt back' as so many have recommended may help take weight off of > > > your hands, but may also require an extra degree of flexibility if it > > > makes you stretch too far forward to meet the bars. I have been there > > > and (after getting a detailed professional bike fitting) wound up > > > moving back forward some and my hips are happier for it. If you do > > > need to get further back, I have a VO post I'm not using and wouldn't > > > mind selling. It's a nice post, it just has too much offset for my > > > current needs. > > > > Saddle tilt is a (maybe THE) key factor. If the nose is down even > > > slightly too far, you are constantly using your hands to push your > > > butt back where it belongs and the result will be hand problems. Your > > > saddle position should be neutral enough that your butt will stay put > > > with no hands on the bars. > > > > Raising the nose to the point that you stay put properly may cause > > > other problems. I am *very* sensitive to perineal pressure. Like a > > > lot of men my age I have a degree of BPH, and have had some very > > > painful bouts with acute prostatitis. It drove me to ride a recumbent > > > for several years. For years before that I rode with the saddle > > > pointed down to take the pressure off of the sensitive bits. The > > > result? Numb fingers. Now I'm back to upright bikes, and paying lots > > > of attention to saddle angle. I have had to face the fact that I > > > can't ride a stock Brooks saddle with the nose up where it belongs. > > > Too much perineal contact! A couple of my bikes now wear modern > > > plasticky saddles with cutouts, and they do work. In fact, the > > > Specialized Alias on my silly go-fast bike is surprisingly comfortable > > > given it's minimal padding (but only for faster paced 'sporting' use, > > > I wouldn't put one on a cruiser!). > > > > I have modified the two Brookses I ride regularly to look something > > > like a simplified Imperial. My basic procedure is to use a 1/2" drill > > > bit, drill out the three vent holes in the top of the saddle, connect > > > the circles with more holes, add one more hole in front of the first > > > vent hole, trim the edges smooth with a razor knife and burnish the > > > cut edge with a little Proofide. I don't know if they will hold up in > > > the long term, but the slot relieves enough pressure to let me tilt > > > the nose up, my butt stays back on the saddle without effort, and both > > > hands and nether bits are happier. I've laced the skirt of one of the > > > saddles to help it keep its shape and may wind up lacing the second > > > one as well. > > > > I also have some hundreds of miles on a Selle Anatomica, which > > > features a cutout. It too needs careful tilt adjustment to work > > > properly. > > > > I can't emphasize enough that hand problems can start at the saddle, > > > so get that right before making any other drastic changes. It may be > > > worth paying to a sympathetic professional fitter. It was for me. > > > > Bill > > > > On Feb 24, 11:49 am, William <[email protected]> wrote: > > > > +1 on sliding the seat back as far as possible. If you have a Brooks > > > > and a seatpost with vaguely 'normal' setback, I'd urge you to try a > > > > seatpost with more setback. The S-83 appears to have a fair amount. > > > > Velo Orange sells a $50 one that was specifically designed to get more > > > > setback on short-railed saddles like the Brooks. > > > > > Finally, I'd recommend that you make a conscious effort to get your > > > > sit-bones back as far as possible on the saddle. If that feels like > > > > it takes a real effort and if it feels like you soon slide back > > > > forward and have to readjust, then I'd add a +1 for saddle tilt to > > > > help you keep the sit bones back. I'd also recommend the following > > > > test. While you are riding on a flat in a straight line, it's my > > > > opinion that you should be able to easily ride with you body in > > > > EXACTLY the same position with your hand hovering 1cm above the > > > > handlebar (not touching it). If your body can't be there without your > > > > hands holding your body up, it doesn't fit. Lastly, addressing bar > > > > height, your brake cables shouldn't stop you from getting the bars > > > > higher if that's what you want to try. Don't hesitate to rip off the > > > > bar tape if it allows you to try something that might allow you to > > > > ride without pain. > > > > -- > > > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > > > To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. > > > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > > [email protected]<rbw-owners-bunch%[email protected]> > > . > > > For more options, visit this group at > >http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en. > > > ------------------------------ > > Hotmail: Free, trusted and rich email service. Get it > > now.<http://clk.atdmt.com/GBL/go/201469228/direct/01/> > > > -- > > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > > To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. > > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > > [email protected]<rbw-owners-bunch%[email protected]> > > . > > For more options, visit this group at > >http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
