I bought my first 'nice' road bike when I was about 19 years of age. This was over 2 decades ago, and I noticed right away that manufacturers and the shop I was working with, had very narrow preconceptions about how a road bike should ride:
1. my bike had a standard 'flat' (-17 degree road stem)
2. therefore, the bars were far below the saddle (half a foot, or more?)
3. the handlebars were ridiculously narrow at first, and even a bit too narrow when the shop reluctantly swapped out for wider
It seemed obvious that the road bike position was supposed to be as low and as narrow as possible and therefore as aerodynamic as possible.
Now, keep in mind, I had a prototypical cyclist's physique: 145 lbs, and very flexible, even within my age group. Having said that, even I felt that I was too low and narrow on the bike.
Fast forward to 2014, and the road bike industry has slowly but surely moved in a direction to accommodate it's consumer base. The cost of 105, ultegra and dura ace bikes has spiraled out of control, with dura ace bikes rarely seen below the $6K price point, and with full 'pro' spec bikes upwards of $11 to $13K. Not many 20 year olds can afford nice road bikes these days.
On top of that, Americans have gotten quite a bit fatter, less healthy and less limber. In order to accommodate it's consumer base, road bike manufactuers have spec'ed the following:
1. longer head tubes
2. stems with some rise above horizontal
3. more comfortable frames, esp. carbon fiber
4. wider tires: 25 mm being the norm now
5. disc brakes: much easier stopping for heavier riders, who coincidentally, probably don't mind a few extra ounces as trade-off
6. new 'endurance' lines with even more comfortable geometry and ride positions.
Ironically, all of these changes designed to accommodate riders with a completely different physique, also benefit me. I never enjoyed the horizontal road stem, I always felt too crouched over, and those narrow handlebars may have been a bit more aerodynamic, but I would've enjoyed a more open chest position on climbs.
All in all, just about every major change in road bike design in the past 2+ decades simply 'makes sense' for 95+% of riders.
While I of course, don't enjoy seeing Americans get less fit and heavier and less healthy, I do think that the road bike segment has made design changes which benefit just about everyone.
Agree, disagree?
1. my bike had a standard 'flat' (-17 degree road stem)
2. therefore, the bars were far below the saddle (half a foot, or more?)
3. the handlebars were ridiculously narrow at first, and even a bit too narrow when the shop reluctantly swapped out for wider
It seemed obvious that the road bike position was supposed to be as low and as narrow as possible and therefore as aerodynamic as possible.
Now, keep in mind, I had a prototypical cyclist's physique: 145 lbs, and very flexible, even within my age group. Having said that, even I felt that I was too low and narrow on the bike.
Fast forward to 2014, and the road bike industry has slowly but surely moved in a direction to accommodate it's consumer base. The cost of 105, ultegra and dura ace bikes has spiraled out of control, with dura ace bikes rarely seen below the $6K price point, and with full 'pro' spec bikes upwards of $11 to $13K. Not many 20 year olds can afford nice road bikes these days.
On top of that, Americans have gotten quite a bit fatter, less healthy and less limber. In order to accommodate it's consumer base, road bike manufactuers have spec'ed the following:
1. longer head tubes
2. stems with some rise above horizontal
3. more comfortable frames, esp. carbon fiber
4. wider tires: 25 mm being the norm now
5. disc brakes: much easier stopping for heavier riders, who coincidentally, probably don't mind a few extra ounces as trade-off
6. new 'endurance' lines with even more comfortable geometry and ride positions.
Ironically, all of these changes designed to accommodate riders with a completely different physique, also benefit me. I never enjoyed the horizontal road stem, I always felt too crouched over, and those narrow handlebars may have been a bit more aerodynamic, but I would've enjoyed a more open chest position on climbs.
All in all, just about every major change in road bike design in the past 2+ decades simply 'makes sense' for 95+% of riders.
While I of course, don't enjoy seeing Americans get less fit and heavier and less healthy, I do think that the road bike segment has made design changes which benefit just about everyone.
Agree, disagree?