Mike said:But at all three shops, they are trying to talk me into these "road bikes
with straight handle-bars". They say they are _not_ hybrids and are
closer to a true road bike. I believe the Raleigh C700 is one such bike
they are trying to sell me.I'm a pretty active person and would likely use this bike for exercise as
well.Why don't they want to sell me a road bike? Are they really
uncomfortable? Unfortunately with quick test rides, I really can't gauge
long-term comfort.
They want to sell you what they have. They probably have lots of these
sitting around.
If drop bars were uncomfortable, then cross-country
tourists wouldn't use them (and yes, they do). On longer rides drop bars
are much more comfortable, since you don't keep as much of your weight on
your butt (some is supported by your arms). This keeps your butt from
getting as sore. Also, drop bars offer many hand positions, straight bars
offer 1. Moving your hands around is also more comfortable on longer
rides.
I would say that a 7-mile commute is long enough for it to make a
difference, but certainly on a longer weekend ride it would seriously
matter.
--
David L. Johnson
__o | A mathematician is a machine for turning coffee into theorems.
_`\(,_ | -- Paul Erdos
(_)/ (_) |