Carbon frames for Mamils with high handlebars.

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Oceanic
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Carbon frames for Mamils with high handlebars.

Post by Oceanic »

I keep seeing men of a certain age riding carbon frames with 3cm of spacers under a ‘flipped‘ stem. Aside from looking awful (to my eyes at least) I can’t imagine the handling is as the designer intended.

So, rant over, what ‘high stack + low reach’ carbon frames should these blokes be riding?

The Giant Defy and Dolan GXC are the only two that come to mind. Surely there must be more? Seems to be a sizeable chunk of the road bike market...
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Trigger
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Re: Carbon frames for Mamils with high handlebars.

Post by Trigger »

I think the Cannondale Synapse is designed for a bit more of an upright position, or maybe it's just the ones I've seen.
hamish
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Re: Carbon frames for Mamils with high handlebars.

Post by hamish »

The Kona Libre looks to have a high front end.
cycle tramp
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Re: Carbon frames for Mamils with high handlebars.

Post by cycle tramp »

Oceanic wrote:I keep seeing men of a certain age riding carbon frames with 3cm of spacers under a ‘flipped‘ stem. Aside from looking awful (to my eyes at least) I can’t imagine the handling is as the designer intended.

So, rant over, what ‘high stack + low reach’ carbon frames should these blokes be riding?

The Giant Defy and Dolan GXC are the only two that come to mind. Surely there must be more? Seems to be a sizeable chunk of the road bike market...


Personally, they should be riding something better... what is it with attempting to make bicycles as uncomfortable as possible? If you work at a desk or in a factory would you have your seat higher than your work surface because other people have told you it looks better? Would you be attempting to strain your neck, wrists or lower back because of some performance gain?..

...so what should people be looking to ride? Something which they find comfortable, made out of something which is more resilient to road surface imperfections and something which is versatile...
...however the power of advertising through mainstream magazines holds firm and stifles all other voices..
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whoof
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Re: Carbon frames for Mamils with high handlebars.

Post by whoof »

The Kona Libra and Dolan GXC are gravel bikes the Giant Defy an endurance bike and therefore not surprising that they have higher front ends than out and out racers.

As to what bikes people should be riding it's obviously the same as me, anyone riding something else is clearly doing it wrong, there surely can't be another view!
PH
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Re: Carbon frames for Mamils with high handlebars.

Post by PH »

Oceanic wrote:I keep seeing men of a certain age riding carbon frames with 3cm of spacers under a ‘flipped‘ stem. Aside from looking awful

EDIT - I just realised you're referring to CJ's bike in the latest edition of Cycle, that's got a mirror as well just to add to the crimes.
Last edited by PH on 27 Jun 2020, 9:28pm, edited 2 times in total.
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TrevA
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Re: Carbon frames for Mamils with high handlebars.

Post by TrevA »

The Trek Domane has a high front end.
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Re: Carbon frames for Mamils with high handlebars.

Post by Mike Sales »

Oceanic is clearly one of the Velominati.

Rule 45.
// Slam your stem.A maximum stack height of 2cm is allowed below the stem and a single 5mm spacer must always – always – be stacked above. A “slammed down” stack height is preferable; meaning that the stem is positioned directly on the top race of the headset.
It's the same the whole world over
It's the poor what gets the blame
It's the rich what gets the pleasure
Isn't it a blooming shame?
cycle tramp
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Re: Carbon frames for Mamils with high handlebars.

Post by cycle tramp »

....or perhaps a Chiropractor looking for more patients?
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Oceanic
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Re: Carbon frames for Mamils with high handlebars.

Post by Oceanic »

cycle tramp wrote:...so what should people be looking to ride? Something which they find comfortable, made out of something which is more resilient to road surface imperfections and something which is versatile...
...however the power of advertising through mainstream magazines holds firm and stifles all other voices..


There’s a massive advertising push towards gravel bikes at the moment, they’re versatile, resilient to road surface imperfections... Maybe manufacturers are stealthily making sensible touring bikes sexy?
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Oceanic
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Re: Carbon frames for Mamils with high handlebars.

Post by Oceanic »

Mike Sales wrote:Oceanic is clearly one of the Velominati.


I’m not a big fan of ‘The Rules’, but the idea of taking a frame designed to be ridden with the riders centre of gravity well forward, and turning it into a ‘sit up and beg‘ does make me cringe.

I was wondering what bikes are available for riders who desire a bike that is similar to those ridden by the pros, but don’t have the flexibility to ride the exact same bike.
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Oceanic
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Re: Carbon frames for Mamils with high handlebars.

Post by Oceanic »

Trigger wrote:I think the Cannondale Synapse is designed for a bit more of an upright position, or maybe it's just the ones I've seen.


The Cannondale Synapse (Endurance bike) puts the bars 1cm higher than the same size Cannondale SystemSix (Out and out race bike). The folks who are using 3cm of spacers and a flipped stem need way more than an extra 1cm of stack.
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Re: Carbon frames for Mamils with high handlebars.

Post by peetee »

Go easy on them, dropping the bars any further might not be an option. 8 months ago I was worried that I would need to change my fleet or use hideous riser stems. After a lay-off of a number of years riding my bikes was hindered by a few extra pounds round my middle. Nobody would ever describe me as overweight, even with the middle-aged spread but it made for very uncomfortable riding even with the bars two inches above their old position. Thankfully that is all in the past but the bars have stayed, more or less, in their upper position.
The older I get the more I’m inclined to act my shoe size, not my age.
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Oceanic
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Re: Carbon frames for Mamils with high handlebars.

Post by Oceanic »

peetee wrote:Go easy on them, dropping the bars any further might not be an option.


I’m not suggesting lowering the bars, I’m suggesting lengthening the head tube and lengthening the seat/chain stays to bring the centre of gravity back in to the centre of the bike.
cycle tramp
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Re: Carbon frames for Mamils with high handlebars.

Post by cycle tramp »

Well, if it has to be comfortable and fast then what about this
https://www.bikeradar.com/reviews/bikes ... sl-review/

It's better than the 'pro's' ride, because their bikes have to meet stupid UCI standards which have hampered and held back bicycle design since the UCI was established..
However out in the real world you can ride what you like.
The best thing that any racing cyclist can do is to reject the limitations imposed upon them by the UCI by riding bicycles which fall outside of that rigid and reactionary standard to those speeds matched by the 'pro's'. Only at the point where there are more riders racing recumbents as opposed to up-rights, on the roads, will we see the UCI for what it really is, a bunch of old farts which care nothing for the development of cycling, the welfare of riders nor the ideal of bicycles as part as a sane and sustainable transport system, and everything to do with protecting with their status and privilege.
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