“I should have done it sooner”: Cyclist turns heads with “no regrets” handlebar set-up, cutting off drops because “it just feels perfect”; TWO Tour de France Femmes stages in one day + more on the live blog
SUMMARY
Raleigh relocates to historic Nottinghamshire site as iconic British brand promises "ambitious plans" for future growth, months after job cuts and move away from previous headquarters
Today at the Tour — Dutch double-header will see two stages decided in one day
Local road race crammed into a weekend vibes at the Tour de France Femmes today, a morning road race followed by an afternoon TT. The AM action is well underway, 40km to go there, then the riders will take to the streets of Rotterdam again this afternoon for a six-kilometre-long individual time trial, two stages that I reckon even I could get through. Don’t get me wrong, I wouldn’t be in the time limit, but still a flat 70km in the sun sounds quite pleasant.
Stage two:
Stage three:
Some more reaction to yesterday before today explodes into life, yellow jersey Charlotte Kool unsurprisingly called it the “best day of my life” after winning the opening sprint. For compatriot Lorena Wiebes it certainly was not, the pre-stage favourite explaining later that the mechanical, which was in fact not a dropped chain but her derailleur “breaking off in a race incident”, gave her no chance.
“This is a disappointment. I am not looking for excuses. I had been looking forward to this for a long time, but knew bad luck,” she said. “You work very hard for months and then you miss out.”
The Tashkent team was also a popular interview last night, four of their seven riders abandoning on stage one, the team getting a place at the race by virtue of a top-18 ranking earned through points gained in races in its home Central Asia region, rather than at more competitive European events. When the team’s riders were chucked in at the calendar’s biggest event, several of those riders being young, inexperienced and clearly not yet at the level for such an intense WorldTour race, more than half couldn’t make it to the finish on day one.
However, the team’s sports director Volodymyr Starchyk hit back at criticism of the team’s performance, telling Cyclingnews their presence at the race is a “victory” for the sport.
“People can think everything they want. Everybody is able to think about what they want but we are here, it’s something big for the nation,” he said. “The first time in history an Uzbek team with all Uzbek riders so I think also for cycling it’s a victory because a country completely outside of races in Europe, an Asian team coming here to Tour de France, it’s never happened in history. So it’s sad for results because we lose some riders today but at the same time, Tour de France Femmes avec Zwift shows people that cycling is open for the whole world.”
6% of Brits believe they could qualify for the 2028 Olympic Games cycling road race if they started training now
You might have seen this YouGov research doing the rounds since the weekend, but wow, give me the confidence of the six per cent of Brits who believe they could qualify for the 2028 Olympic Games road race if they started training now. A marginally more modest five per cent said the track sprint would be one they could qualify for…
Charlotte Kool wins again, sprints to second stage victory of Tour de France Femmes
It doesn’t get much better for Charlotte Kool and dsm-firmenich PostNL than this. Dutch rider in the Netherlands, in yellow, winning the first two stages of the Tour de France Femmes. SD Worx looked in control, launching Lorena Wiebes at what seemed to be the perfect moment. But, as her sprint went on, Kool closed, picking a gap between Marianne Vos and Wiebes perfectly, punching through and winning it on the line.
Wiebes and Vos took second and third, this afternoon’s TT is going to be very interesting to see if Kool can hold onto yellow for another day, the short six-kilometre course perhaps just about in the wheelhouse of the peloton’s fastest sprinters. The yellow jersey has a 14-second advantage over Anniina Ahtosalo and Wiebes, 16 seconds on Vos and Elisa Balsamo, and 20 seconds on the rest of the contenders. This is going to be fun.
Horror crash that left track cycling spectator with "machete-like" injury prompts London velodrome to install Perspex barrier, two years after rider catapulted into crowd, "almost killing" children
"Cutting off the drops will have been a great idea right up until the point when you're going down a really fast descent and you reach for the drops..."
Comments section time…
A great story for getting followers who haven’t actually read today’s blog telling you on Facebook that hill climbers have been doing this for years. And of course said hill climbers sending in their gramme-saving sawing, this courtesy of Dale Wilkes…
As a couple of you have touched on, the remarkable thing about the drop-less wonder that made today’s blog is that it wasn’t done for hill climb purposes, just a gravel-riding preference. The other context we’ve heard people do similar is on a commuter if you don’t want to buy a pair of bullhorn bars. In fact, ultra-cycling legend Steve Abraham replied to one of our social media posts saying he’d done the same “and flipped them upside down to make bullhorns for my fixie”.
Mark Wynn-Edwards also told us: “Yep, did this years ago on one of my travel bikes. Best thing ever, doesn’t get in the way and I didn’t ever drop down there anyway.”
Paul Ruffy: “Well I’d probably reach for them and eat tarmac. But seriously they are there for a reason. Adds another position to alleviate any pressure points, more aero (sometimes) and also I think much safer for descending at high speed.”
billymansell: “Cutting off the drops will have been a great idea right up until the point when you’re going down a really fast descent and you reach for the drops…”
Of course, my favourite comments were of the less serious kind…
hawkinspeter: “To enforce my use of the drops, I’m going to remove the tops from my handlebar.”
slc: “I removed the wheels to get below the wind. Seem to work pretty well as I can’t feel a breeze no matter how hard I pedal.”
Anyway, if you get bored of riding without parts of your bars and need a new fix, try this one, courtesy of live blog favourite Chad Tavernia…
Giant's profits slashed by 17% and sales down 13% for first half of 2024 – but company expects "gradual" improvement as inventory levels return to normal
"Well, that was a fun morning!": Transport Secretary Louise Haigh joins Chris Boardman and Laura Laker on Trans-Pennine Trail (N62) bike ride
Positive signs? Labour’s new Transport Secretary Louise Haigh has shared these photos on social media, reporting having spent the morning out cycling the Trans-Pennine Trail (N62) with Active Travel Commissioner Chris Boardman and road.cc contributor and active travel author/journalist Laura Laker.
"I was getting ripped off left, right, and centre by the people looking after me": Bradley Wiggins slams "sofa surfing" reports as "sensationalism" and explains bankruptcy "mess" in candid Lance Armstrong interview
Demi Vollering wins Tour de France Femmes time trial, takes yellow jersey
Defending champion, Demi Vollering, relegates Chloe Dygert to second place in the individual time trial, besting her time by a staggering 5.21 seconds! 🤯⏱️#TDFF2024 pic.twitter.com/CVQry7II1B
— Eurosport (@eurosport) August 13, 2024
You know what? I’m a fan of the couple of sprint stages into short, almost prologue-length, time trial that the Tour de France Femmes experimented with in the Netherlands (admittedly, as the teams would point out, having the latter two of those three on the same day does create a bit of a logistical headache).
Granted, also, the organisers have been somewhat limited by the pancake-like terrain on offer, but it turned the short TT into a sort of yellow jersey handicap race against the clock where the top sprinters get a bit of a head start due to bonus seconds won on the opening two days, and try to fend off the specialists and GC favourites.
We wondered if Charlotte Kool might be able to cling onto yellow for another stage, but alas not, Lorena Wiebes the closest of the sprinters to taking the race lead. However, ultimately it was, like we suspect a couple more days later in the week, one for Demi Vollering, the 2023 TDFF champ taking yellow before the race even leaves her home country or climbs a hill of note.
It continues the dominance Dutch riders have held over the race since its return to the calendar in 2022. Of 19 stages across three editions so far, 12 have gone to riders from the Netherlands, while the yellow jersey has been worn by a Dutch rider after all but six stages, Lotte Kopecky the only person to disrupt that GC dominance. You probably wouldn’t bet against Vollering holding yellow all the way to Alpe d’Huez either.
Olympic champion Grace Brown gave her golden TT bike a first run today, a puncture deflating her chances. Of the other notable Olympic performers, Chloe Dygert was second, road race champ Kristen Faulkner fifth, and Anna Henderson 10th. Decent showings by many, but today (and maybe this entire race) is all about Vollering.
"I should have done it sooner": Cyclist turns heads with "no regrets" handlebar set-up, cutting off drops because "it just feels perfect"
[Brett Reynolds/Facebook]
It is almost hill climb season, I guess… although we reckon cutting off your drops in the search of a tiny weight saving to smash it up a five-minute climb and do no further riding that day is a very different vibe to ditching the drops on the bike you do all your riding on.
Jo spotted this on Facebook where, unsurprisingly, it’s getting quite a lot of attention. No regrets for Brett the bike’s owner, in fact he’s saying he “should’ve done it sooner”.
“Use ’em or lose ’em… I just cut them off,” he told the entertained masses. “I have been considering doing this for years and as I had spare bars lying around… did it. I just don’t use the drops at all and ride the hoods for everything and it somehow feels better, I can’t explain it, it just feels perfect with no position compromises. If you are like me and you have some spare bars, try it.”
Don’t encourage the hill climbers, Brett, they need no convincing to mutilate poor bicycles…
> Weird and wonderful bikes from the National Hill Climb Championships
My eyes…
Need we ask if any of you are tempted? More importantly has anyone done it before? Any regrets? On the plus side, you’re going to get slightly more bang for your buck out of bar tape and eradicate that silly dead leg every cyclist only gives themself once if you carelessly smash your knee/quad into a drop. On the other side, not being able to… well, use the drops is something of a vote-swinger for us… but I guess if, like Brett, you never use them anyway, that’s less of an issue.
Oh, and no, you won’t be able to call in that warranty cover if something goes wrong… but you probably knew that anyway if you’re prepping to take a saw to your handlebars.
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@Rendel Harris you've painted a rather alluring picture of social harmony there, but unfortunately you've got my name wrong. I'm Jack, not Nigel. However, to return the compliment, I must think of a story for you. I imagine you sat outside a pub, real ale and pipe propped on the adjacent table, in a similar fashion to Nigel Farage at his populist best. You turn to your wife. "You know what dear? I think I've been a bit harsh in my time. I've shunned the politeness and wisdom of others for too long and want to change my ways.* "There there Rendel", says Mrs Harris. "You're not a bad old stick, it's just living in London that's emptied your soul of kindness and compassion. I've found a lovely new place where we can settle down in our later years. It's on a leafy cul de sac, surrounded by friendly neighbours and smiling faces. There's a guy a couple of doors down, a remarkable man. As well as his towering intellect and rapier wit, he's also a keen cyclist, holding severa local KOMs. Don't be perturbed dear - he'll ride with anyone provided they show other road users the kindness and courtesy they deserve." Rendel turned emotionally, voice shaking. "Oh my dear, thank you for this second chance", and with that the rest of the pub goers turned and applauded the couple, throwing garlands of petals in their wake. The end.
As a Councillor, Edward needs to be paying some attention to all that parking obstructing visibility and manoeuvres at the junction, and sorting out those radii.
Ed Hill was chucked out by Reform in 2025, though TBF to him it was about how to run it rather than ideology I think. He is now reportedly closer to Advance UK, which is distinctly more extreme than Reform. I'd call this Alan Amos style attention seeking.
Emily, thank you for such an insightful piece. I’m a man, but I enjoy watching the women’s races, possibly more than the men’s. The racing is so much closer, we rarely know who’s going to win. You painted a wonderful picture of how a true champion is able to ‘rise above’ setbacks and distractions, and focus their energy on the task in hand. ‘All’s fair in live and war -and sport, but always good to hear riders expressing their admiration for their competitors
@Nigel Garage ...and then everyone applauded my courtesy and I waved courteously to all the people who were courteously throwing flowers and cheering and courteously waving flags that said "Nigel is the best!"
The picture from street view clearly shows give way lines from the roads to the green painted cycle/pedestrian lane. The road user should give way (or must...) to the user of the green lane. This would of course apply to any cyclist on the roadway.
If I recall there is a cave or two along the route - perhaps they were sheltering from the heat in one of those having taken it for a Golf bunker?
“So if there’s a cyclist travelling down the cycle path at the moment, from this position I can’t see them because my blind spots are too big on the left hand side of the vehicle”, claims Hill. Well, there's your problem, right there...🙄
First impression from the headline that he's likely a twit. Then the detail he was expelled from Reform makes you suspect that failing even their low bar requirements he really is. Then he clearly explains his vehicle is unsafe for the highway because he can't see to give way when turning. Any collision he now has should have that video run out explaining he drove a vehicle he knew to be unsafe. Advice for motorists; instead of thinking that pedestrians and cyclists are low risk 100kg objects, imagine them as a 300 Tonne trains that will crush you and your vehicle if you cross into their paths. You'd give way to the train, so you equally can to the others.
I've had a brief look on Facebook, and Ed Hill (who now appears to be affiliated with Advance UK) seems to have taken some useful road safety improvements under his remit, including an initiative to help local pedestrians on unpaved roads, where the wider council won't help due to planning failures. Regarding the cycle path, I think this is linked to a wider misunderstanding about giving way at junctions and I'm afraid I cannot agree with Mr Hill's conclusion. Regardless of the suitability of the cycle path, vehicles should give way at the junction to both pedestrians crossing and cyclists. It seems to be a poorly understood rule among motorists where some believe they have priority at junctions like this, where they certainly do not. I once had a similar issue myself, while leisurely walking to Waitrose to buy some lunchtime fripperies. A driver beeped their horn as I crossed the junction, despite me having priority, and was shocked and apologetic when I explained I had priority. A polite conversation later, the driver departed, educated and updated on the rules of the road.
49 thoughts on ““I should have done it sooner”: Cyclist turns heads with “no regrets” handlebar set-up, cutting off drops because “it just feels perfect”; TWO Tour de France Femmes stages in one day + more on the live blog”
Seems to me that if the owner
Seems to me that if the owner is constantly on the hoods and never touches the drops then their setup isn’t right. Either raise the bars slightly to make both positions more comfortable, or work on some back flexibility stretches to aero tuck on the drops
These are Hill Climbers. By
These are Hill Climbers. By definition they are nutters and only on the bike for 15 mins at a time.
I don’t think the main bike
I don’t think the main bike mentioned was intended to be a hill-climbing weight weenie – the owner just said they never used the drops.
The other bikes are mentioned have been modified specifically for hill climbing and featured previously on road.cc – so in classic road.cc tradition they have been regurgitated from the archives to pad out the main story and provide a bonus link for people to click.
The original poster was not a
The original poster was not a hillclimber. They might not have known about the niche discipline.
I agree, for an every day use
I agree, for an every day use bike never using the drops is a massive red flag that the drop is too much or the reach is too much, or both.
webbierwrex wrote:
The drops on my everyday use bike are exactly the same size, shape and position as on my “race” bike and I doubt I’ve touched them once this year (about 4500kms commuting), no “red flag”, I just don’t need them in everyday urban riding.
Maybe he never rides really
Maybe he never rides really hard?
john_smith wrote:
They appear to be making it very hard for themselves. Flat, open road with a headwind? Stay sat up on the hoods. Also, take note of the gravel/cx tyres, important for grip on the canal towpath, but also 100% resistance training on the tarmac, all day every day
john_smith wrote:
Drops aren’t just for riding hard, they are also useful for distrubting fatigue across hands and arms and also increases control and lowers the centre of gravity.
I guess you could say “maybe they never ride for very long or like going down hill fast” but…if you don’t ride hard, or long or require a good handling bike why go to the effort of cutting handlebars?
No idea, I just don’t reckon
No idea, I just don’t reckon not using the drops implies there’s a problem with your position. When I was riding regularly I would go through the entire winter hardly touching the drops. I can imagine that someone who only does long slow rides wouldn’t ever need them, not that I would consider cutting them off even if I never ever used them.
Exactly. I’m on the drops
Exactly. I’m on the drops maybe 5%-10% of the time, but they’re really great when I want them. When I built my current gravel bike, I actually set up the bars a couple of centimetres higher than on the touring bike I was replacing, to make all three positions usable.
Hoods? They’re overrated too.
Hoods? They’re overrated too. If you’re going to lose the drops, then the hoods need to go as well. This is my hillclimb project, brakes are using bartop levers, and rear mech is using SW-R600 climber Di2 shifter.
But is removing the pedals
But is removing the pedals maybe a step too far?
At the time of the photo, I
At the time of the photo, I was waiting for some used Dura Ace pedals to arrive from eBay, but well observed old chap.
mark1a wrote:
But if you remove the hoods what do you pull on when out of the saddle? Looks like you could lose a couple of chain links as well!
Backladder wrote:
I use the drops for sprinting out of the saddle. Mark Cavendish does as well but then he generates about 2000W more than I do.
Nope. Had a bike fit etc etc.
Nope. Had a bike fit etc etc. Rarely on the drops – just don’t see the need.
Cutting off the drops will
Cutting off the drops will have been a great idea right up until the point when you’re going down a really fast descent and you reach for the drops…
On some of the roads around
On some of the roads around here you’d have a hard time keeping your hands on the drops on a really fast descent even if they were there.
john_smith wrote:
Maybe I’m missing something but isn’t one of the points of the drops precisely so that your hands don’t come off the bars when riding over bumps/potholes on a descent?
I cut off a set of drops
I cut off a set of drops years ago. It was a great set up for commuting.
Isn’t that just a set of
Isn’t that just a set of bullhorn bars?
Nope, they’re wider.
Nope, they’re wider.
6% of Brits surveyed are
6% of Brits surveyed are idiots.
You’re statistically
You’re statistically incorrect. You’re assuming that there’s a lot of overlap and that the 6% of idiots that believe they could compete in road race are the same 6% that think they could qualify for the 100m. The qualifying time being 10 seconds for men and just over 11 seconds for women. Also the survey revealed that 15% of over 65s thought they could compete at Olympic level in 4 years time. There are a lot more than 6% of idiots.
Yes, nore like out of the 27%
Yes, nore like out of the 27% who thought they could qualify for one or more sport approximately 26.99% are idiots.
In the Olympic men’s road
In the Olympic men’s road race they barely averaged 25 mph, with the best possible equipment, training and support.
A lycra-clad (from head to toe) commuter will typically do 50 mph, with no special preparation or backup.
Methinks you’re being too judgemental.
You never know. In amongst
You never know. In amongst that 6% could be a few folk who have the right stuff in terms of genetics and physicality who with the right support, training and nutrition could get there.
I wonder how many people
I wonder how many people would change their answer to the poll when they hear they don’t qualify for australian citizenship and that breakdancing won’t be in the next olmpics…
To enforce my use of the
To enforce my use of the drops, I’m going to remove the tops from my handlebar
I removed the wheels to get
I removed the wheels to get below the wind. Seem to work pretty well as I can’t feel a breeze no matter how hard I pedal.
I followed advice and cut off
I followed advice and cut off the drops. Much more convenient for commuting, lighter, takes up less space etc.
In fact I can fit them in a rucksack if I want. Not sure what to do with the rest of the bike though?
Drop bars. My guess is maybe
Drop bars. My guess is maybe 95% of road cyclists never use the drops. They are there offering an alternative hand position, but I’ve rarely found them useful. Some might say the rider is more aerodynamic if on the drops, but this has been disproved. It’s more aerodynamic to be on the hoods with horizontal forearms. I wouldn’t cut my bars down though ‘cos they look fugly (and I might want to sell them one day).
“Public outrage prompts
“Public outrage prompts Melbourne e-scooter ban
The Australian city of Melbourne has banned rental electronic scooters with officials saying they posed unacceptable safety risks.”
I wonder what criteria they used to decide the risks were unacceptable.
Would those same risks be applicable to motor vehicles/drivers?
If it is based on the injuries (and deaths) caused by users, and the associated costs etc… could they be compared against the damage/injuries-deaths and other costs caused by motorists?
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c3w68ywqv2go
It’s Australia, so the main
It’s Australia, so the main criterion was probably whether or not the rental scooter was a car. If not, then ban it!
What news of the Bristol
What news of the Bristol scooter trial? I’ve passed through the place at the beginning of the year and the apocalypse didn’t seem to be occurring. Actually didn’t see that many being used.
(I’m mostly “e-scooters not the answer to any of the questions we should be asking” but I also don’t think they’re the end of the world. And for a few people having a tiny-folding “last mile” transporter could obviously be very *convenient*).
chrisonabike wrote:
I see lots of them around and they seem to be very popular for people to commute on. Mrs HawkinsPeter enjoys using them to get to her work and she also uses the e-bikes when she can find one available.
E-scooters are definitely useful for short journeys and the “casual” nature of them appeals to a lot of people. They’re also incredibly nimble and so great for winding through queues of slow moving traffic.
(Maybe too popular if the crime reports are anything to go by: https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/news/bristol-news/e-scooters-bikes-being-set-9478089)
I believe the main issue is
I believe the main issue is users dumping errr “parking” the scooters in all manner of places after using then causing trip/crash hazards for pedestrians and cyclists.
And also injuries and the occasional death sustained by riders when they hit a rock or stick or other obstacle at speed and come off. Some of these incidents would be from riders using the scooters not as they were intended to be used ie carrying passengers and not wearing a helmet.
Nothing to do with cars at all.
I mean … “some people were
I mean … “some people were riding them on the pavements”?
What did they think would happen?
16mph limits? You’re on a pogo stick on wheels, what could go wrong?
While much of this issue is give the general public new toys, expect ‘creative’ use” it may also be that Melbourne – while maybe changing – doesn’t seem to have protected infra which goes where people want to go (rather than a nice rambling shared-use trail).
All jokes aside the cut off
All jokes aside the cut off drops chat has made me seriously consider buying an old used light carbon bike and rebuilding it for hill climbs, however such thought bubbles are punctured by the fact that I already have an incomplete new acquisition (a vintage 1949 Claud Butler Allrounder) and I don’t have the space or the money for another project. And I don’t want to go N-1 right now either as I don’t have a bike that doesn’t get used.
That was my thought process a
That was my thought process a couple of winters ago, a hillclimber sub 6kg for sub £1500, to take on my local hillclimb competition one year. The starting point was a Boardman SLR (mine was acquired from eBay for £230, when ONE Pro cycling folded, the bikes & parts were sold off by Boardman, mine is ex Kamil Gradek), it was fun sourcing and weighing the parts before assembling it.
I mean.. if that’s a gravel
I mean.. if that’s a gravel bike with no drops.. they may was well have either brought a XC bike.. or convert it to a flat bar.. at least that way they’d be able to pull the brakes properly.
peted76 wrote:
Pretty sure you can pull the brakes properly with your hands on the hoods, I’ve done it loads of times.
My bikes have two things in
My bikes have two things in common: (1) they all have drops (2) I almost never use the drops.
Perhaps a bike fit is in order.
I’m down there 80% of my
I’m down there 80% of my riding time. Would be quite difficult if nowhere to put your hands, eh?
Yet another really stupid hack.
Pfaff wrote:
Genuinely curious, do you spend most of your time racing crits? I find it hard to imagine any other riding situation in which it would be necessary to spend 80% of your time on the drops, I think even pros would, unless it was a day with particularly strong and consistent headwinds, spend below 50% of their time on the drops. Each to their own of course but I would be interested to know why you spend so much time down there.
First cut the drops off 25
First cut the drops off 25 years ago … always have since , how much you cut depends on your hand size though …
RE: Transport Secretary
RE: Transport Secretary Louise Haigh joins Chris Boardman and Laura Laker on Trans-Pennine Trail (N62) bike ride
This is all nice stuff, start ’em gently etc. And she makes mention of the “variable” NCN…
… except I think much of the NCN is “recreational” – in fact the whole thing is has an “adventure” rating I’d say.
No-one got time for it but for full understanding people should have to cycle to the airport / train / ferry from where they are in the UK, be transported to NL, have a couple of days of cycling / walking / taking public transport around with people explaining both the finer details and the overall philosophies. Then should be directed to ride back to their transport, returned to the UK and finally have to ride back home again there.
Or is that just cruel?
Still, I’d trust CB to get the message across.
I cut the drops off my bike
I cut the drops off my bike for hill climbs – very happy with it. The only problem is the added weight of the spare bike for the downhill bits.