Later, UK-based On-One released the Midge Bar, which kept this oddball niche alive for a few more years.įast forward to 2009, and the Salsa Woodchipper would usher in the second and most significant wave: gravel bars, which are technically more of a happy medium between the dramatically shaped dirt-drops of old and modern road handlebars. Those who happened to find one had to pay an arm and a leg for it. Due to lack of mass adoption, they were discontinued in the early 90s and became sought after by diehards. Thus, flare was born.įast forward a few years, and WTB collaborated with Specialized Bicycles to create the RM-2, a wing-shaped, dirt-drop handlebar that became one of the first production bars in this genre. They were also quite narrow, so early visionaries started bending the hooks on road handlebars outward to provide more leverage and stability. They added bigger tires and rode drop bars in the hooks (or drops) because the old road hoods weren’t that comfy or stable. Who came up with these types of bars? It all started back in the 1980s when early mountain bikers began retrofitting and modifying their road bikes to ride off-road. And considering that most people keep their hands in the drops while negotiating steep, loose, off-camber, or more technical surfaces, shallower, flared, and outswept drop extensions offer more control in this position.Ī Brief History of Dirt Drops and Gravel Bars Additional width creates a more natural position for most people (especially mountain bikers) and adds stability and leverage while climbing and descending in the hoods. In short, the consensus is that having wider bars with drops that flare outward (among other tweaks) provides more control compared to bars designed for standard road cycling, which were originally engineered for speed and efficiency. The most convincing reason to upgrade from a traditional road handlebar to a more specialized off-road drop bar is control and stability. We’ve also compiled a full list of gravel bars with complete specs and loads of photos, including some that have been reviewed. In this Gear Index guide, we’ll outline the terms that define these bars, how to differentiate among them, and the relative advantages of each. This style of handlebar is quite useful, and the range of options and variations can be mind boggling. One such component-and perhaps the one experiencing the most fluctuation and innovation at the moment-are drop handlebars, aka flared drop bars, gravel bars, or dirt-drops. With more and more people using “road” bikes for a variety of off-pavement pursuits, bike parts are quickly evolving to fit those needs.
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