Clip-On Aero Bars On Road Bikes

[Sorry for the delay Cliff, but here is the post about clip on aerobars as promised. :) ]

I have added more pics of my ride with the aero bars (more pictures in my previous post), though the pics here do not show the latest fittings - shortened (100mm) stem, moved the seat 15mm forward, and cut 20mm off the Deda bar to fit the shorter stem.

Road Bike Or Tri Bike?
OK, it is quite tough to talk about aero bars without going into the whole debate about road bike versus tri bike. This is a great article which I found to have the right mix between technical information and plain English http://www.bikesportmichigan.com/bikes/difference.shtml. The short of it is if you are mainly using the bike for triathlons and can afford the price premium, get a tri bike. If you, like me, use a road bike for tris, adding a clip on aero bar will help heaps in terms of improving aerodynamics (i.e. go faster) and taking some weight off your hands in a long ride (i.e. comfort).
Why do I use a road bike? Mainly because
(1) I prefer the many riding positions on a road bike and just want the clip on aero bar to have one more position for aerodynamics and comfort on long flats.
(2) I thought I would be riding with my roadie friends more than I actually do now. (Sigh!)
(3) Road bikes are generally less pricy than tri bikes (don't ask me why, probably some economy of scale or marketing thing) . The price gap seems to be closing though - case in point, Scott CR1 Team retails in Singapore for approx USD2200, whereas the Scott CR1 Plasma Team retails for approx USD2800.
(4) I am only doing Olympic Distance Tris, so I figure the advantage from a Tri bike (in terms of wind cheating and saving running legs) would not be that great.

Of course if money is no object, I would really like to have both! ;)

Traditional TT/Tri or SLAM Aero Position?
It is also good to have a quick read about the various bike positions in the Internet - (1) road, (2) traditional TT (Time Trial)/Tri (aero, seat forward) and (3) "The Big Slam" (aero, seat back). (1) is basically the traditional road positions - i.e. on the hoods, flats or drops, nothing new here, while (2) and (3) are positions with aero bars, with the main difference being that (2) has the seat forward while (3) is a bit more seat back. I would recommend that you simulate both (2) and (3) on your bike just by slidling your bum forward/back on the saddle and even placing your forearms on the flat part of the handlebar to see which works for you (empty and straight roads of course). Through the years, I have found that riding comfort is a very personal thing and it is far easier to just try it out than to try to find unbiased and relevant information in books nor the Internet because we are all uniquely but wonderfully made (Psalm 139:14 - Praise God!). :)

Clip-On Aero Bar Tips...
The problem is, it seems quite hard to find information on clip on aero bars on road bikes - most sites seem to talk about tri or TT bikes or full aero handle bars (instead of clip on bars on road main bars). Here are some pragmatic tips I found through my limited trawling the Internet which will hopefully cut away some of the hype ... (Comments/corrections very welcome!)

• Aerodynamics versus power/comfort trade off - Someone wisely commented that all the time gained with the aero bar is going to waste if you have to ease off mid race to stretch your aching back. So first, make sure your bike is fitted to you properly even before adding the clip-on aero bar - most local bike shops can provide that service for a small fee. Second, don't forget the trade off between aerodynamics and power (and comfort) - i.e. the most aerodynamic position may not be the most comfortable nor efficient one (in terms of translating power to the road). You will need to experiment with the set up to find your optimal trade off point (which will change as you get fitter/stronger/more flexible).
  
• Forward seat post? Depending on your prefered aero position (traditional TT/Tri or SLAM) you need to decide if you want to go the "whole hog" and get a forward seat post (like the fast forward from Profile Design) so you can get nearer to a TT/tri bike geometry - basically sit nearer (horizontal distance) to the handle bar/BB (bottom bracket). There are many benefits to doing so - the proponents claim similar (thought not equal) benefits to a tri bike - i.e. helps you get into a more "aero" position comfortably, and also helps save the legs for the run. Personally, I did not want to fuss with swapping seat posts between tris and road rides, and opted to keeps things as simple as possible, so no forward seat post for me. The ironmen/women out there may well benefit from a forward seat post, but it's a slippery hill from there to a full-on tri bike. ;)
  
• Mini or full-sized clip on bars? (see my previous post) - This depends on your prefered aero position (traditional TT/Tri or SLAM), and how you intend to use the bars - occasional or most of the time. If you have the chance, try both out before you decide. I did not have this luxury, so I was leaning towards a mini for the reasons of weight, cost and mininal fuss/change/adjustments. I am actually not sure if the Deda Clip One I now have is actually considered a mini or a full-size, but I am calling it a mini since it is very minimalist in design. ;)
  
• One or two bars? - i.e. one single clip on bar like the Deda Clip One pictured here or like 2 "parallel" bars like the Syntace C2? This is a trade-off between adjustibility and simplicity. I.e. if you are the sort who enjoys fidgeting with your gear to get them just right, you should probably go with the 2 bar setup. Me? Having two bars will drive me crazy - I can imagine myself spending hours getting both bars exactly mirror images of each other (which would totally defeat the purpose of having 2 bars). :)
  
• Elbow rest behind or on the base road bar? Given a choice (and equal costs) I would go with the bars that have a elbow rest behind the road handle bar (like the Syntace C2), rather than those wth the elbow rest on the road handle bar (like the Deda Clip One) just because I believe they would be more comfortable. Given that I intend the aero bar to be part of my "repertoire" of road riding positions, I think I can live with the Deda bar having elbow rests on the base road bar - basically it just means that I will rest my fore-arms on them and not my elbows, which is okay for 40-50km rides.
  
• HRM/Computer Mounting - Don't worry about where you will put your HRM/bike computer - worst case, you can get a over priced adapter to put it on the aero bar for about US$10. But before that, I believe getting your elbows narrower than your body is not going to give much aero advantage so you may yet be able to squeeze your HRM/computer between the stem and the elbow rests (like my set up in the pics). Sorry, but I am that cheap.

Two important things I learnt about the Deda Clip One:

• Good news:
  If you carefully compare the picture on the Deda website and the picture of my Deda Clip one above, you will notice that the Deda Clip One now comes with two clips that attaches on both sides of the stem instead of just one clip. According to my LBS this is a "product improvement" on the original version and it actually addresses a concern I had about the stability of the bar on just one clip. Praise God!
• Bad news:
  For some weird reason, Deda does not allow for bars that taper from 31.7mm near the stem to 26mm on the flats - like the bar that the Scott CR1 comes with. I belatedly found the same comment in this review on RoadCyclingUK. Basically, the bar clips and the elbow rest clips must be the same size, but I needed the bar clips to be 31.7mm and the elbow rest clips to be 26mm. This was a real pain, and if I didn't like the bars so much I would've returned them, but aftering simmering down I realised that the elbow pads need not really be rock solid as long as the bar itself is solidly attached. So we wrapped extra handle bar tape on the tops so the elbow rests can be clipped on. I will have to think of a better "hack" for this (air-con pipe insulation hose as adapter?), so all ideas are very welcome!