Categories: Defining MomentsEtiquetteReverenceTechnique

Defining Moments: Hood Position

If I spent half a summer riding with one hand on the tops and one on the hoods, I spent the other half riding with each hand deliberately gripping the hoods differently. As any young Cyclist growing up in the United States in the late 80s, I had a major thing for Greg LeMond.

I imagined Greg to be the perfect Cyclist, as youth often does of their heroes. I modelled my position on his; when Scott Drop-Ins became available, I hastened to save up for a set and mounted them on my bike. In the interim, I mounted some mountain bike bar-ends on the drops of my regular Cinelli bars. (If I could ask Greg one question, it would be whether he ever actually used his Drop-Ins in any race situation. I’ve never seen a picture of him riding in them, and after having owned a set, I can tell you those babies were the flexiest bars I’ve ever had on a bike.)

But I digress. Back to me and my BFF, Greg LeMond. However much I idolized him, one personality trait I knew we didn’t share was an obsessive/compulsive need to have things be symmetrical. I am all about symmetry; my hoods have to be mounted at exactly the same height, the cables have to emerge from the bar tape at exactly opposite the other side, the gap between the tape and the stem has to be exactly the same on both sides of the bars. LeMond did not share this compulsion, a fact most readily demonstrated by how he gripped his hoods with each hand usually sharing a different number of fingers in front and behind the brake levers.

I could understand that people might differ on precisely how many fingers should be in front of the levers and how many behind, but the idea that one could grip their bars with an uneven distribution across hands completely blew my adolescent mind. If I was going to win the Tour some day, this was obviously a skill I needed to have.

So I set about practicing holding the hoods the way he did; one hand with no fingers in front of the brake lever, the other with all but the littlest hand-piggie in front of the brakes or two fingers in front, two in back on one hand, one finger in front on the other – the quantities were irrelevant so long as they were not the same on both sides.

But I couldn’t do it. It drove me crazy – it twisted my guts up inside. And that was when I realized I would never become a Pro Cyclist, if I lacked such a basic skill.

But every cloud has a silver lining, and with my failure came an interest in the various ways one could grip the bars. The first obvious point to make is that the classic “three-position bar” actually offers about a trillion positions, although I admit I lack both the skill and the fortitude to count them all, and am therefore unable to confirm that figure.

I find the hoods offer the most interesting position variations; depending on how you grip them, you can stretch your back or shoulders, settle in for a relaxing spin, or go low and aero for some Passista hammering. Most importantly, if you add a scowl or a grimace and a little bend to the elbow, you can instantly look the Flandrian Hardman.

[dmalbum path=”/velominati.com/content/Photo Galleries/frank@velominati.com/Hood Position/”/]

frank

The founder of Velominati and curator of The Rules, Frank was born in the Dutch colonies of Minnesota. His boundless physical talents are carefully canceled out by his equally boundless enthusiasm for drinking. Coffee, beer, wine, if it’s in a container, he will enjoy it, a lot of it. He currently lives in Seattle. He loves riding in the rain and scheduling visits with the Man with the Hammer just to be reminded of the privilege it is to feel completely depleted. He holds down a technology job the description of which no-one really understands and his interests outside of Cycling and drinking are Cycling and drinking. As devoted aesthete, the only thing more important to him than riding a bike well is looking good doing it. Frank is co-author along with the other Keepers of the Cog of the popular book, The Rules, The Way of the Cycling Disciple and also writes a monthly column for the magazine, Cyclist. He is also currently working on the first follow-up to The Rules, tentatively entitled The Hardmen. Email him directly at rouleur@velominati.com.

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Ron says:

Mar 20 2013 at 12:11 pm

From a photoset at the start line today. LOTS of violations.

Third last go around & all he gets is a club racer black jacket?

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/photos/on-the-startline-of-dwars-door-vlaanderen/257242

JAF looks to have a baseball cap beneath his helmet, plus what appears to be a LS plain black jersey.

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/photos/on-the-startline-of-dwars-door-vlaanderen/257231

Is that a split prostate-friendly saddle in the foreground?!

http://www.cyclingnews.com/news/photos/on-the-startline-of-dwars-door-vlaanderen/257224
frank says:

Mar 20 2013 at 12:38 pm

@Ron

black jackets & jerseys? These really confuse me.

I think this is because the materials that are really water-resistant and breathable can't be painted and printed like the regular fabrics can without affecting how they perform. I have a rain coat and a rain jersey that are both like that.
tessar says:

Mar 20 2013 at 1:19 pm

@frank It makes sense - but it's I'm guessing it's possible to do better than that. Most pro-level clothing is sublimated, which, if I understand correctly, means material breathability isn't compromised. At the same time, Gore's Windstopper comes in many colours and it's a fabric used by many high-end clothing companies (Castelli, for example). Assos managed to produce their previously all-black rain jacket (the hyper-expensive Sturmprinz) in reflective red, reportedly without compromising performance (though I'm not rich enough to test that). Surely it must be possible to at least colour-match the main panels?
frank says:

Mar 20 2013 at 5:23 pm

@Dan_R

110mm to suit all your chainring needs!

Why can't those jerks make a 177.5?
frank says:

Mar 20 2013 at 5:29 pm

@eenies

@frank

@Marcus

I always appreciated Cipo's super high hood position - apparently set up that way so he could maintain a very high level of comfort whilst lazing away in the bunch. The only time he would strike a pedal in anger, he would be in the drops, so why adopt anything but the most upright leisurely grip possible at all other times?

Almost like he considered lower hoods to be only required by those peasant domestiques who had to labor on the front for hours.

I remember he won a Giro sprint in 2002 on the tops. He even surprised himself, that time.

I'm sure I read that the Lion King had his stem so long and slammed that he could barely reach the drops. Cipo was of course Italian so having his bike look pro and awesome was much more important than comfort.

This one's for the ladies; Cipo proving he can reach the drops.

I pity whomever was standing behind him, though.

He did mostly ride on the hoods, though. What a classy motherfucker, though. I don't care about the dope or the brothels! He was entertainment!
DerHoggz says:

Mar 20 2013 at 5:57 pm

Spartacus comes to mind as another who doesn't use the drops, maybe if he did he could win something these days? His old tricks aren't working so well anymore.
Barracuda says:

Mar 20 2013 at 6:21 pm

Well, now you mention it @frank, there are quite alot of "positions" one can take - on the bike that is.

The personal favourite is the " hand V" i.e. thumb on back of hoods and 4 fingers casually and deliberately caressing the levers but applying no pressure.

Then when the Fuji starts heading skyward we progress back along the top of the bars till either its a comfortable climb with the grip about a hands width away from stem, or the hands keep going along and eventually find their way to my throat as I choke on the climb.
Dan_R says:

Mar 20 2013 at 9:37 pm

@frank agreed - 177.5

@frank agreed - Cipo

its all Italian!
McTyke says:

Mar 22 2013 at 7:55 am

@actor1

hand on tops for warming up & descending

Yikes! Descending without brakes and without full control of steering? Don't your mountain roads have any bends?
Harminator says:

Mar 22 2013 at 10:42 pm

Timely article for me. I've been going in this local road race monthly since last september. C grade. Its a great course through one of Sydney's coolest National Parks on silky roads. Last week I rode it just right - kept in touch, saved my matches, didn't sprint too early...sort of. Third place.
But I was a bit devastated to see this pic of the fnish - me not in the drops - could have been the difference!