Tricks from the pros on how to unclutter handlebars
Remotes for dropper seatposts and front and/or rear suspension take up a lot of handlebar space and don't always play well with each other. Professional enduro racers Lars Sternberg and Jerome Clementz have found some clever solutions to improve ergonomics and reduce handlebar clutter
Remotes for dropper seatposts and front and/or rear suspension take up a lot of handlebar space and don't always play well with each other. Professional enduro racers Lars Sternberg and Jerome Clementz have found some clever solutions to improve ergonomics and reduce handlebar clutter - James Huang/Future Publishing
Transition-sponsored racer Lars Sternberg has an interesting solution to the DOSS remote on his prototype 650b enduro race bike - Josh Patterson/Future Publishing
On the left side of Sternberg's handlebar there is an XTR front brake lever, most of an XTR front shift lever and the CTD remote for his Fox Float X shock; the XTR shift lever has been repurposed to function as the remote for his Fox DOSS seatpost - Josh Patterson/Future Publishing
Notice there's one shift paddle missing on the XTR shift pod - Josh Patterson/Future Publishing
We spotted french enduro racer Jerome Clementz using a Grip Shift to control the rear suspension on his Cannondale Jekyll - Josh Patterson/Future Publishing
Clementz uses this Grip Shifter to control his rear suspension - Josh Patterson/Future Publishing
The Jekyll's pull shock has separate high- and low-volume air chambers. The high-volume chamber is used in the full, 150mm travel setting. In the low-volume mode the rear suspension stiffens, allowing for approximately 90mm of rear suspension travel - Josh Patterson/Future Publishing
Braking, saddle height and rear suspension controls all at Clementz' finger tips in a tidy package - Josh Patterson/Future Publishing
The modern mountain bike is complex. Handlebar-mounted levers for seemingly every possible function lets us control the fork, rear shock and seatpost with the flick of a finger, but can also create a rats nest of cables connected to an array of buttons and levers made by different manufactures that often don’t play well with each other. If not for the trend towards wider handlebars there would be no place to fit all these buttons and knobs! Here a few pros show us their one-off improvements.
Professional racers can be quite picky about cockpit setup. If you stop by the pits at any major event you’re likely to spot a couple personal touches here and there. Enduro racers generally run a single chain ring, which frees up a bit of handlebar real estate that than can then be devoted to clever lever adaptations.
The Fox DOSS remote with its two larger levers is rather ungainly when mounted on top of the handlebar. However, it functions quite well on the underside of the handlebar, particularly when it takes the place of the front shift lever. Transition Factory Team racer Lars Sternberg took things one step further, hacking a front Shimano XTR shift lever to function as his DOSS remote.
Transition-sponsored racer lars sternberg has an interesting solution to the doss remote on his prototype 650b enduro race bike: transition-sponsored racer lars sternberg has an interesting solution to the doss remote on his prototype 650b enduro race bike - Josh Patterson/Future Publishing
The Fox-sponsored athlete found he didn’t use the shorter, black lever that lowers the DOSS to the intermediate (40mm) drop position. “I can find that position fine with just the main lever,” he said.
On the left side of sternberg's handlebar there is an xtr front brake lever, most of an xtr front shift lever and the ctd remote for his fox float x shock; the xtr shift lever has been repurposed to function as the remote for his fox doss seatpost: on the left side of sternberg's handlebar there is an xtr front brake lever, most of an xtr front shift lever and the ctd remote for his fox float x shock; the xtr shift lever has been repurposed to function as the remote for his fox doss seatpost - Josh Patterson/Future Publishing
A Shimano front shifter can be make to function as the remote for a Fox DOSS seatpost
Sternberg removed the upshift paddle from the XTR shifter and customized the internals. The result is a clean, ergonomic and, admittedly, expensive dropper remote that allows him to run the CTD remote for the Fox Float X rear shock on the left side of the handlebar.
We spotted french enduro racer jerome clementz using a grip shift to control the rear suspension on his cannondale jekyll : we spotted french enduro racer jerome clementz using a grip shift to control the rear suspension on his cannondale jekyll - Josh Patterson/Future Publishing
Dropper post remotes aren’t the only culprits; remote lockout levers can be equally cumbersome. We spotted enduro racer Jerome Clementz using a front SRAM Grip Shift lever to operate the Fox DYAD RT2 rear on his Cannondale Jekyll last fall.
“I prefer this setup because I don’t to take my thumb off the bar to operate a remote,” said Clementz. “I find I use the travel adjust much more this way,” he added.
Braking, saddle height and rear suspension controls all at clementz' finger tips in a tidy package: braking, saddle height and rear suspension controls all at clementz' finger tips in a tidy package - Josh Patterson/Future Publishing
Braking, rear suspension and seatpost control in a very tidy package
Clementz combines this with a Reverb remote mounted to the underside of the XO Trail brake for a very clean system that seldom requires him to loosen his grip on the handlebar.
While, yes, it is a bit disappointing that there is a need to hack mechanically sound components in order to make them more compatible with their human human users, experimentation is the next step in the evolution of components that merge engineering with the ergonomics that are lacking from many remote levers currently on the market.
What about you: have you hacked a shifter or remote lever to make it work better for you?
Josh Patterson is a BikeRadar contributor and former technical editor. He has spent most of his career working in the cycling industry as an athlete, mechanic and journalist. He holds a master's degree in journalism and has more than 20 years of experience as a cyclist and 12 years of experience riding and writing for BikeRadar, Cyclingnews, Cycling Weekly, Dirt Rag, RoadBikeReview and Outside Magazine. A native of the Flint Hills of Kansas, Josh was a pioneer in the gravel cycling movement, having raced the first Unbound 200 and many other gravel events around the globe. He considers himself a cycling generalist and enjoys road, gravel and mountain biking in equal measure. When not traveling for work, he can be found exploring the singletrack and lonely gravel roads that surround his home in Fort Collins, Colorado. In addition to his love of cycling, Josh is an enthusiastic supporter of brunch, voting rights and the right to repair movement.
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