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I did a ton of mountain biking in the late 90s and early 2000s, after years of BMX racing, and one reason myself (and at least a few friends) stopped using bar-

by Fezzik 5y ago

I did a ton of mountain biking in the late 90s and early 2000s, after years of BMX racing, and one reason myself (and at least a few friends) stopped using bar-ends is because we kept injuring ourselves on them - they had to be constantly tightened or they would come loose while climbing or going downhill. I know more than one person that wrecked a wrist after a bar-end popped off and exposed the sharp metal edge of a handlebar. I also biked with crazy people, so that was probably issue #1.

nimchimpsky 5y ago
I mtb'd for years, everyone had a bar ends - I still do. Not had a single accident with them/caused by them. Wtf are you doing ?
TwoBit 5y ago
The article has only a single sentence on it, but bar ends are illegal in racing, because they can gouge you and because they can hook on things.
- markmark 5y ago
  From UCI mtb race regs 4.1.040 [1]: "During MTB races no traditional road handlebars may be used. Clips-on extensions are forbidden but traditional barends are authorized." If races you race in ban bar ends it's a local rule. [1] https://www.uci.org/docs/default-source/rules-and-regulations/2021.01.18--mtb-en-left-column---egi.pdf https://www.uci.org/docs/default-source/rules-and-regulation...
philliphaydon 5y ago
I wasn't aware bar-ends were accessories! When I had my mountain bikes as a teenager, they were welded on so there was never any movement.
- Fezzik 5y ago
  In the mid-to-late 90s, in hindsight, they were horribly dangerous. Usually each bar-end had an under-engineered tension system that was tightened with a single screw, or two small screws, everything metal on metal and prone to loosening as you rattled up and down trails. To add to that danger, we were installing these all ourselves, so there was likely some WD—40 on the handlebars from when we first put our grips on. All around a lot of poor decisions were made. Probably not a universal thing, but that’s how everyone I knew put their bikes together.
  - philliphaydon 5y ago
    I liked the end bars only cos I could put my backpack on it when riding home from school. :D

by Fezzik 5y ago

nimchimpsky 5y ago

I mtb'd for years, everyone had a bar ends - I still do. Not had a single accident with them/caused by them. Wtf are you doing ?

TwoBit 5y ago

The article has only a single sentence on it, but bar ends are illegal in racing, because they can gouge you and because they can hook on things.

markmark 5y ago
From UCI mtb race regs 4.1.040 [1]: "During MTB races no traditional road handlebars may be used. Clips-on extensions are forbidden but traditional barends are authorized." If races you race in ban bar ends it's a local rule. [1] https://www.uci.org/docs/default-source/rules-and-regulations/2021.01.18--mtb-en-left-column---egi.pdf https://www.uci.org/docs/default-source/rules-and-regulation...

philliphaydon 5y ago

I wasn't aware bar-ends were accessories! When I had my mountain bikes as a teenager, they were welded on so there was never any movement.

Fezzik 5y ago
In the mid-to-late 90s, in hindsight, they were horribly dangerous. Usually each bar-end had an under-engineered tension system that was tightened with a single screw, or two small screws, everything metal on metal and prone to loosening as you rattled up and down trails. To add to that danger, we were installing these all ourselves, so there was likely some WD—40 on the handlebars from when we first put our grips on. All around a lot of poor decisions were made. Probably not a universal thing, but that’s how everyone I knew put their bikes together.
- philliphaydon 5y ago
  I liked the end bars only cos I could put my backpack on it when riding home from school. :D