| I feel like I’m not alone, thanks ;-)
I like what you said, Roberta, the handlebars are placed for proper reach. It’s like at work (desk job), I have a sit-stand desk with the keyboard and mouse, and monitor, placed “for me”. That was the single biggest improvement for me. I spend way more hours working then I do riding bikes (unfortunately); if I didn’t ride, only did strength training and regular stretching, I would still suffer if I had poor posture at a work computer 30-40 hours a week. Jason I rode a Specialized Hard Rock for 30 years but was about to stop riding altogether because of excruciating neck pain after every ride, even a sort one. The handlebars were straight and wide-ish and I had to reach quite forward for them. At the time, I did not know you could change components like the stem. But this bike, I think it was the long reach that was the worst culprit. Along with too wide handlebars in an non-ergonomic hand possession
I rode a Speciaized Crossroad step through model (more upright than Hard Rock) and that became more comfortable when the bike shop shortened the handlebar width.
I then found Rivendell. The handlebars are higher, I’m a bit more upright with less weight on my arms and shoulders, and the handlebars (Albatross mostly) are more ergonomic and are placed for proper reach.
So, for me, it is a combination, but I think it’s the more upright position, with less pressure on my arms and shoulders because of the proper handlebar placement, width, and shape that helped most.
Ultimately, the above fixes that helped me put less pressure on my arm and neck, which helped my neck issues. Chiro and massage helps a lot too.
Good luck to you
Roberta
On Sunday, May 31, 2026 at 7:41:55 PM UTC-4 Jay wrote:
In your personal experience, have you suffered with neck pain and found that sitting more upright on the bike has alleviated the pain?
Prior to getting a Roadini over two years ago, my road bikes had 5-10cm of drop from saddle to handlebar, and after years of this plus bad posture at work, I had an unnatural bend in my cervical spine that sometimes causes neck pain (that general area). My current chiro helped me mostly resolve this so that it's only sore after really long rides, when it's really windy, or after a lot of riding. Drop handlebars on my Roadini are about level with the saddle, and I can usually ride with little to no pain in the neck area.
I rode a lot in May, and that pain came back in a big way in the last 45 minutes of today's long ride with my friend. I think the increased volume in May was the main contributor. However, this year, both the Roadini and Fargo have drop bars. Last year, I had Velo Orange Granola bars on the Fargo. Last year, I cannot recall that pain in my neck showing up once with any severe or prolonged discomfort. I'm now wondering if that's because a 1/3rd of the rides were on the Fargo with the more upright (and just, different) position, so it was less repetitive strain to my neck. I'm thinking of putting the Granola bars back on the Fargo. It could also be other factors (age - one year older, stress, or perhaps my position on either bike has deteriorated somewhat).
Thanks!
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