IB14: BP4 Design Creates new Hand Positions with Unique Drop Top Road Handlebar

GREAT. Lets create more surface aera on the bars to slow us down even more. Great training tool maybe like runners do with parachutes.

Add some tri bars bull horns to that rack of antlers. Plenty of local hero dudes in my area would ride those. Big belly? No problem, use tri bars. Gran fondo gnar gnar.

Not gonna lie, it’s not that silly of an idea. $395 and the likely need for a dorky positive rise stem turn me off. If they had a much cheap alloy offering and I had a long headtube Cervelo, yeah maybe.

Wow, some haters here. I actually think this is a great solution for those riders/racers that just can’t seem to ever get low enough on their bike. Of course a lower position is more aero, but I’m calling BS on their claim of increased comfort. In my experience of fitting riders, a taller position is the more comfortable one.

Rough crowd, as with anything new there were always be push back, tested these bars @ Interbike and was able to ride on trainer in exhibitors booth. The neutral handle angle the bars provide is much more comfortable than the standard top positions as they claim. I read the performance test they provide on there site and is from a respected facility. I have been riding many years and remember when clip less pedals came about with the same push back…

When I see Sagan, Contador or Quintana on them then I might consider them but it would still take a lot of convincing at $400.

Interbike was a sea of fat bikes and electric bikes. It’s nice to see someone come up with something new. Would I buy these bars? I’d have to try them first.

Myles,

The kids say that “turn down” means it is something you really would like because you are “turning down” your enthusiasm while you are “turned up.” For example, “I would turn down for a bicycle ride.” Please refer lil’ john’s “Turn down for what?”.

lawyerknowitalll ,
it was the only witty thing I could think of at the time…

Ifbikes definitely understands the market. BP4? not so much.

Challenging the standard design drop handlebar? That’s like challenging your grandma! All of us have only experienced one type of road drop handlebar design (excluding some wider tops or aero tops designs that are on the market) but none have been totally overhauled , I commend this company for their innovation and thinking outside the box on this. Maybe they really have a game changer? Current handlebar companies can not boast the benefits they have proven in their tests, the handlebar has been for as long as I have been riding a place to hold on to the bike and never has there been a choice for a handlebar to enhance performance (other than the aerobar, that seemed to workout pretty good). Biomechanically if the human body is in a more optimized position the human body will perform better. Question everything, kudos fellas

Hashajahahahaha!!!! The Freds say ‘non’ until Le Sagan is riding!! Nice!!!

Is it compatible with the AeroWedge? This might just help him reach 60 mph.

When your stem is slammed and pointed down and you need to get lower…

Hello everyone, I am the founder and inventor of BP4 Design. I am happy to see so much feedback on our design good and not so good. We have done extensive wind tunnel, VO2 lab testing and thousands of miles on the road, no other handlebar manufacturer can prove what we have proved (see our performance white paper @ http://www.bp4.bike). The BP4 handlebar will be ready to ship by early to mid December 2014, we will be offering a 30 day money back guarantee that if you are not completely satisfied with our handlebar you may return it for a full refund. We know there is a bit of uncertainty out there so this is the least we can do:) Please tune into NBC Universal Sports this Saturday 9/27 to view BP4 Design as a featured product @ Interbike 2014. Again, thank you all for your comments. Sincerely, Rich LaPorte

Sad thing is… these might make a lot of the regular Fred commenters on here faster, but they’re too busy being experts.

Wow.. awesome comments so far. I think a lot of people are missing the point (or I am).

This doesn’t seem to be about lowering position (in fact they mention swapping to a positive angle stem). The point is putting your arms in a neutral position (grasping that “drop” area of the tops), which has the side effect of bringing your elbows in, which moves them out of air flow, and into a more aero position.

So…
1) more aero (regardless of height) by bringing elbows in
2) more comfortable due to a more neutral position

Maybe great, maybe not, but interesting.

Cody, i dont need the bloody thing cause my bike with a normal road bar fits just fine. in the current market, folks are trying to raise their reach to the tops without a massive HT., ,that was mine and IFbikes point.

therefor if one has no need to drop their reach 3″ then who the freak cares?

(deleted)

Here you go Fransisco.http://bp4.bike/BP4-Whit-Paper.pdf

I’m not sure I understand the relevance of the wind tunnel test at the top of the bars. This is a typical climbing or chilling out position where aero is not such a big deal.

I’d prefer a bar with some sort of lightweight aero extensions. I miss the Cinelli spinaci on modern bars.

I am lucky enough to have gotten a bar to ride for a couple of months here in Boulder. While everyone has different needs, different preferences and different styles of riding, this is my experience of riding them. It took me about 4 rides of an hour or more miles to get used to the drop, but once I did i really enjoyed them. I tested four of my usual routes: flats, rolling hills, flagstaff, and a 3 hour ride and rode faster on all of them. Yes it could be that I was trying to be faster on them and skew the results, yes all the conditions weren’t the same and maybe i might have been getting fitter, but for me, I enjoyed the comfort for my overall position on the bike. It felt a bit easier breathing, pedaling, and staying in a power riding position. But again, nothing scientific, just my personal preference and needs. I like them and enjoy riding with them. As with anything in our sport, let’s give new products and ideas a chance and get more people riding.