Review: Ritchey Design SuperLogic Carbon Venturemax Handlebar: Final Word

 Ritchey Design sent over a SuperLogic Carbon Venturemax Handlebar for test and review at no charge. I am not being paid nor bribed for this review and I will always strive to give my honest thoughts and opinions throughout. Also, make sure to read the newly revised "Drop Bar Terms Defined" section to better understand this review. 

The time has come to give you my final verdict on this handlebar from Ritchey Design. Before I dive into that, you should check out my previous post on this bar HERE and my introduction to the bar with all the specs HERE. 

The one thing that kind of bothered me about the SuperLogic was that I just was not finding that "sweet-spot" in the drops like I was finding with the aluminum Venturemax. Everytime I rode the bike with the aluminum bars I was hitting that nice grip in the drops that made my hands happy. But with the SuperLogic Carbon Venturemax (SLCV) I wasn't getting that 'happy-place' feeling. But these Bio-Bend things weren't that different on the SLCV, were they?

I was determined to try anything to find out if I could replicate my experiences on the aluminum bar with that carbon bar. I went out on a ride recently and without changing a thing, hey! Suddenly I was hitting that spot and I feel that perhaps some hand injury I experienced at work during the time I was testing  the SLCV may have been the culprit. 

Whatever it was, the SLCV really did feel like the aluminum bar as I gripped the extensions. Yes - You still have to pick up your hand and move deep into the drop to use the levers. That is one thing I'd change about the Venturemax in both of its iterations if I could. 

The SLCV has a really well done flattish "flats" section from the stem to the ramps. It is shaped and tilted 'just so' and that felt right to my hands and arms. The section is wide enough to lend good hand support yet not so wide that you cannot get a grip on the tops to control the bike. 

Those ergonomically flattened sections past the stem are done quite well.

The overall ride quality is .....fine. I mean, the SLCV is maybe a tic more compliant than the aluminum bar, but I probably couldn't tell the difference if I was blindfolded and rode both bars back-to-back. So, if you were hoping that the SLCV was going to be a vibration absorber, well, I don't know that it would be quite all that. 

It is lighter than an aluminum Venturemax and it has more features due to the use of carbon fiber. In that sense, it is "the better bar" of the two versions, but it does cost well above what an aluminum Venturemax bar would cost. Here you would need to value the ergo tops, the hidden cable routing, and the lighter weight of the SLCV. 

One more thing that may cause you to choose another bar is if you need to clamp on accessories to the handlebar. As you can see from the above image, the SLCV lends little space for your accessory mounts. 

And that Bio-Bend. You have to get on with that, and this facet of the design, more than anything else, is probably going to be the fork in the road for accepting the Venturemax design or not at all. I can only speak for myself and say that this feature is one of the things I do like about the Venturemax design. So, from my viewpoint, it is a positive thing. 

Final Word: The SuperLogic Carbon Venturemax is an evolution of a design that might fit your needs and in my opinion is a very comfortable handle bar in all positions. The Bio-Bend thing is divisive and does cause one to have to adjust for reaching the levers a bit, but if the carbon features appeal to you, and you ride mostly from the hoods anyway, that may not matter to you. In my opinion it is definitely a step up from the aluminum bar and this would make a fine addition to that nice carbon or titanium gravel bike, a great choice for fine steel handmade bike, (or a Ritchey, of course!), or just a general upgrade to your gravel bike, whatever it may be.

Friday News And Views

Podcasts For Your Weekend Listening Pleasure:

If you happen to have some down time, are travelling, or just want to escape reality for about an hour or so, I've got two suggestions for podcasts this week that I am on. 

You can hear my sultry voice on "The Shiftless Podcast" Episode #32 "Expert Edition With the One & Only Guitar Ted" by clicking HERE. 

In that chat you can hear about the origins of "Guitar Ted", what I think of some facets of the bicycle industry, and my take on the current gravel scene. All that and more there with Kevin and Brad, the two hosts of the show. 

Then, as if that isn't enough of me, I interviewed Jason Strobehn and Matt Gersib of the Gravel Worlds team for the "Guitar Ted Podcast". That show can be heard by clicking HERE. 

That was a tougher show to get out, not due to the guests or N.Y. Roll, but because of my lack of technical skills. I had a learning curve for getting this one up and out there, that's for sure!

I'm calling this episode the "Frankenstein Episode" because I had to "stitch" it together from six different parts and try to make it all sound somewhat cohesive. Which.....it doesn't, but I am learning how to make it all work, like I said. 

Because this took a week longer to get out than I had anticipated, there will end up being another episode coming out on this one's heels. We try to do three episodes a month, minimum, and the days are running short! 

We will have about four new episodes coming out in the next four weeks or so and then we are taking a month off starting around Thanksgiving time until the new year kicks down the door like a shiny super-hero. 

If you are a listener to the podcast, I truly appreciate you, and I know I speak for N.Y. Roll when I say that we are floored by the response we've gotten. The "Guitar Ted Podcast" went live coming in on the coattails of the old "Riding Gravel Radio Ranch" about a year ago now, and the growth has been steady and upwards. So, "Thank you"! 

Image courtesy of Salsa Cycles

Salsa Cycles Announces v2 Cowchipper Carbon & Cowbell Carbon Handlebars:

You might remember that the original carbon flared drop bars from Salsa Cycles were recalled early in the year. Well, now they have a new version of the bars out which have addressed the previous bars' shortcomings and is said to be stronger. These are also compatible with Salsa Cycles' EXP Series Anything Cradle

The new carbon bars are $230.00 USD for either model and are available now through Salsa Dealers. There were no design changes made, so these have the same shape, flare, and width availability that the originals had.

Comments: I  checked on Whisky Parts Co. to see if they've gotten a v2 0f their No. 9 12F and No. 9 24F Carbon bars and they do have those for the same prices. (Essentially the same handlebars as the Salsa branded ones) 

My favorites in flared drop bars, the Cowbell and Cowchipper Bars, are perhaps only eclipsed by the Whisky Parts Co, Spano Bar. It's fifty bucks more than a Salsa Cowbell/Cowchipper/Whisky 24F or 12F, but if you want more ergonomics and comfort, the Spano Bar is well worth that extra cash.

Image courtesy of Iowa Wind and Rock

Iowa Wind and Rock Announces 2024 Registration:

It's that time of year again. Registration Season! I feel compelled to feature the announcement that Iowa Wind and Rock is opening registration on November 1st, 2024. 

If you are new to the blog you may not know that this event is essentially an evolution/extension of the event I put on for fourteen years, Trans Iowa. That event being credited as the first of the "Modern Day" gravel events. (For a history of gravel timeline, see "Gravel History With Guitar Ted: The Eras") 

From Iowa Wind and Rock's homepage you can read the following:

"For 14 years, TransIowa, one of the most difficult gravel races in the US, took place in Iowa at the end of April. It was difficult not only because of the terrain, but also due to notoriously fickle Iowa weather, and the challenges it required riders to overcome just to make it to the starting line. The end of TransIowa in 2018 meant that a unique chapter of gravel racing history closed. As Iowans, TransIowa finishers, and people who enjoy stretching personal boundaries, we didn’t want to see this unique opportunity for people to challenge themselves disappear. Iowa Wind and Rock is NOT, nor will it ever be TransIowa. However, we want to provide people a similar challenge – A free, 340ish mile, cue sheet navigated, late spring, Iowa event that allows entrants to challenge themselves, expand their boundaries, and allow them to see what they are capable of."

So, if you've come here and ever wondered if there would be another Trans Iowa event, well....There ya go. Do Iowa Wind and Rock. It's as close as you'll ever get now, and remember folks: These chances don't last forever! Get off yer duff if ya ever thought you might wanna do sumpthin like this and sign up. 

You only live once.

Gravel Worlds Registration Opening Soon:

As long as we're on the registration train, let's make a stop in Lincoln, Nebraska and take a look at Gravel Worlds. 

You can sign up for several distances or even run on gravel. if you want to, and that all starts on November 18th this year. The sign up, that is, NOT the events! 

They even have an ultra-distance, 300 miler called The Long Voyage, if that suits your fancy. Either way, you should check out this one if you haven't. Of course, if you want to find out more, check out the link above and listen to that podcast I mentioned at the top of the post today. 

Okay, that's a wrap for this week! get out and ride and thanks for reading Guitar Ted Productions!!

News Flash! QBP Issues Recall For Select Carbon Salsa And Whisky Drop Bars

From social media on 10/7/22.

Friday October 7th, 2022 Quality Bicycle products issued a "Stop Ride/Stop Sale" on carbon drop bars including the Salsa Cowchipper, Cowbell, and Whiskey No 9 12 and 24 carbon flared drop bars. Further information follows provided by Quality Bicycle Products:

"We have received reports indicating that some of these... handle bars have cracked where the brake/shift levers are installed. This has the potential to cause a crash and serious injury to the rider."

 If you believe you have one of the handlebars included in this notice, please stop using them immediately and until further notice. Contact the retailer where you made your purchase if they have not contacted you already.

Whisky team members are working with the larger QBP organization on a resolution to get you back up and riding quickly and safely. We are also working with the Consumer Products Safety Commission and Health Canada to conduct a formal voluntary recall, which will be announced soon.

 See your Salsa Authorized Retailer if you're uncertain whether you have affected product.

• Please contact your Salsa Authorized Retailer so they can collect information about your affected product for future resolution.
  

We sincerely apologize for this situation and any inconvenience it causes. For updates, please visit whiskyparts.com. or salsacycles.com With any questions, please contact QBP via email at recall@qbp.com or at 800-346-3340.

The preceding information is an amalgam of the Salsa and whisky Co recall messages.

News Flash! QBP Issues Recall For Select Carbon Salsa And Whisky Drop Bars

From social media on 10/7/22.

Friday October 7th, 2022 Quality Bicycle products issued a "Stop Ride/Stop Sale" on carbon drop bars including the Salsa Cowchipper, Cowbell, and Whiskey No 9 12 and 24 carbon flared drop bars. Further information follows provided by Quality Bicycle Products:

"We have received reports indicating that some of these... handle bars have cracked where the brake/shift levers are installed. This has the potential to cause a crash and serious injury to the rider."

 If you believe you have one of the handlebars included in this notice, please stop using them immediately and until further notice. Contact the retailer where you made your purchase if they have not contacted you already.

Whisky team members are working with the larger QBP organization on a resolution to get you back up and riding quickly and safely. We are also working with the Consumer Products Safety Commission and Health Canada to conduct a formal voluntary recall, which will be announced soon.

 See your Salsa Authorized Retailer if you're uncertain whether you have affected product.

• Please contact your Salsa Authorized Retailer so they can collect information about your affected product for future resolution.
  

We sincerely apologize for this situation and any inconvenience it causes. For updates, please visit whiskyparts.com. or salsacycles.com With any questions, please contact QBP via email at recall@qbp.com or at 800-346-3340.

The preceding information is an amalgam of the Salsa and whisky Co recall messages.

Guitar Ted's Massive, Huge Flared Drop Bar Review

Flared drop bars for 'off road' have been in my wheelhouse for almost 20 years now. As a result, I have collected quite the pile of aluminum which has been shaped into tubing, bent into weird shapes, and sold as drop bars. I guess I didn't really understand just how many flared drop bars I had until I started poking around my shop and finding stashes of old drop bars here and there, stuck away in dark corners and forgotten. 

So, I decided after writing my post last week about flared drop bar usage in early gravel times that I should do a review of what I've got here. One- Because it might be of interest to those who once knew, have forgotten, or never knew and want to learn more. I know my "Archived Drop Bar Articles" page gets consistent hits, and so I understand that a certain amount of people get their kicks out of checking out what is out there. 

So here is how this review will work. I have a lot of flared drop bars! So, I will link to reviews I have done in many cases to keep the words short here. Secondly, this will be split into three categories: Early And Out Of Production Flared Drop Bars, Current Production Flared Drop Bars, and Innovative Flared Drop Bars. Obviously, as time goes on even handle bars I have listed as 'current' may fall out of production, so if you are coming here many months or years after this posts, don't take this as gospel for what you might be able to get your hands on.

Finally, many of these handle bars were review items sent to me at no charge. These will have asterisks by their names and this means that they fall under my Standard Disclaimer. I will, in any case, offer a short, pithy comment or three on whichever bar I show and my opinions are my own. You may not agree, and that is fine, but I've got riding time on all of these and I don't think I am changing my mind about any of them. So, there ya go.....

Now, on with the show!

Nitto standard road drop bars

 Wait! Those are NOT flared drop bars!! Yes.....that is correct. I just thought it prudent to remind ourselves what classic road drop bars look like, and yes- I used these for a time on a road bike. Note that the extensions are directly underneath the ramps and the 'reach' of the drop is pretty far forward. These features were seen as 'problems' for the drop bar user who wanted to go off-road riding with drops. Thus shallow drop, short reach, flare, and sweep were introduced to solve the problems. I won't get into all the 'why' of these features, but I do have a page to help you see these terms in a visual sense here. 

EARLY AND OUT OF PRODUCTION FLARED DROP BARS

The venerable Midge Bar. The one that got this all started for me.

The Midge Bar was once pretty much my favorite and only flared drop that I would use. I have my longest rides ever on Midge Bars, and I still have a gold anodized Midge bar in use. The two seen here have been around since the 00's! See a good comparison I did early on between this and the next handle bar on this list HERE. Amazingly, you can still buy the Midge Bar. It probably is the flared drop bar that has been in production the longest of any of them! 

Probably the second flared drop you could get that was widely available, the original Gary Bar.

There are many versions of the Gary Bar* out there, but this was the 'OG' of them all. It was similar to the Midge Bar, (see link above), but it had a wildly sloping 'flare' to it which the Midge did not have. This laid the brake levers out really weirdly. This is almost a mustache bar in that regard. A short intro for this out-of-production bar is HERE. I have this one and one I purchased which is still in use on my Raleigh Fixed Gear Rat-Rod. 

The Salsa Cycles Bell Lap Bar

The Salsa Cycles Bell Lap Bar* wasn't one that I wanted to review or even purchase. It was just what came on the Salsa Cycles Fargo Gen I when I received it. I never did a proper look at this bar, but I did compare it to its replacement, the Cowbell, in 2011 here. The Bell Lap had some degree of 'flare', but it had too deep a drop and wasn't really what many of us were looking for. However; a handle bar I have coming up is actually pretty similar to the Bell Lap. Stay tuned.....

The Origin 8 Gary 2 Bar was made to address the concerns with the original Gary Bar.

The Origin 8 Gary II Bars were out by 2011 and addressed the perceived shortcomings with the original Gary Bar. I wrote up a review for it here. I wasn't all that impressed as it appeared that Origin 8 went after the Woodchipper Bar which was kind of a mistake in and of itself. No longer in production. 

My old Singular Cycles Gryphon set up with Salsa Cycles Woodchipper Bars

The first big splash made in flared drop bars beyond the Midge Bar was the Salsa Cycles Woodchipper Bar. I definitely do not like Woodchippers. This was a fail in design, in my opinion, due to the radius the designers chose to use and the weird transition from the tops to the swept extensions. While I no longer have any Woodchipper Bars around, you can still get them today. 

Yet another variation of the Gary Bar, the Gary Sweep OS Bar.

The Gary Sweep OS Bar was another variation Origin 8 had made on the flared drop bar concept. I reviewed this one here, and I found it to be 'okay', but it was now a time when bars like the Cowchipper and others were popping up that just were better designs. Had this bar come out five years earlier, it may have well been a classic. It's close, but no cigar. I think this is still available.. 

The Ragley Luxy Bar, (lower) and a Woodchipper for comparison.

 The Ragley Luxy Bar* was a collaboration between myself, Sam at Singular Cycles, and Brant Richards of Ragley Bikes, (at that time). Not much of anything I gave input on was retained, but anyway- they asked me! Had they done what I was requesting we would have ended up with a Cowchipper-like bar before the Cowchipper, but as it was, it came out really well. I was sent two Luxy Bars to check out and they are fantastic. Since then I've tracked down another couple and one I gave away. This bar reached cult-like status after Ragley discontinued it after only one run of them was made. You can read all about it here.

Current Production Flared Drop Bars

The SOMA June Bug is pretty much a knock-off of an On One Midge Bar, but a good one at that.

The SOMA June Bug Bar* was pretty good and a bar I liked well enough. No big surprise as it is nearly an identical bar to the On One Midge Bar. I reviewed the bar here. Good design, good handle bar, but it certainly is not an original design in any way to SOMA. 

You can find this design sold under various names. This one is branded "Gary Ergo Sweep OS" from Origin 8

The next bar up is branded and sold under various names, but probably most notably by Velo Orange and Origin 8. The one I tried out is called the Gary Ergo Sweep OS* and it was a chore to get on with. The drops are weird and they put my wrists at a strange angle which was uncomfortable. Your mileage may vary. I didn't like them and so I did not write up a review. 

The SOMA Gator Bar

The SOMA Gator Bar* might just be the oddest bar ever made in this genre. I wrote a review here. Nuff said....

The Salsa Cycles Cowbell

This handle bar is probably largely responsible for the adoption of flared drop bars for gravel cycling. The Salsa Cycles Cowbell II is an amazingly comfortable bar which is about as close to a traditional road drop bar as you can get in a flared drop bar. I wrote a review here.

The Salsa Cycles Cowchipper is a Cowbell with more flare and a bit more sweep.

In my mind, the Cowchipper from Salsa Cycles pretty much set the bar for any other flared drop bars for gravel to meet or exceed, if that is possible. It is darn near the perfect gravel bar, in my estimation. I wrote a review here. 

The PRO Discover Big Flare handle bar

Of course, the Cowchipper also influenced a lot of following designs, and one of them is the PRO Discover Big Flare Handlebar*. I wrote a review in tandem with MG on this bar here. Still one of my favorites although it isn't currently on one of my bikes. 

The Ritchey Venturemax Handlebar

Remember that Salsa Bell Lap bar above? Well, here is the bar I was referring to in my description of the Bell Lap. It is the Ritchey Design Venturemax Bar*. This handle bar was a good one, and I have been thinking about putting it on a bike again for a long time, but these other handle bars keep coming out and I only have so many bicycles! Anyway, here is my review on this handlebar. 

Whiskey No. 9 24° handlebar on my BMC MCD

 Eventually there were carbon fiber flared drop bars and one of them is the excellent Whiskey No. 9 24°* flared drops. I got these as a gift for my BMC MCD build. They are pretty much carbon Cowchippers, (yes- I realize there actually are carbon Cowchippers) and they feel a lot like them, but better. 

Innovative Flared Drop Bars

Spank Industries Flare Vibrocore 25 Handlebars

Another cool handle bar I got to check out is the Spank Flare Vibrocore 25* Handlebars. These are kind of different from the aspect of the vibration absorbing foam which is inside of these. Another interesting aspect of these is that they have a 31.8mm diameter from the stem to the ramps. I reviewed these here. Pretty cool handle bar that I am still using. 

Whiskey Spano Bar

Of course, carbon fiber affords you all the shaping and layup possibilities which aluminum is limited on or cannot do similarly. This is exemplified in the excellent Whiskey Spano Bar*. I have been pretty enamored of this one since I have had it and I don't plan on it going away anytime soon. I wrote a review here. 

Redshift Sports unusual Kitchen Sink Bar

Well, if you cannot form aluminum like carbon fiber, and you want some ergonomic benefits, the Kitchen Sink Handlebar by Redshift Sports* may be the option for you. Now I have to admit that I really did not think I would last very long after the review period with this bar, but I cannot seem to find any reasons to take it off. It is just that comfy with the extras in the grips that are accessories for the bar. I wrote a review here. It is heavy, and the aero section is sort of useless, but it is so good with those grips. Anyway, it's pretty nice from an ergonomic place. 

______________________________________________________________________________

And that is a wrap for now. If I get anymore bars to add to this, I will jump in and do that. this is in no way exhaustive, representative of now, or what have you. This isn't even all the drops I have ridden. (I can think of a couple others I have tried off the top of my head) But this represents a good overview from the worst, to the best, and from the weirdest to the commonplace designs. It's historical and interesting, I think, and I hope that you enjoyed this look at the flared drops I have tried.

Guitar Ted's Massive, Huge Flared Drop Bar Review

Flared drop bars for 'off road' have been in my wheelhouse for almost 20 years now. As a result, I have collected quite the pile of aluminum which has been shaped into tubing, bent into weird shapes, and sold as drop bars. I guess I didn't really understand just how many flared drop bars I had until I started poking around my shop and finding stashes of old drop bars here and there, stuck away in dark corners and forgotten. 

So, I decided after writing my post last week about flared drop bar usage in early gravel times that I should do a review of what I've got here. One- Because it might be of interest to those who once knew, have forgotten, or never knew and want to learn more. I know my "Archived Drop Bar Articles" page gets consistent hits, and so I understand that a certain amount of people get their kicks out of checking out what is out there. 

So here is how this review will work. I have a lot of flared drop bars! So, I will link to reviews I have done in many cases to keep the words short here. Secondly, this will be split into three categories: Early And Out Of Production Flared Drop Bars, Current Production Flared Drop Bars, and Innovative Flared Drop Bars. Obviously, as time goes on even handle bars I have listed as 'current' may fall out of production, so if you are coming here many months or years after this posts, don't take this as gospel for what you might be able to get your hands on.

Finally, many of these handle bars were review items sent to me at no charge. These will have asterisks by their names and this means that they fall under my Standard Disclaimer. I will, in any case, offer a short, pithy comment or three on whichever bar I show and my opinions are my own. You may not agree, and that is fine, but I've got riding time on all of these and I don't think I am changing my mind about any of them. So, there ya go.....

Now, on with the show!

Nitto standard road drop bars

 Wait! Those are NOT flared drop bars!! Yes.....that is correct. I just thought it prudent to remind ourselves what classic road drop bars look like, and yes- I used these for a time on a road bike. Note that the extensions are directly underneath the ramps and the 'reach' of the drop is pretty far forward. These features were seen as 'problems' for the drop bar user who wanted to go off-road riding with drops. Thus shallow drop, short reach, flare, and sweep were introduced to solve the problems. I won't get into all the 'why' of these features, but I do have a page to help you see these terms in a visual sense here. 

EARLY AND OUT OF PRODUCTION FLARED DROP BARS

The venerable Midge Bar. The one that got this all started for me.

The Midge Bar was once pretty much my favorite and only flared drop that I would use. I have my longest rides ever on Midge Bars, and I still have a gold anodized Midge bar in use. The two seen here have been around since the 00's! See a good comparison I did early on between this and the next handle bar on this list HERE. Amazingly, you can still buy the Midge Bar. It probably is the flared drop bar that has been in production the longest of any of them! 

Probably the second flared drop you could get that was widely available, the original Gary Bar.

There are many versions of the Gary Bar* out there, but this was the 'OG' of them all. It was similar to the Midge Bar, (see link above), but it had a wildly sloping 'flare' to it which the Midge did not have. This laid the brake levers out really weirdly. This is almost a mustache bar in that regard. A short intro for this out-of-production bar is HERE. I have this one and one I purchased which is still in use on my Raleigh Fixed Gear Rat-Rod. 

The Salsa Cycles Bell Lap Bar

The Salsa Cycles Bell Lap Bar* wasn't one that I wanted to review or even purchase. It was just what came on the Salsa Cycles Fargo Gen I when I received it. I never did a proper look at this bar, but I did compare it to its replacement, the Cowbell, in 2011 here. The Bell Lap had some degree of 'flare', but it had too deep a drop and wasn't really what many of us were looking for. However; a handle bar I have coming up is actually pretty similar to the Bell Lap. Stay tuned.....

The Origin 8 Gary 2 Bar was made to address the concerns with the original Gary Bar.

The Origin 8 Gary II Bars were out by 2011 and addressed the perceived shortcomings with the original Gary Bar. I wrote up a review for it here. I wasn't all that impressed as it appeared that Origin 8 went after the Woodchipper Bar which was kind of a mistake in and of itself. No longer in production. 

My old Singular Cycles Gryphon set up with Salsa Cycles Woodchipper Bars

The first big splash made in flared drop bars beyond the Midge Bar was the Salsa Cycles Woodchipper Bar. I definitely do not like Woodchippers. This was a fail in design, in my opinion, due to the radius the designers chose to use and the weird transition from the tops to the swept extensions. While I no longer have any Woodchipper Bars around, you can still get them today. 

Yet another variation of the Gary Bar, the Gary Sweep OS Bar.

The Gary Sweep OS Bar was another variation Origin 8 had made on the flared drop bar concept. I reviewed this one here, and I found it to be 'okay', but it was now a time when bars like the Cowchipper and others were popping up that just were better designs. Had this bar come out five years earlier, it may have well been a classic. It's close, but no cigar. I think this is still available.. 

The Ragley Luxy Bar, (lower) and a Woodchipper for comparison.

 The Ragley Luxy Bar* was a collaboration between myself, Sam at Singular Cycles, and Brant Richards of Ragley Bikes, (at that time). Not much of anything I gave input on was retained, but anyway- they asked me! Had they done what I was requesting we would have ended up with a Cowchipper-like bar before the Cowchipper, but as it was, it came out really well. I was sent two Luxy Bars to check out and they are fantastic. Since then I've tracked down another couple and one I gave away. This bar reached cult-like status after Ragley discontinued it after only one run of them was made. You can read all about it here.

Current Production Flared Drop Bars

The SOMA June Bug is pretty much a knock-off of an On One Midge Bar, but a good one at that.

The SOMA June Bug Bar* was pretty good and a bar I liked well enough. No big surprise as it is nearly an identical bar to the On One Midge Bar. I reviewed the bar here. Good design, good handle bar, but it certainly is not an original design in any way to SOMA. 

You can find this design sold under various names. This one is branded "Gary Ergo Sweep OS" from Origin 8

The next bar up is branded and sold under various names, but probably most notably by Velo Orange and Origin 8. The one I tried out is called the Gary Ergo Sweep OS* and it was a chore to get on with. The drops are weird and they put my wrists at a strange angle which was uncomfortable. Your mileage may vary. I didn't like them and so I did not write up a review. 

The SOMA Gator Bar

The SOMA Gator Bar* might just be the oddest bar ever made in this genre. I wrote a review here. Nuff said....

The Salsa Cycles Cowbell

This handle bar is probably largely responsible for the adoption of flared drop bars for gravel cycling. The Salsa Cycles Cowbell II is an amazingly comfortable bar which is about as close to a traditional road drop bar as you can get in a flared drop bar. I wrote a review here.

The Salsa Cycles Cowchipper is a Cowbell with more flare and a bit more sweep.

In my mind, the Cowchipper from Salsa Cycles pretty much set the bar for any other flared drop bars for gravel to meet or exceed, if that is possible. It is darn near the perfect gravel bar, in my estimation. I wrote a review here. 

The PRO Discover Big Flare handle bar

Of course, the Cowchipper also influenced a lot of following designs, and one of them is the PRO Discover Big Flare Handlebar*. I wrote a review in tandem with MG on this bar here. Still one of my favorites although it isn't currently on one of my bikes. 

The Ritchey Venturemax Handlebar

Remember that Salsa Bell Lap bar above? Well, here is the bar I was referring to in my description of the Bell Lap. It is the Ritchey Design Venturemax Bar*. This handle bar was a good one, and I have been thinking about putting it on a bike again for a long time, but these other handle bars keep coming out and I only have so many bicycles! Anyway, here is my review on this handlebar. 

Whiskey No. 9 24° handlebar on my BMC MCD

 Eventually there were carbon fiber flared drop bars and one of them is the excellent Whiskey No. 9 24°* flared drops. I got these as a gift for my BMC MCD build. They are pretty much carbon Cowchippers, (yes- I realize there actually are carbon Cowchippers) and they feel a lot like them, but better. 

Innovative Flared Drop Bars

Spank Industries Flare Vibrocore 25 Handlebars

Another cool handle bar I got to check out is the Spank Flare Vibrocore 25* Handlebars. These are kind of different from the aspect of the vibration absorbing foam which is inside of these. Another interesting aspect of these is that they have a 31.8mm diameter from the stem to the ramps. I reviewed these here. Pretty cool handle bar that I am still using. 

Whiskey Spano Bar

Of course, carbon fiber affords you all the shaping and layup possibilities which aluminum is limited on or cannot do similarly. This is exemplified in the excellent Whiskey Spano Bar*. I have been pretty enamored of this one since I have had it and I don't plan on it going away anytime soon. I wrote a review here. 

Redshift Sports unusual Kitchen Sink Bar

Well, if you cannot form aluminum like carbon fiber, and you want some ergonomic benefits, the Kitchen Sink Handlebar by Redshift Sports* may be the option for you. Now I have to admit that I really did not think I would last very long after the review period with this bar, but I cannot seem to find any reasons to take it off. It is just that comfy with the extras in the grips that are accessories for the bar. I wrote a review here. It is heavy, and the aero section is sort of useless, but it is so good with those grips. Anyway, it's pretty nice from an ergonomic place. 

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And that is a wrap for now. If I get anymore bars to add to this, I will jump in and do that. this is in no way exhaustive, representative of now, or what have you. This isn't even all the drops I have ridden. (I can think of a couple others I have tried off the top of my head) But this represents a good overview from the worst, to the best, and from the weirdest to the commonplace designs. It's historical and interesting, I think, and I hope that you enjoyed this look at the flared drops I have tried.