Flared & Riser Gravel Handlebar: The Surly Truck Stop Bar
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Alternative gravel handlebars have been all the rage over the last few years, especially within the growing gravel riding scene. Handlebars in this market segment seem to be getting wider and wider as manufactures continue to out-do each other to see who can come up with the widest (or wackiest) bar on the market. Along with the wider positions you’ll also find increasing degrees of flare on dropped handlebars, leading to even crazier looking bars. Here’s the thing though: I’ve always considered myself a bit of a traditionalist when it comes to handlebars and never understood all the bells and whistles that go along with alternative handlebars. Flared bars, and the tilted hoods associated with them, never really appealed to me. All I wanted was a plain vanilla bar that did what it was supposed to. That thought process started to change for me in recent months, so much so that I went all in with not only my first flared bar, but a riser bar at that. Let’s see why I had this change of mind and how things turned out.
The Need For An Alternative Bar
The 3T Exploro that I own has been an incredibly versatile bike allowing for endless riding possibilities, including some epic spins along some park trails. It was specifically on my park trail rides that I started to take note of some deficiencies with my dropped handlebar set-up. While encountering trickier descents with loose rocks and technical line changes, I began to see the need for a flared dropped bar. I found myself riding in the drops a lot to try to create a more stable position. The 40cm wide 3T Superergo Pro bar that I had on the bike at that time provided a fairly limited stance and could only add marginal amounts of additional control when riding in the drops. I began warming up to the idea of getting a flared bar, but there was one more issue that I would need to overcome before I could comfortably hold a position in the drops for an extended period of time... Stack height!
My 3T Exploro (orginal frame design) is certainly not one of the world’s tallest bikes and the lack of stack height is something that has been very noticeable ever since my first ride. The 3T Exploro was designed with aerodynamics and speed in mind and the more aggressive geometry is a clear testament of this. The issue for me was that I fell right between two frame sizes, on the upper limit for a medium and the lower limit for a large. In order to minimize the weight, I did what many bike owners would have done and opted for the smaller of the two sizes. I wish I could reverse this decision if given the choice. If you refer to the side-by-side geometry chart listed below you will be able to see that my 3T Exploro (listed on the right-hand side) provides only 546mm of stack height. If I opted to go with a large instead, then that would have given me 29mm of additional stack height.
Let’s take this comparison one step further and include the newer RaceMax Exploro models (listed on the left-hand side) into the mix. You’ll notice that my medium size frame measures in 18mm lower when compared to a size 54 in the latest models. This tells me that I’m not the only Exploro owner who has run into some limitations with a reduced stack height and 3T subsequently responded by altering the geometry in their latest models.
I want to refer back to the 29mm difference between a size medium and large, since this provided a great starting point in my search for additional stack height. Once I had a clearer view of the number of required millimeters, I set out to look for options to bring back some of the missing stack height. My first tactic was to use a +12 degree stem to win back height, but I felt like this still wasn’t enough and as a result the world of riser bars became increasingly attractive.
I essentially needed a combo of both rise and flare to completely satisfy my need to dial in a better riding position. Was there a bar out there that could give me both? Turns out there was...enter the Surly Truck Stop Bar.
Surly Truck Stop Bar
In the same way that you can get a bit of everything at a truck stop convenience store, the dropped handlebar from Surly gives you everything you need in terms of flare and rise. Here is an overview of the major spec sheet details and if you need an even closer look at these bars then be sure to check out my video about this product.
Rise = 30mm
Flare = 12 degrees
Width (Hood-to-Hood) = 42cm / 45cm / 48cm (I went with the 42cm)
Width (Bar-Ends) = 47.5cm / 50.5cm / 53.5cm
Drop (Including Rise) = 129mm
Drop (Excluding Rise) = 99mm
Reach = 78mm
Weight = 341g (For the 42cm)
On paper, this bar was exactly what I needed to get my position more comfortable and stable. I’d found a riser bar that offered a moderate degree of flare with a shallow drop and short reach. Bingo!
Moderate is a key word in that previous statement. The 12 degrees of flare isn’t anything crazy, which means that the bar-ends don’t kick outward in some awkwardly weird way. The overall look of the drops still goes over well with someone like me who needed additional convincing about a flared bar. The shape of the bar also allows for a fairly straight hood position to be maintained. There is, of course, some hood-tilt that gets introduced with the bar, but even to a skeptic, the amount of hood rotation is fairly tame.
The rise is, of course, the major feature of this bar and at first glance is certainly something to get used to. It just doesn’t seem normal to have the top of the bar that much higher than the stem clamp. The raised look is something that’s slowly growing on me and with each passing ride it becomes easier on the eyes. Fortunately, once you get on the bike and look down at the handlebar, the looks don’t really even register and the comfort from a more appropriate position quickly outweighs the appearance.
Ride Impressions
Appearances aside, the real test for the Surly Truck Stop bar comes when it’s taken out for a ride and in this capacity, it has been performing really well. Here are a a few of my initial impressions after using the bars on a few rides.
The lack of stack height is definitely no longer an issue. The 30mm of rise worked perfectly to lift my position higher and allows for a much more comfortable ride. I could immediately tell that my lower back was taking less stress and I could very comfortably hold my position without feeling the pressure from excess weight on my hands. The additional rise also means that I can comfortably ride in the drops for extended periods of time without fatiguing. I surely lost some of the aero tuck that I used to have with my slammed position, but what good is a slammed position if you can only hold it for short amounts of time? Efficiency outperforms aerodynamics in this instance.
I’m blown-away by what a huge difference the flares make. Having that extra width in the drops really adds a ton of stability, especially when going down tricky descents. I can now confidently attack into some downhills on my local trails and still feel like I am in complete control. I finally see what all the hype is about when it comes to flared gravel bars. If your gravel bike does not already have a flared bar, and your rides go anywhere near terrain that requires MTB-like control, then I can highly recommend that you test out a flared bar.
The tilted hoods are certainly something to get used to. I can’t say that I’m completely comfortable with this position just yet. During the first few rides, I experienced some tightness in my wrists - something that I’ve never had with any of my previous bike set-ups. The sight rotation of the hoods (even if just a few degrees) definitely places stress on the wrists in a completely different way to what you’ll find with a regular bar. I suspect that as time goes by my wrists will strengthen up to withstand this new position much better.
The shallow drop that you get with this bar makes going into the drops a joy. I find myself going into the drops so much more now. I prefer to climb out of the saddle and accelerate with my hands in the drops and with this new set-up, the transition from the hoods to the drops has become fairly seamless.
The top of the bars provides another interesting position for hand placement. Given the rise, you’ll find that your thumbs drop down into the bend while your hands rests on top of the bars. It’s something to get used to at first, but can actually be used to your advantage and provides for a solid grip while you ride with your hands on the top. I personally like a slightly thicker top bar and as such, plan on adding some gel inserts to the top part of my bar. This will help not only for additional shock absorption, but will also create some additional thickness around the top part of the bar. One last thing to note about the top portion of the bar is the additional clamping space that’s available next to to the stem. You’ll find that there is more than enough room here to comfortably mount a Garmin/Wahoo head unit or any other accessory.
Wrap-up
Overall, I am extremely pleased with the purchase of the Surly Truck Stop bar. The additional height that I’ve gained from the rise has made a massive difference to my comfort on the bike. Short of having to replace my whole frame, this fairly inexpensive part was basically my last resort to alter my position substantially and add back the required stack height. To a large extent, I’m still warming up to the looks of these bars, but while they grow on me, I get to experience a level of comfort that I haven’t had before. The flared design has also been a great eye-opener as to why so many gravel riders have taken the route of fitting flared bars to their bikes. I’ve gained a tremendous amount of confidence on trickier gravel descents due to the additional stability provided by the wider flared drops. These bars definitely won’t be for everyone, but if you find yourself in a similar predicament of needing additional stack height on your bike, then be sure to check out the Surly Truck Stop bar, I can certainly give it my sign of approval.
Have you used alternative bars to adjust your bike position? Tell us about it in the comments below!
-Wiehan
