The Ritchey Carbon Mountain 10D flat bar is a design intended for allowing a rider to obtain a “riser bar sweep without the rise”. It has a 31.8mm clamp diameter, and as the name suggests, it is a carbon fiber bar. You can check out my initial post describing the bar in more detail here. Now after several rides, I am ready to give my thoughts on this funky bar.
The bar was installed on the Specialized Stumpjumper Carbon Expert 29 also being tested here on the site. The set up with the Ritchey bar slightly lengthened the cockpit measurement, but not to a point that it was a negative for me. Initial rides were without any revelations, and especially so since the original bar was a 10 degree sweep flat bar as well. So everything seemed to be average on these first rides.
However; I was able to put this bar through a pretty grueling loop down in Texas on a recent trip which brought out a few things for me concerning this bar. The terrain was quite technical with lots of climbing, difficult descending, and some slow, pick-your-way-through sections that required precision control to clean. Here’s what I found out…….
This bar is stiff. You won’t find any give or vague feeling with the Ritchey Carbon Mountain 10D. It was perfectly stable and allowed me to concentrate on other things without worrying that the bar would flex or not help me keep the bike stable. Climbing benefited from this as well, obviously. Honking on the bars was a no drama affair during sprints up over short steeps. Lofting the front end, and other power moves were accomplished without so much as a hint of weirdness from this handle bar.
I was a bit concerned about grip stability, as I experienced a slippage with the stock Specialized grips, but the Ergon grips I installed did not budge during the entire testing period. However; your favorite locking grip may not get a good purchase on the smooth surface of this bar. In the future, it might be advisable for Ritchey to consider putting a textured area at the ends of the bar like they have for the stem clamp area. This would help tremendously with several locking grips and traditional slip on grips.
As for the sweep, it is a personal preference thing, but I find 10 degree bars to be the new 5 degree XC bar. What was once considered pretty extreme for sweep is now pretty average. Especially in terms of most “alt-bars” in existence today. The Ritchey bar isn’t bad, mind you, it just seems straight to me. That said, a lot of folks may find the bar a revelation in comfort due to the increase in sweep over their old set ups.
Conclusions: The Ritchey Carbon Mountain 10D Flat Bar is a great handle bar for those running 29″ers looking for low handle bar height but with a feel of a traditional riser bar. The “forward wiggle” looks odd, but does keep stem swapping at bay for those who have a position on the bike they would like to preserve. The caveat here being that the Ritchey bar will actually lengthen your cockpit fit ever so slightly due to the forward wiggle of the design. Some may also find the bends will play havoc with positioning accessory items like lights, computers, or GPS units near the stem. Grip choice may be an issue due to the slippery carbon surface at the ends of the bar.
I would recommend this bar to a racer setting up a stretched out, XC type position that demands a lower bar height, or for anyone that appreciates a light weight, well designed carbon bar with a standard sweep. I would not recommend this bar as a way to gain some comfort on a rigid fork set up. The Ritchey bar is definitely a stiff, unyielding bar that will offer you maximum control over your front end. And yes, it gets you that “funky bar” look, if that trips your trigger. It is definitely light weight, and definitely strong. Well worth taking a hard look at if you are wanting a swept carbon bar that will preserve a more traditional hand/wheel/saddle relationship without resorting to a longer stem. See more at www.ritcheylogic.com
Note: This product was submitted to Twenty Nine Inches for review at no charge. We are not being bribed or payed for this review. We will strive to give our honest opinions throughout.
