Road bike woes

[Adrian Pillay]

Hi everyone, looking for some advice

I spend 90% of my time on mountain bikes, but got myself a road bike a few years back to use for the occasional road race, 

I can ride my mountain bikes for hours on end without any issues but 20 minutes on the road bike and my thumb, index, and middle fingers on both hands go completely numb.

I've had the bike professionally set up more than once but the issue persists, I don't know if I'm doing something wrong or there's something physiologically wrong with me. 

I'm considering either putting a flat bar on the road bike, or selling it and just using a hard tail for road events.

any advice?

[ct_rider]

Maybe you have the wrong "type" of bike. Try an endurance bike with a higher stack height or more relaxed geometry, similar to your mountain bike. 

Road bike / aero bike frame is less forgiving on your hands and body than the more compliant endurance bike.

Tyres also play a role, 28 / 30mm is the sweet spot with lower pressures.

[Adrian Pillay]

52 minutes ago, ct_rider said:

Maybe you have the wrong "type" of bike. Try an endurance bike with a higher stack height or more relaxed geometry, similar to your mountain bike. 

Road bike / aero bike frame is less forgiving on your hands and body than the more compliant endurance bike.

Tyres also play a role, 28 / 30mm is the sweet spot with lower pressures.

Thank you, I will look into that

[RobynE 🚵‍♀️]

Not road bike per se but I have a hardtail MTB and a road tandem. 

The comfort of the tandem has increased dramatically with tubeless. 

Just an observation. 

[ct_rider]

5 minutes ago, Adrian Pillay said:

Thank you, I will look into that

Endurance bike also has more carbon in the frame for more compliance. I’ve had many bikes, nothing compares to the comfort level of an endurance bike.