Help with bike handling

sounds like you have too much weight distributed to your hands.

This can be due to a fit issue, but iregardless, try reducing the weight on your hands and shift it more to your seat.

Practice riding for awhile with the lighter feel on the bars, and without shifting your weight, try taking one hand off.

if you feel uncomfortable on the bike, might be a good idea to check the fit, might be contributing to your problem.

as above, a proper fit (weight distribution) can do a lot for stability, beyond that...
don't death grip the bars... nice and relaxed.
try moving your weight back on the saddle.
practice.

Hi I had this exact problem, and even did an half ironman when I couldn't let go of the handlebars! I had a professional bike fit but I had replaced my saddle and it was slightly tilted forward for comfort. I was explaining my problems with pain in my upper back to my son and he told me to tilt my saddle back. I did so and could not believe the difference it made, I had no pain and felt so much more stable. On my first ride after adjusting my saddle I was able to remove my bottle from the holder take a drink and replace it without any issue, something which I could never do before. Try it and see if it helps you.

I've done several bike handling sessions with triathletes over the years and what I would recommend is first finding a nice flat grass field and use that to practice handling. It will mean you'll be going slower and in the event you have to bail, you won't be hitting pavement. You can also do these in an empty parking lots but I prefer the field to start.

Drill 1 - ride slowly with both hands (relaxed) on the bars, elbows bent and solidly in the saddle. Get to know the area where you are riding and focus on staying relaxed and comfortable.

Drill 2 - ride slowly as before but after one lap (assuming soccer/football field) on one of the straight aways, take one hand off the bars and then put it back. Repeat this while on the straights until you can keep your hand off for a few seconds. Then repeat with the other hand. The goal is to progress to the point where you can ride one handed down one side, turn around the goal and ride the otherside with the other hand.

Drill 3 - get a drink - same as before but now grab your bottle, get it out of your cage, ride for a few pedal strokes, put it back. Turn around the goal and try with your other hand.

These should get you to the point that you are more comfortable with riding in general and riding with a hand off the bars in particular. You can advance from here with riding with one hand on the stem, doing one handed slalom, riding no hands, riding with someone else holding hands, etc. But at least you want to be comfortable enough to eat or drink on the bike.

Shane

One other thing, if you position your hand closer to the stem the front end won't be quite so twitchy.

Wow! Thanks very much for all the feedback! I had a good think about it yesterday about how I feel when I was riding yesterday, and I realised I was (1) feeling too stretched out with rounded shoulders and (2) my neck was aching from the hyperextension. I also realised that I was able to maintain a very light grip on the brake hoods when I was standing up on the pedals and when I sat down, I was sitting closer to the nose of the saddle. So I had a look at the saddle rail and, lo and behold, I realised that my saddle was pushed all the way to the aft. I shifted saddle to the middle (just as baseline), and just to be sure, checked the tilt of the saddle with a clinometer app (88 degrees... guess those 2 degrees off isn't gonna kill me... or so I hope). Took it for a quick spin for comfort and the feeling of being too stretched out was gone. Didn't practice with it because I hadn't had my lights with me, but I'm hopeful that this MIGHT just make it easier.

As usual, any further useful comments and input would be grateful appreciated!

Cheers!

Hey everyone! Just a quick update: I did a short easy ride yesterday morning after moving my saddle forward, and I'm happy to say that I managed to pedal with one hand on the handlebar! Ok, I'm more stable with my right hand on the handlebar, and I found it easier if I kept my elbow straight. And I also realised that I have to shift my weight slightly more to the side where my hand is off to get the balance. It isn't pretty right now cos I might weave while figuring out what goes where, but I'm hoping that I'll be able to keep in a straight line and take a drink while on the road. A friend suggested that I keep my knees pointed more to the front (as opposed to facing more to the side) to help with the balance.

If your knees are pointing to the side then your saddle is likely too low. Try raising it.

Well, I had a dynamic bike fit done this week, and one of the first thing that was pointed out was that the frame was a bit small for me, and my steam was too low, hence putting my hands (and wrists) under a lot of pressure. I'm delighted to say that I'm now able to pedal with one hand on the handlebar and able to drink, although I need more practice to ensure that I don't veer (which I do sometimes). My body is still getting used to the new position because I realised that I need a lot of core strength to keep the weight off my hands. It's been 2 rides since, but I'm so glad that I had the fit done!