On the exposure of hands to vibration in road cycling: an assessment of the effect of gloves and handlebar tape

The objective of this work was to assess the effectiveness of cycling gloves and handlebar tape in reducing the vibration transmitted to the cyclist’s hands in the classic “hoods” position for shock-type excitation at the front wheel on a bicycle treadmill. Three pairs of conditions were tested on a single participant: (1) With gloves vs. no gloves, no bar tape; (2) With bar tape vs. no bar tape, no gloves; (3) With gloves and bar tape vs. no gloves and no bar tape. We have shown that a rider can expect a small but significant drop in the level of transmitted power and energy through the handlebars when wearing a standard pair of road cycling gloves. If bar tape is used however (both with and without gloves), there is a significantly larger drop in the level of transmitted power and energy through the handlebars.