I’ve been training for my next century, and this morning I had a pretty scary and close call while riding my kh 36er. I was riding in the bike lane heading for the beach bike path, cruising at around 12-13 mph, when all of a sudden, my kh handle snapped off! It caused me to lurch forward a bit in a quick, jerking motion, and also to my left, as I tried to stay on and in control, but it forced me into the traffic lane momentarily. A bunch of cars had just passed, so I was very lucky indeed! 
So after I regained control, holding onto the broken handle with one hand, and the lift handle with the other, I pulled over quickly to see what the heck was going on. Well, as yo can see in the attached pics below, it was a clean and instant break, which would explain why I was hearing such increasingly loud creaking!
I had thought it was probably loose bolts either on my saddle or lift handle bolts. I had checked them and they didn’t seem loose, but I snugged them a tad anyway, but the creaking was still there. I then thought it might be a cracked seat or stiffner plate. I never suspected that the handle bracket was cracked, and about to break!
I don’t know whether it became fatigued after time, or if it was defective. I’ve never put much weight on the handle, which is probably why I didn’t face plant when it snapped! Most of my weight is always on the saddle; the handle and aero bars are there to rest on, but I don’t “push” down on it much while riding.
It was a weird feeling to have to ride back with only the lift handle to hold on to, which, btw, I’m glad I had left on! I know some people prefer to remove the lift handle after they install a touring handle.
Now I wonder if this might happen again, like it’s just a matter of time, or maybe it could have been defective in some way. I also wonder if the bracket would be stronger if it were chromoly steel instead of aluminum.
Back when I broke my (1st generation) Nimbus Shadow handle, it was from pulling up on it. Until that happened, I didn’t think I was applying any upward pressure on it at all, but I apparently do rather sharply, when braking, mounting and riding slow in high gear. I also know I press down on my handlebar a good deal. For me, that’s why it’s there in the first place. So you might actually be putting more pressure on it than you think. Not that it should break in any case. Mine also creaked before it let go, and I also couldn’t figure out where the sound was coming from until just before it let go.
And I thought the same thing about the bracket snapping during a century! it would have made my 3 broken spokes on my last century seem like a minor inconvenience!
