> Technological improvement is inevitable, regardless of the medium. > Engineers will always engineer something better, even if we're talking > about big wheels.
Actually, I recall a year or two back a runner from either Kenya or Djbouti won some major marathons running bare foot. Electric derailleurs are new. Not sure how they make shifting better. They certainly would not make racing more interesting to me. On Feb 16, 5:44 pm, Chris <fourf...@gmail.com> wrote: > If that is the case, then ALL the guys on Astana would just as good as > Lance or Levi since they all have the same bikes.... > > Technological improvement is inevitable, regardless of the medium. > Engineers will always engineer something better, even if we're talking > about big wheels. It sounds like if it was up to a lot of you, we'd > still be riding wooden rims and driving Model T's! > > On Feb 16, 3:10 pm, JoelMatthews <joelmatth...@mac.com> wrote: > > > > You could argue by pointing out that at one time they ISSUED the riders > > > in the TdF identical bikes, so that the race would be about the rider > > > and not the bike. > > > This captures why modern bike racing is of no interest to me. > > > Auto racing is probably 80% mechanics, 20% rider. As it should be. > > The idea is to test technology at the limits. > > > Bike racing that I enjoy anyway should be about the rider. Or at > > least mostly the rider. These days it is all about elaborate > > technology. With the outfits, helmets, and glasses riders use, that > > seem interchangeable like star wars storm troopers (or to be historic, > > Persian King Xerex' Immortals). You cannot even tell who is who. > > > On Feb 16, 4:23 pm, Steve Palincsar <palin...@his.com> wrote: > > > > On Mon, 2009-02-16 at 13:54 -0800, Chris wrote: > > > > Now, if you are a Cat 1 or 2 racer (or pro obviously), electric > > > > shifting might just give that little edge to get that last shift a > > > > second sooner to get across the line first. How can anyone argue this > > > > statement? > > > > You could argue by pointing out that at one time they ISSUED the riders > > > in the TdF identical bikes, so that the race would be about the rider > > > and not the bike. > > > > You could also say if they outlawed support vehicles and made riders fix > > > their own flats and repair their own bikes, things wouldn't be so close > > > that a race could theoretically be won by the hundreth of a second > > > difference in shifting speed. > > > > You could in fact challenge the very notion that microscopic differences > > > in equipment make a big difference in race times. You could say, > > > probably the only time equipment genuinely made that much difference was > > > Fignon's pony tail and LeMond's aero bar. > > > > You could say, would anybody seriously argue that any Cat 1 or Cat 2 > > > riding the best in pro-level equipment would stand a chance against a > > > top pro rider on an entry level bike (or some beater he hauled out of a > > > rubbish tip)? - Hide quoted text - > > > - Show quoted text - --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
