Thanks for your generous response. Sounds like you've found the perfect bike for you needs. And incidentally, you've given me some good arguments to use with the wife if I ever decide to convince her I "need" one! :)
But holy cow--6"2" with a 37" inseam! Definite custom bike territory there, so it's even cooler that the Bomba fits you so nicely. Cheers, Dustin > From: Dave Craig <dcr...@prescott.edu> > Reply-To: <rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com> > Date: Thu, 2 Apr 2009 14:50:50 -0700 (PDT) > To: RBW Owners Bunch <rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com> > Subject: [RBW] Re: my new Bomb > > > Before I purchased my Bombadil frameset, I stopped by Riv to try one > out. They had a demo in my size (60 cm) outfitted with drop bars. At > first, I did a quick tour around the parking area and back to Grant. > When I approached Grant, I said something about how light and > maneuverable the bike felt. He told me that, "everyone says that." He > then told me to take the bike for a ride and to "try and break it!" I > rode for nearly two hours, trying to jump every curb I could find > (there's not a lot of single track in downtown Walnut Creek. I found a > short, steep, dirt path off the Iron Horse bike path and did multiple > passes at high speed and low speed. Even though the bike was fitted > with Marathon XR's, it felt relatively lively and light and it climbed > well. I'm a heavy rider at 215, but I'm very fit and I can put out > pretty good power for a middle-aged guy. I can feel my 64cm Atlantis > flex when I mash down for an uphill sprint. Before I replaced my > friction shifters for an indexed system, I often experienced "ghost > shifting." The Bombadil felt much more rigid, yet not uncomfortably so > and it didn't ghost shift at all. > > I'm in the process of building up the Bombadil as a replacement for > touring on the Atlantis. I've toured a couple of thousand miles on the > Atlantis with a self-contained, relatively moderate weight, load. In > spite of using a variety of larger tire sizes on the Atlantis, I've > never liked how it handles on dirt roads and trails while carrying a > load. The bike just doesn't feel as stable as I think an off-road > tourer should feel. The Bombadil is the bike I would have purchased if > it had existed when I bought the Atlantis. BTW, I am keeping the > Atlantis for longer mixed dirt/road rides with narrower tires and > lighter wheels. Actually, it will be my only dedicated road bike. > > I'll be using the Bombadil as an MTB and for loaded touring, both on > and off road with 700x50-52 tires and I'll be switching back and forth > from Nitto flat bars and Salsa Bell Laps. I have a 3000-mile summer > ahead of me this year, touring throughout the desert Southwest, over > the Sierras, and down to the Bay Area. After a visit with family and > the folks at Riv, I'll be hopping on the train to Seattle and then > riding south along the coast to LA. From there, I'll take the train > back to Arizona and I'll ride back home from Flagstaff. > > Why the Bombadil and not a MTB with suspension? For me, the decision > is about aesthetics and bike fit. I've ridden rigid bikes off road for > a long time. I had a brief fling with a hard tail MTB that I couldn't > get comfortable on and then I switched back to a 29r rigid Karate > Monkey. I'm a "light" rider and I like to dance down the trail versus > bombing down. I needed a big stack o' spacers to fit the XL (22") KM > correctly for my size, though I am a freak with a 37" inseam and a > 6'2" height. My short torso also means most MTB's have too long of a > top tube. I simply don't like all that steer tube exposed and I really > like the look of the Bomba with a dirt drop stem and flats or drop > bars. I have fitted the Bomba identically in bar height and reach to > my Atlantis. I love lugs. Lastly, although I eventually rigged the KM > up with fenders and racks for off road touring and commuting, > everything was definitely kludgey. The Bomba has typical Riv amenities > for racks, fenders and brake placement. Plus, a year of riding a Surly > Big Dummy on roads and trails as my fulltime commuter has convinced me > that all touring bikes need kickstands! > > I'll try to post a few pictures of my finished build once I figure out > how to do that. For the orignal poster: Front and rear racks (Tubus > Cargo and Surly Nice Rack); black is beautiful; set the bike up with a > low end of ~18 gear inches; Nitto flat bars are wonderful with good > grips and barends/dirt drop stem; drop bars off road are fun; Rivs are > nice, functional bikes and everyone deserves that kind of bike. > > DC > > On Apr 2, 9:22 am, Dustin Sharp <dsh...@runbox.com> wrote: >> Just curious--Can anyone comment how the Bomb rides on paved roads with that >> super heavy tubeset? Never having ridden one, my thinking was that if I¹m >> riding something truly rugged enough to require something that stout, I¹d >> rather have a ³real² MTB with suspension. If I¹m only riding rough dirt >> roads, smooth trails, and pavement, then the Atlantis fits the bill >> perfectly. >> >> So how are folks planning to use their Bombadils and how will it be >> different than what you¹d do on an Atlantis with fat offroad tires? The >> Great Divide idea sounds fantastic. >> >> Dustin Sharp >> San Diego, CA >> - 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 -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
