Eric, If you are new to riding, no matter what bike you ride (including carbon fiber), you will most likely be slower than your friends when climbing. Cycling over time develops your cardio vascular fitness. The more you do it the better and stronger you get. One advantage you will enjoy with a typical Rivendell built bike is a touring drive train. That will maximize your chances of getting to the top on your bike (without having to walk it). The biggest advantage will be fit and comfort. I've gone through a lot of bikes and learned one important lesson among others. Comfort trumps all other factors, including frame material, components etc. You will not go wrong with choosing a Rivendell. Focus on comfort now. Btw, bar ends are great, and are more reliable. When you are riding, they will be a non issue. STI shifters will not degrade your ride even though over time they can be finicky and more fragile. Bar ends are better and certainly less expensive. Not a tough decision here. Ok, say you get a AHH, it fits and you find yourself having fun and getting fit. The final question is what saddle will you pick? I used to dislike brooks saddles (because of the break in period). I recently bought a bike with an "aged" brooks saddle that I had planned to sell off, until I discovered how comfortable it was. Anyway, the process is selecting and choosing a bike is fun. Riding is even more fun. So go out and have some fun!
Cheers! Chris On Mon, Aug 31, 2009 at 12:55 PM, Erik<elang...@gmail.com> wrote: > > Hi all: > > I am in the market for a lugged steel frame, and am about ready to > pull the trigger on an A. Homer Hilsen. Based on my needs (described > below), I would greatly appreciate any guidance as to whether or not > this is the right bike for me, and how I might choose the right > tires. > > I live in Boulder and plan to use the bike primarily for road riding > in/around Colorado, so there will be a significant amount of climbing > involved. There are also quite a few gravel paths that I would like > to take advantage of around my house. I have no experience camping or > doing longer multi-day trips, but the concept intrigues me. > Basically, I do not currently own a bicycle, so I want this bike to > serve all of my needs. > > My largest concern is this: most of my friends and neighbors go on 3 - > 4 hour rides up into the mountains on their super-light carbon > frames. Is there a way for me to set up the AHH so that it is > functional on mellow gravel roads, but also keeps up with my friends > on the steep climbs? Will a 32 tire work for this? I would prefer to > only own one set of tires if this is possible. > > And I am leaning towards building the bike with bar-end shifters. Any > reason I should consider otherwise? > > Any advice would be greatly appreciated. > > Cheers. > > > > --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ 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 -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
