OK so a bit ago I posted up the query of dumping my full suspension Yeti in favor of a Bombadil. I got some great advice and decided to test the waters a bit. My biggest concern was feeling like I might regret the decision once I got into the dirt. Well to quell that I borrowed my buddies vintage Rockhopper that he converted to 650b and hit the trails. I had a blast. Yes the speed was decreased on the downhill side, but the fun level jumped back up to what made me fall in love with mountain biking in the first place back in 88.
So obviously I have no more reservations about the decision to go back to rigid. Easy right? Sell the Yeti, call up Riv and get the Bombadil on the way. Not so fast. Now keep in mind, since picking up a Bleriot, I have ridden nothing else and really enjoy it's comfort/versatility on the road. So much so that it prompted me to get rid of my cross racing bike, and my road racing bike. The only hold out has been the mountain bike. Now I had considered trying to make the Bleriot capable of off road duty but felt it was just a bit limiting with it's brakes/tire clearance options and would always be too much a compromise. A bit more reading, and a call to Riv, and I get hit with the "have you considered the Atlantis?". Well yes and no. I thought it would only be a shade different from the Bleriot and would feel like overlap. Hence the thinking of going Bombadil and setting it up strictly for dirt. But then I considered the Bombadil being 650b like the Bleriot and in reality being more of an overlap than the Atlantis. My mind started wandering into the "which of these bikes could hypothetically be the least compromise to do ALL?" territory. More pondering and scheming and here is the "John Woo" standoff: Going on my thoughts of: The 650b wheels with my Maxy Fasty tires on the Bleriot are perfect for the paved riding I do and feel much like road wheels to me. Bleriot as is. Bombadil can. Atlantis being 26" wont. The 650b wheels on my buddies RH with 2.1 Quasi Moto tires felt very similar to the 2.1 Cross Mark maxxis tires I ride on my Yeti and hooked up fine in the dirt. I felt no compromise there. Bleriot can't easily run knobbies that fat. Bombadil can. Atlantis will run knobbies, but 26". So now my curiosity is to dump both the Bleriot, and the Yeti and build up a really nice Bombadil plus a second set of wheels set up for off road. I know I would never switch tires out for a dirt ride, but having a second wheelset is easy. Either way, I would keep running moustache bars and the same gearing. The wrench is the Atlantis. I know I could do the same with it regarding 2 wheel sets, but having ridden 26" slicks on the road, they feel like 26". I don't know how else to describe it. All I know is, the 650b knobbies off road felt normal, and on road they feel very close to 700c. The reality is I would be riding mostly the same as I have been with slicks on the road, commuting, pulling the kiddo in the trailer, grocery runs etc, so it would seem to make sense to keep the larger dia wheels for that. Now all that could reside strictly in my head too. Am I way over my head in analyzing? I just cant help feeling that when it comes to Rivendells, there is far less polarization in their models and they all can be very capable "all rounders" to an extent. So why have 2? Yes it's fun to have a stable, but more and more I am finding myself gravitating towards the simplicity of one. Are there Atlantis owners who would challenge all this nonsense and say it's way better suited for all'round? Cripes, I have not been this conflicted on a bike purchase in my 30 riding years. Ding. Oh is our 45 minutes up? Wow the time on the couch goes so fast. Same time next week? --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ 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 -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
