John, I would ride roads more than trails. Currently, my riding is all paved except for a few hundreds yards. Half of that is grass, the other half gravel. There are some trails I would like to ride, but I would be riding pavement to get to them. For handlebar position, I think I want a drop bar, though I want the drops below the saddle with the tops above the saddle. Of course, that may change as I gain experience on it and tweak things more. For tires, I'm leaning toward the Jack Brown Blues or maybe some Gravel King (slicks).
Thanks. Tim On Thu, May 26, 2016 at 8:42 AM, Surlyprof <[email protected]> wrote: > Tim, > > I'd +1 Drew's suggestion of a Hilson or Hillborne or, possibly an > Appaloosa. Since you are only going to have one, those three seem to be > more all-arounder than the Rodeo (although I've always coveted the Rodeo). > The way I view them, the Hilson and Hillborne are the all-arounders if you > ride roads more than trails and the Appaloosa if you ride more trails than > roads. The Hillborne can handle a wider tire than the Hilson although the > Hilson is IMHO one of Riv's most beautiful bikes. I only own 1 bike to > avoid clutter in my garage/studio/shop. Like you, I also tried to create > Riv-ish bikes once with a Surly Cross Check followed by a Soma Groove. I > sold those off as well as my Bianchi road bike that could only take 23mm > tires and bought a Sam. I kick myself thinking of how much I would have > ultimately saved had I just bought a Riv from the beginning. I've owned an > orange canti-Hillborne for about two years now and absolutely love it. > Being over 50, having the handlebars above the saddle has been much more > comfortable without sacrificing the feeling of speed and nimbleness. I > started with Albatross bars but quickly changed to Albastaches to get a > more aggressive more position when I want it while still being able to ride > more upright when needed. I have been able to ride trails on Smart Sams > and roads on Barlow Pass tires. The one thing I did that eased the > versatility was buy a second, lighter wheelset for the Compass tires. This > has made changing over from trail and commuter bike to light-ish road bike > much quicker and easier than swapping tires. I do have to adjust the > barrel adjusters on the brakes to accommodate for the different rim > widths. The whole operation takes about 15 minutes. If you are worried > about the rain, you may want to consider the Brooks C-series seats rather > than the leather ones. That said, I've had good luck with the Randi Jo > seat cover they sell at Riv (http://www.rivbike.com/product-p/s92.htm). > > I'm sure you'll be happy with whatever you choose. I've never ridden a > Riv I haven't adored. > John > > > > On Wednesday, May 25, 2016 at 7:38:33 PM UTC-7, Tim Butterfield wrote: >> >> I've been thinking of getting a Rivendell bicycle for a long time. I >> first joined this group to lurk back in 2010 and have been a member and >> sometimes lurker since then. But, I had not made the commitment and >> purchased a Riv. The closest I came was getting a Velo-Orange Rando. That >> was sort of rivish. >> https://www.flickr.com/photos/timbutterfield/sets/72157624827193423 >> >> Being in the suburbs of Chicago near O'Hare airport limited my comfort >> using it the way it should have been. That bike was sold before I left >> Chicago to live full-time in an RV. Once we decided to settle in >> Anacortes, WA (still in the RV), I purchased a Specialized AWOL Comp, >> definitely not rivish. >> https://www.flickr.com/photos/timbutterfield/sets/72157644371355428 >> >> It's a nice bike, but I now want something more rivish, this time, the >> real thing. I'm thinking of getting either the Roadeo or the A Homer >> Hilsen. I like the idea of the liveliness and sportiness of the Roadeo, >> but like the bit of extra versatility of the AHH also. With my weight at >> 200+ (PBH 33" or 83.8cm, age 51), I'm leaning towards the AHH instead of >> the Roadeo. I can start more roadish with the AHH and, as I build my >> abilities further, expand the bike to fit new and/or different tasks >> without having to change frames. >> >> So, I'm fairly settled on getting my first Riv, one of the two >> mentioned. My pondering now is mostly on how to appoint it. My Rando was >> more modern with the 105 setup. The AWOL was definitely modern with discs >> and SRAM setup. But, I'm not tied to that. Though I haven't used it much, >> I like the looks of a quill stem, drop bars, and downtube shifters. It >> looks clean and simple. I'm just not sure what it's like to live with. I >> expect that, like many things, it is a matter of adapting to it. But, >> using DT shifters or bar ends does set a direction as neither would work >> with an 11-speed I could have instead. I'm trying to consider the pros and >> cons of each. >> >> With my AWOL, I leave it locked to the cabana just outside my RV. Some >> RVs have sufficient inside storage for a bike. Mine doesn't. >> >> My questions to the group are these: As I am not yet doing longer >> distances, are there still benefits to the more traditional setups? If I >> pick either one, what might I later miss the other may have provided? Are >> there likely to be any weather related or other wear issues leaving a Riv >> locked to the RV park cabana like I do my AWOL? I'm doubtful of that, but >> don't want to mistreat it either. Any thing else I should consider? >> >> Thanks for any advice you have. >> >> Tim >> > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. > Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
