John Hawrylak posted recently about converting a Riv Bike to low trail. Joe Bernard replied that he had done this only to find out he did not like low trail and that it was a little costly to find this out. Boy, did this resonate with me.
I have found it nearly impossible to understand the effect of a component change on my bike's performance without some, at least, modest investment, even when I do the work switching out parts myself. While my most extensive experience relates to handlebars, I've also explored different wheel sizes, saddles, derailleurs, and assorted other components. I'll share my handlebar experience because it seems instructive. >From the time I was 16, I rode racing bikes. It had always been clear to me, at least intellectually, that racing bike's drop handlebars, in addition to reducing wind resistance and increasing speed, offered great variation in hand position increasing the odds of finding comfort. After 45 years or so riding drops, the time came for me consider alternatives. Much more of my future riding would be in the city and I believed and still believe upright positions offer better visibility and thus are safer. I am also no longer as limber as I once was. Over time, I found that, except on steep climbs, I almost never used the drops. I had been riding almost exclusively on the hoods or the crossbar. My first "city bike" was a Scott Sub 20. What a revelation. The bars, Syncros, were almost flat and 640mm wide with a 10 degree sweep. They offered comfort like I had not felt before. Very importantly, they also seemed to offer better control. I noticed that these flat and almost straight handlebars were more akin to most motorcycle handlebars than bicycle racing handlebars. After riding the Scott for a few years, I learned of Rivendell (and as importantly, Bicycle Quarterly and Compass Cycles). I was an easy convert. The only question I had was which Rivendell would be right for me. Ultimately, I chose a Homer. I bought a used Toyo Homer - 59cm, 700mm tires -- from someone on the list. It came with racing bars, which I replaced, this time with Nitto Albatross bars, seemingly the preferred upright bar of the Riv community and often recommended by Riv as a great bar. I rode my Homer with the Albatrosses for 5 years, a few thousand miles a year. Albatross bars have, according to www.whatbars.com, a 78 degree sweep. All the time I rode my Homer, which I love, I wondered whether I would have the comfort and control I had enjoyed on my Scott if I found a handlebar with much less sweep. But which bar? I spoke with friends and read the many entries on the topic in the RBW Owners Bunch listserve. I read more of what I could find on the internet. I considered the Jones, MAP Ahearne, several different Nitto bars and settled on the Nitto Bullmoose. Unfortunately, I couldn't find anywhere I could try it out. Most bike shops, in my experience, are not eager to trade out components to allow customers to experience the effect of the changes. At best, they'll offer different bikes with different components to try. Still, I had decided I wanted to try the Bullmooses. To do this, I also had to use different shifters; the bar end shifters I used on with the Albatross bars wouldn't work with Bullmosse bars. I searched for used Bullmooses without success so I ordered a new one from Rivendell. I did find used Shimano XT 3x9 trigger shifters. Together, with new grips, cables and cable housing, my investment to "try" this setup (I had a bike shop do the switch) exceeded $400. This seemed like a hefty investment and there was the chance that, like Joe Bernard, I would find out it was a failed experiment, an expensive one at that. One thing I love about the industry is the amazing array of choices in bikes and components. I also love the the fact the barriers to entry into the industry are low -- innovation is everywhere and there are loads of tinkerers in their "garages" working on that next best idea, one that will improve everyone's cycling experience only if cyclists can learn about it firsthand. It just frustrates me no end, however, how hard and costly it can be to explore the choices available. For most cyclists, you get what the industry's major players think you want or should want. Understanding and especially experiencing available choices requires a bit of work and often an uncommonly accommodating bike shop. More often than should be the case, in my view, the cost is not trivial and sometimes proves the negative -- one was better off before. So my question is what can the bike industry do to help cyclists better understand the component choices they have and the effects on riding will be with different components? Sorry for running on so long. Steve Cole Arlington, Virginia -- 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 rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
