Ah. You describe it as I've imagined it. Sounds wonderful. Alas, I fear for my knees, being a "person of size". And I don't think I'll subject a poor SimpleOne to an experience that only a double-top-tuber should have.
Sigh. It's not like I don't enjoy my (relatively) heavy, geared, lusciously- comfortable Hillborne! Yours, Thomas Lynn Skean On Feb 16, 9:17 am, PATRICK MOORE <bertin...@gmail.com> wrote: > Well put. As for climbing on fixed gears, it is hard, but it has made > hills enjoyable for the most part rather than a chore as I found it > (note: I am speaking only of my own reactions) with derailleurs. In > fact, as long as I keep the climbing reasonable -- steep but no more > than 1 mile, longer but more gradual -- I find it the most fun part of > cycling fixed. It is the challenge (doing more with less), the feel > (that inertial feel), and pacing oneself (knowing how and when to back > off, when to stand and when to sit). > > Now, I repeat that I ride only short distances: 30 miles is a long > ride (as I told Grant years ago when I commissioned my first custom in > 1994 -- his response was, "It *is* a long ride") and a normal ride is > a 22 m round trip riding between my house and my mother's (I often > work from her house to keep her company) with flats, hills and wind. I > know Eric has done PBP on a Quickbeam, but that is another dimension > altogether. But for this sort of distance and conditions, fixed is > perfect and light fixies are fun! > > > > On Wed, Feb 16, 2011 at 1:13 AM, CycloFiend <cyclofi...@earthlink.net> wrote: > > The only thing that I'll add to the discussion is that we're talking about > > pounds here. Which is healthy. I've been part of discussions when folks > > were arguing grams. Non-ironically. Y'know...mocking folks who still ran > > 150g mtb handlebars when you caould shave 35-40 grams by throwing another > > hundred bucks at it. > > > I don't think that anyone can argue that weight doesn't make a difference on > > a climb. The important thing is whether that difference matters. I don't > > have it at ready reference, but I recall in a catalog (mighta been a Reader) > > GP writing about the original Banana Bag - a seatbag which was gloriously > > larger than most anything you could find at the time. He wrote about how a > > saddlebag that let you carry something more than a spare tube and an energy > > gel was a much more sensible thing. How you'd be a lot more comfortable on > > the way down the mountain if you had real food and another layer stowed > > along. It was a pretty radical position at the time. > > > There are plenty of Riv owners and riders who go plenty fast. If someone has > > the means and interest to do so, they certainly shouldn't be scoffed at for > > choosing safe, light parts, (As Keith Bontrager once wrote, "Cheap. Light. > > Strong. Pick two.") just as we don't mock someone who wants to run fully > > fendered, racked and bagged all the time. Me? I'm kinda always banging > > back and forth between those ideals, which, once again, is why Grant's > > designs work so well - they allow you do continually tinker, hone and rerig > > in the manner that works for you right now. > > > There are times when it's fun to see who is fastest, or if you can nick some > > seconds off of a personal best time. There are times when it's tremendous > > to roll along among new and old friends. Whatever causes the most smiles > > per miles. I like to be the kind of person my dog thinks I am. I've been > > paying attention at the dog park, and notice that they lay about, loaf > > around, go flat-out-bat-outta-hell, carve crazy turns, get dirty, get out of > > breath and do it all over again. Which seems an appropriate goal for any > > bike ride. > > > The other thing that Patrick touches upon has to do with climbing on > > fixed-gear bicycles. It rocks. Utterly and completely. It hurts. Thoroughly > > and deeply. This last week, I've been switching back and forth between the > > Hilsen - a multi-geared and coastable setup - and the Quickbeam - which I > > run fixed most of the time. There's really no comparison. I can move up my > > regular climbs at a decent clip on the Hilsen, but it always feels like > > flyng (well, until you utterly, crushingly bonk) on the Quickbeam. The > > momentum of fixed gear systems is palpable. > > > all righty then... didn't mean to warble on at quite that length. > > > - Jim > > > -- > > Jim Edgar > > cyclofi...@earthlink.net > > > ³Velvet pillows, safari parks, sunglasses: people have become woolly mice. > > They still have bodies that can walk for five days and four nights through a > > desert of snow, without food, but they accept praise for having taken a > > one-hour bicycle ride.² - Tim Krabbe, "The Rider" > > > Cyclofiend Bicycle Photo Galleries -http://www.cyclofiend.com > > Current Classics - Cross Bikes > > Singlespeed - Working Bikes > > > Send In Your Photos! - Here's how:http://www.cyclofiend.com/guidelines > > > -- > > 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 > > athttp://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en. > > -- > Patrick Moore > Albuquerque, NM > For professional resumes, contact > Patrick Moore, ACRW at resumespecialt...@gmail.com -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. 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