I agree with Patrick, both about bar placement and wheel weight impact on speed, but with one small distinction. I ride all my bikes with the bars 2 cm (3/4") below the saddle and all of them within 1cm of the same distance from the saddle. In that position I am about 75% on the hooks and 25% on the drops, which I usually save for either downhill or strong headwinds, when I stay on them much longer.
My Ram has Grand Bois Cerf 29mm & the Saluki has 38mm Pari-Motos. There is no difference in the "speed" of the bikes. They roll on flats at similar speeds and downhill very much the same. However the Ram/Grand Bois combination is quicker. It accelerates a little better and climbs, which is a form of constant acceleration, a little better. Not a lot better, just a little better. Michael On Tuesday, July 16, 2013 8:26:57 PM UTC-4, Patrick Moore wrote: > > I used to think that small wheels were faster; I am no longer sure that > they are. But I am convinced that light wheels, whether big or small, are > faster up hills, helped by low weight overall. > > What I notice with the light wheels of the gofast is how well the bike > climbs. What I notice with heavier and larger wheels, shod with good road > tires, and with fixed drivetrains, is how they seem to maintain speed > better. > > Comfort: I suspect all kinds of things, but what I consistently > "experience" is that the custom Rivs seem unnaturally smooth for their > small and skinny tires. Sure, the 700C Parigi Roubaix at 60/70 are > smoother, and the 700CX62 mm Big Apples at sub 20 are smoother still; but > what I notice is that even the excessively skinny (and to be replaced, with > 25s, when I have some spare $$) Pro Race 3s, at ~90, are surprisingly > smooth given how much thinner they are -- and I've wondered if the long -- > ~45 cm -- stays on the Rivs contribute to this. > > I really don't know all of the factors that make for the "spriteliness" of > the gofast; I guess it's a combination of light weight, light wheels, good > tires, perfect setup, and then the geometry and setup that fit my pedaling > style -- I'm happy mashing and experience distress when I have to spin too > fast. Butt back on the saddle, pressure on the pedals, cadence at no more > than 90 rpm and very well lower, elbows bent, hands resting lightly on the > hoods -- that is the "ideal" pedaling situation for me. > > Approaching the question of smoothness from the other direction: I have > consistently noticed that 29" X 60+ tires at sub 20 float over sand and > washboard type bumps better than 26" 60+ at the same pressure. > > On Tue, Jul 16, 2013 at 5:53 PM, JL <[email protected] <javascript:>>wrote: > >> Patrick, >> >> How much would you estimate the wheel size has to do with the speed and >> comfort between the two bikes as well? >> >> Jason >> SF, CA >> >> On Jul 16, 2013, at 3:44 PM, Patrick Moore <[email protected]<javascript:>> >> wrote: >> >> Rode South from my mother's house to home this afternoon, on the Ram, the >> freewheel taking advantage of the ~400 foot descent. Just shy of 17 mph >> average clock running. 70" gear all the way. SE 3/4 sidewind; 5 miles of >> the 11 in the hooks. On t'way back, rode the '99 Joe gofast fixed gear, >> same SE sidewind, 400 foot climb, 3/4 of which on one 4/10 mile hike up the >> side of the mesa. Just shy of 15 mph clock running. >> >> The Ram has very nice, plump 30 mm Parigi Roubaix, tho' not the original >> hand glued ones; the gofast has supple but too skinny 22 mm Michelin Pro >> Race 3s. >> >> As much as I like the Ram, the gofast just "feels" bester and fatter -- I >> mean, better and faster. Usually on a fixed at 65" to 70" I bail for the >> last 2/10 mile on the steep climb, for the steepest section, but I >> consistently make it all the way up on the gofast despite the higher gear >> (I climb it in a 50" on the Ram). >> >> Somehow, the '99 has hit all the magic numbers: setback, tilt, height, >> bar height, reach, lever angle, bar angle. The '03 errand Curt that largely >> mimics the '99 is very close but not exact; I tilted the bar upward a wee >> bit yesterday and now it is almost spot on. >> >> The Ram, I think, needs the bar to come up 1/4" or so: right now it is >> about 1/2" higher than those of the two customs, but with a 9 cm stem >> instead of 8s, about 1/2" further forward (saddle much the same). I did >> raise the brake levers about 1/2", so I'll try that before fiddling with >> bar height. Noodles (Ram, more drop, 90/140 versus Maes copies' 115/125; >> Noodle 42 at hoods versus 37 or so for the Maes copies.) >> >> -- >> >> http://resumespecialties.com/index.html >> [email protected] <javascript:> >> http://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickmooreresumespec/ >> >> >> Albuquerque, NM >> >> -- >> 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] <javascript:>. >> To post to this group, send email to >> [email protected]<javascript:> >> . >> Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. >> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out. >> >> >> >> -- >> 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] <javascript:>. >> To post to this group, send email to >> [email protected]<javascript:> >> . >> Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. >> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out. >> >> >> > > > > -- > > http://resumespecialties.com/index.html > [email protected] <javascript:> > http://www.linkedin.com/in/patrickmooreresumespec/ > > > Albuquerque, NM > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. 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