My vote for the two best improvements in road bikes for Clydes
 

Shallow drop road bars
10 cog setups
Life became immensely easier with both.:D

This forum and quality built trikes!

Roubaix / Defy / H2 fit.... I like the taller head tubes. :)

10 speed really? I was fine with 8 speed but upgraded after shifter failure to 9 speed only because it was more available at the time and found killer deals. Like DA 9 speed shiftrers $199 and DA 9 speed rear derailleur for $69.

Maybe the "low gear" would make things easier for riders but 10 cogs? Not really sure how much better 10 would be than 9, and 11 cogs? Functionally why?

10 gears isn't that big of a difference... 9 compared to 7 was huge, 10 is a "nice to have" thing and I really couldn't care less about 11, particularly since there are some technical reasons to avoid it for big butted riders.

Basically, you get one more cog somewhere in the middle of the range, which is nice when you're riding on a flat river path and the gear you're in is slighly too low and the next one up is slightly too high.

10 speed drive trains are less durable overall though, which is a negative.

TH wants a singlespeed:p

Agree! Gina has 10 speed, I have 9. Tuning the bikes etc, I don't see much of a difference from one to another.

I have had buddies thrash 10 speed chains quickly on 10 speed systems. Although I believe they have solved some issues with 10 speed wear, I don't see the need or where it would make life "easier".


My vote would be Deep V rims (or other 30 mm rims).

Some who prefer doubles might suggest compact cranks.

I want a single speed like I want a hole in my head - my knees need gears.

Sturdy rims is a definite plus, I used to fiddle with spokes all the time just to keep the brakes from rubbing.

Setback seatposts so my bike shorts don't get ripped on the saddle rail clamping mechanism. I trashed new good shorts in less than 100 miles after a bike fit where the saddle was moved back.
Stem-mount bells. I get great pleasure ding-ding-dinging other cyclists when I am secretly turning myself inside out trying to pass them.

Huh, I <3 my traditional drops, and I would be just as happy with an old drivetrain as long as I had a triple up front to replace my compact + 11-28 10spped cassette. What I like -- being able to find cycling clothes in Athena sizes that are actually curvy -- it's still difficult but no longer impossible. And clipless pedals, because we need all the help we can get on hills.

And it's not new, but the current fad for slightly wider roadie tires is nice, since filling a tire to 120psi with a bike-mountable pump stinks.

Carbon fiber forks. Light but absorb road vibrations. Steel is nice, but heavy ;)

Deep-V rims. I won't use them (I don't care for the deep-v look, in all honesty) but I can't argue with other's success!

Relaxed geometry and 25mm or wider tires.

Also in the running for my list:

- shallow drop bars
- wider rims to improve the profile of wider tires
- the "right" seat
- stems with a bit of a rise

Shallow drop bars - just installed some today.... and I like the uber strong Deep V rims.

I went from 7 (on a 92 Paramount) to 10 (on a CF Motobecane )
9 is a huge step up and he 10 simply made it nicer
I also went from downtube to brifter
and from deep drop bars to a much shallower drop.
After 40 years with downtube shifters it's second nature shifting em so I didn't include them in making life easier.
The multiple cog allows for that close increment 'one step' that can make all the difference on a long ride into the wind or on steeply rolling terrain.
Becoming addicted to the one step, I've converted the Paramount to a 9 cog setup in the back (keeping the downtube shifting via a set of dura ace shifters)
I could have gone with brifters on the Paramount but all I really wanted was the easier gear selection and to eliminate the pain in the shoulder blade position the older bars gave on long rides.
I posted the two that made life easier for me.

+1

I recently switched over my bar-end shifters to Retroshift brifters. Wow, what a difference! I must have gotten shift-lazy with the bar ends in my old age. I found that with my tightly spaced 12-28 10 speed, I would only make the effort to move my hands back to shift when the terrain really called for it. By then, I'd have to go up/down 2+ cogs which sort of defeats the purpose of having a 10 speed. With the brifters, I shift more often staying in a more efficient cadence band. Could be placebo effect, but I was a little faster and felt fresher after a hilly 75 miler yesterday.

I also swapped out my Nitto B115 for a Ritchey Curve shallow drop compact bar. With the brifters and new bar, it's like a new bike!

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=302381

Triple crank with 22 cog
36 spoke wheels.

Before I lost 27 lbs. last summer, I NEEDED my triple chainring up the hills:)


That is why I <3 CO2

1) Clipless pedals.

2) Dual pivot brakes (with improved levers and pads very closely related).

I just went from 9 to 10 speed and with an wide(r) range (11-28) cassette it's pretty noticeable. The advantage of 11 speed IMO would be the benefits of a tighter range 11/12-25 10 speed cassette with a 28T bailout gear for the hills. No more need to swap on a climbing cassette for those who prefer tight range cassettes on the flats. However, with 11 speed I wouldn't look forward to replacing the chain every six months.

11 speed will soon be common on higher end bikes. The primary advantage of the 11 speed cassette is the 16 cog on both the 12-17 and the 12-29. The 16 cog might be missed by a expert cyclist who wants to stay in the 85 to 95 cadence range while fighting a headwind or climbing a 2 to 6% slope.

The 11-23 includes- 11,12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,21,23
The 11-25 includes- 11,12,13,14,15,16,17,19,21,23,25
The 12-25 includes- 12,13,14,15,16,17,18,19,21,23,25
The 12-27 includes- 12,13,14,15,16,17,19,21,23,25,27
The 12-29 includes- 12,13,14,15,16,17,19,21,23,26,29

I have a 3x7 on my 1983 Trek, It has 52/40/28 and a 13-24 freewheel
I have a 3x8 on my 1985 Serotta, It has 52/42/30 and a 12-28 cassette
I have a 3x9 on my Monstercross bike, It has 48/36/22 and a 12-27 cassette
I have a 3x10 on my 2012 road bike, It has 50/39/26 and a 12-27 cassette
I have a 3x10 on my 2012 Cyclocross bike, It has 50/39/26 and a 12-30 cassette

All of these triples can keep a tight cadence on flatter sections and provide the bail-out gearing I like to have on hilly century rides.

Gotta go with mountain cranks and stout wheels!

Mtb cranks have a wider spindle length then roadie cranks, so it wouldn't fit the bottom bracket shell of a roadie frame.

Mounting a MTB crank on a road frame can be done, easily in most cases. Matching a road front derailleur to the MTB cranks is the bigger problem. Here I was just able to get the front derailleur to span the range needed to shift this 48/36/22 Deore triple with brifters.

http://i289.photobucket.com/albums/l...t/CX700003.jpg

Running an M591 22/32/44 and 11-32 on rear with Tiagra STI's on my Disc LHT. Need appropriate rear derailleur of course.