Funkywheels63

My eyes have been open. who would have thought.

DQRider 

Bridgestone is where Grant (Rivendell) Petersen got his start in the bike biz.
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big john

Like many Japanese corporations, they are a conglomerate.

"The predecessors of Bridgestone began making diversified products[28] in the 1930s, soon after they started making tires. Today, Bridgestone diversified operations encompass automotive components, industrial products, polyurethane foam products, construction materials, parts and materials for electronic equipment, bicycles and sporting goods. Diversified business generates about one-fourth of total sales in the Bridgestone Group.

Automotive parts are an especially large line of business for Bridgestone in diversified operations. Bridgestone supplies automakers with vibration-isolating components, such as engine mounts. Bridgestone also supplies air springs for trucks, automobiles and train carriages. Bridgestone market aluminium wheels and other automotive accessories, too."

Hypno Toad

My favorite part about the Bridgestone bikes ... When Japanese bikes were hot in the 70s and 80s, Bridgestone created Kabuki bikes to sound Japanese

https://www.sheldonbrown.com/japan.html#kabuki

big john

That's funny. Marketing people, sheesh. The Bridgestone bikes of the 80s-90s were fine without any marketing weirdness.

Wildwood

@macstuff
39/19 gearing with 27” wheels rolling 25mph = you one fast spinner above 140 rpm. How do you keep your feet on those flat pedals at that cadence?

Or maybe check the accuracy of your speedometer.

Exhilaration is a powerful force, beyond all logic.

Mtl01

My new Domane al5. First road bike since the mid 80's. Very smooth ride and crisp shifting. Love it so far, lol.

macstuff

Not really, It comes out to roughly 56if and 75if for 1st and 2nd. Maybe you thought it was a single speed?
It rolls easily at 25 in 2nd with normal cadence. Getting it up to 30+ gets it spinning pretty fast.
You can see my speedo on the handlebars. its a cheap XOSS but its wireless GPS so I don't think there is much wiggle room there. You can also see the Zefal strapless toe clips. Those help a lot with changing gears and zipping around.
I built it to do 25 easily because that's as fast as I should be going with one arm.
I just meander and clip around on flat terrain here in Tucson

big john

I don't think I ever had a bike that would roll easily @25mph unless it was pointed downhill. Also, if I have to go 30mph I have to work pretty hard.

Wildwood

Yes, thought single speed.
See, what do I know?!?



but,
I really wanted to know which alien species could spin 140rpm with platform pedals

Wildwood

“e-“ are bikes, too.

but again = what do I know?!?

N2deep

Im down to two bikes, a Trek SLR Domane, a sweet ride, and a Surly Straggler built for those gravel roads.

cyclezen

Quote:
Originally Posted by Wildwood View Post
@macstuff
39/19 gearing with 27” wheels rolling 25mph = you one fast spinner above 140 rpm. How do you keep your feet on those flat pedals at that cadence?
Or maybe check the accuracy of your speedometer.
Exhilaration is a powerful force, beyond all logic.

still seems a bit of ET cycling...
the S2C mulitples at 138% - so your tall gear for a 39/19 would work out to 78" - which at 25 mph means 112 rpm - and if you adjust for 27 vs 700 about 8 mm - that now gives close to 110 rpm Normal.... ? with flat pedals ?
you're a better man than I, Gungha Din...
reminds me of the guys in ski forum posting their 'speed' on a 'groomer', on 170 cm skis - 77 mph - GPS verified of course... not in aero tuck and with ski jacket and bibs,,,, LOL!
consumer GPS - I'm not convinced...
Ride On
Yuri

ofajen

Regardless of gearing or cadence, pushing an upright bike through the air at 25 mph will be a lot of work. Somewhere in the range of 400 to 500 watts. Does anyone call that easy?

I purposely set up my old MTB with touring bars like this to ensure I could work hard without going too fast on our local trails. Just holding 20 mph is easily 250 watts unless I shift forward to a lower body angle.

This air drag is actually something that helps single speed make more sense. Even with a tolerable hill climbing gear of 64 gear inches, by the time I start to feel I’m spinning really fast, I’m also working really hard, even on the flats.


Otto

Gravel Rider

Bombtrack Hook.

jaxgtr

here are my main two rides. Trek Emonda ALR 2016



Trek Domane SLR7 2021

Trsnrtr

ColonelSanders

How similar is the ride of these two bikes?

Would it be difficult to make do with just one of them and if you were to pick only one of them to have, which one would it be?

classic carl

You old guys have some nice bikes. I'll post photos of mine later. I'm told that I need at least 10 posts before I can post photos. I just bought myself a 2022 Trek Emonda SL 5 about a month ago to go along with my 2002 Klein Quantum.

I now have 10 posts.

jaxgtr

Hmmm, hard question. I honestly thought about selling the Emonda when I got the Domane, but there are some differences in the 2 that are noticeable outside of frame material and weight, so I hung on to both. I have had a longer time to futz with and get ALR perfectly setup, where I am still tweaking the Domane here and there. The ALR is 54cm and the Domane is 52cm, but the overall geometries were pretty close, everything within a few mm of each other. The 52cm frame on the Domane felt better than the 54cm, but as I started stretching more I was starting to feel a little cramped, so I recently moved the Domane to a 100mm stem and that seemed to help a bunch. The ALR has such an smooth comfortable ride, but I just recently changed my wheels from the older Aeolus 5 non TLR to the Aeolus Pro 5 TLR, which made things even better now that they are tubeless. The ALR is mechanical\Rim, the Domane is Di2\Disc, I freaking love Di2, but the Ultegra mechanical just shifts perfectly and my ALR frame is not setup to run internal Di2 cables and I am not a fan of SRAM, so I will keep the mechanical Ultegra. I live in a very flat part of the world and bombing down a mountain and having to worry about melting a rim brake surface is not a concern, so having or not having disc is not in my top 100 must haves on a bike, but since you really can't get a new bike without it, not much I can do there. The only other thing I might change would be the cranks, the Domane came with 170mm, which I should have changed out to 172.5 when I ordered the bike, but I did not, so I will probably make that change in the near future. The Domane does ride like a dream and really eliminates a boatload of crappy road surface beating, so for super long distances, it is really, really nice to have. I have carbon bar and seat post on my ALR, and the fork on the ALR is the same fork that is on the Emonda SLR, so the ride is unbelievable smooth for an aluminum frame.

However, having said all of that, if I only could keep 1, as it stands today, I would keep the ALR. It's just that damn good. I figure I will find that same level of comfort in my Domane soon, as I am very close.

edit: I also just ordered some Aeolus Pro 51 wheels for the Domane, suppose to be here late Nov. I like the 50mm deep wheels.

jaxgtr

I was seriously looking at the Emonda SLR last year, but ended up going to the Domane. Do you have it yet, or is it on order?

classic carl

I picked it up on September 27th. What a sweet ride. I was originally looking at the ALR, but was talked into spending another grand for the carbon frame SL. I'm glad I did. The shop owner, who sold me my Klein 20 years ago, said that although I was getting disc brakes and new components, the ALR ride quality might not be an upgrade over my aluminum frame Klein. He also said that the Klein might even be a smoother ride than the ALR. I rode the SL for about a mile and a half on a not so smooth road and I was ready to buy it. I didn't ride the ALR.

I was lucky to get it though. When I originally stopped in early September to see what they had, they told me there was a 58cm ALR comng and a SL 5 in silver in early October. I stopped in one day after a ride a week or so later and there were several boxes of bikes on the floor. There was a 52, 54, 56, and a 58cm SL 5 in blue, which is the color I preferred anyway. I asked if it was sold, the owner said no, and I told him to build it. He thought I didn't want a blue one, and the employee I originally talked to wasn't aware that the blue ones were on their way. The silver one still hasn't arrived as of yesterday.

I see you're from Jacksonville. My wife's brother lives in Orange Park on Fleming Island. I've been there a couple of times, but haven't ridden there.

classic carl

Nice Klein. I love my plum crazy 2002 Quantum.

DQRider 

Please pardon my repost, but I recall having almost this same discussion on the Old English 3-Speeds thread:

Hypno Toad

^^^ That's why I always draft a roadie when riding my upright city bike

True stories:
I've received some props from a local B group when I held their wheel while commuting home, I got dropped once the road got hillier and I was heavy with laptop, clothes, and other commuter crap.
I've been yelled at for drafting a roadie on a busy greenway, so I passed and dropped them. (Bluntly stated, on Midtown Greenway in Minneapolis during rush hour, it's damned hard not to end up pacing someone ... so many bikes and few options to safely pass)

Full-on Fred kit with my Globe Daily 2: