LesterOfPuppets

I really miss this setup, but these barends had too much of a dogleg to them. I'll have to hunt for some less bent long barends, maybe figure out a way to run interrupter levers on the flatbar, too.

I spent most of my time on the barends, then moved to the flatbar for climbing.

Daniel4

Don't forget the underhand grip.

ClydeTim

I'm tempted to do an organized century on a MTB with knobbies as I know I will pass hundreds of riders in road bikes.

Then I'll go home and noodle around some more!

Maelochs

Totally failed to understand the thread (typical for a mountain biker, thinks clueless is cool) but did post some amazing photos so we will let it slide.

Maelochs

Yeah? Did you need to use the brakes a lot while climbing?

Repack Rider

The 26" tires I used on Century rides 35 years ago when I was selling bikes were not knobbies. The Cruiser Mit had a hard rubber strip down the center, and when you pumped them to 80psi they rolled like a road tire. I forgot to mention I built a set of extra-light wheels too.

The disadvantage to the 26" wheels is that they are heavier, which means you accelerate slower, but at 80psi the top speed was the same. I raced on the road, and I know how to maximize my effort, how to sit in and when to take a big pull. It's not like I passed a lot of riders just because I was on a mountain bike, but because I was a pretty good rider and the bike didn't make that much difference.

LesterOfPuppets

Nope. Thought some on the flats would be nice for riding more technical sections, though.

LesterOfPuppets

Probably ixnay on the obbiesknay, unless it's an offroad century.

kickstart

I agree about flat bars, personally I loathe them, and I do have a bike with drops for the usual reasons some folks choose them over flats.

I was simply pointing out there are other choices that meet or exceed the variety of positions drops offer, and that there are single position bars other than flats that provide day long comfort without the need for multiple positions.

Of course this is all subjective, as we all have different ergonomic and riding style needs. At one time I loved road bikes with drops, and tolerated flat bars because mountain biking was so much fun, but my preferences and riding style have changed (and now I'm more willing to try new things), so I have moved beyond them.

LesterOfPuppets

One of these days I'm gonna build some nice, light 26er wheels. I mean, with 350g rims out there, I might as well...

https://www.universalcycles.com/shop...s.php?id=24955

ClydeTim

You're right. I once did a local ride on my MTB with slicks. I caught and passed a cycling club of about 12 riders. They hopped my wheel. Later one of the club riders said, "you must be killer on a road bike!".

But yeah, now that you mention it, I'd go with slicks!

It is all about the rider, an MTB can be used for more than just noodling around if you make it do what you want!

HTupolev

The kicker is that with many riders it won't change perception at all. You can show up to a road group ride on a bike with drop handlebars and a road fit, and the tires might be slicks with very supple casing... but if they happen to be 2" wide and the bike has fenders, suddenly the fact that you're able to keep up makes you some kind of herculean beast.

ClydeTim

True! I was training for a big ride few years back. I rode my MTB on a road ride with a couple partners. We caught another group of 3 and they hopped on. I was at the front so one guy sprinted around. Heck,let's have some fun! I caught him and sat on his side so he could not claim I was drafting him. We left the other 4 behind. He looked over at me and said, "you realize you are doing 24 MPH, dontcha!?".

That was a pretty good speed for the terrain we were on at the time. But he thought I was some kind of god on 2.25 knobby tires!

I'm sure he could have beat me in the long run, I think, but we sure left our friends on road bikes far behind!

badger1

They are nice. I had a set built -- Mavic XC717 Disc on XT hubs w/db spokes around '08 -- great wheels. Very snappy when paired with suitable tires (on or off-road). Still going strong, as is the whole bike ('05 Giant Rainier, aka Blue Beast). On-road or off (with appropriate tires), still a great bike. I'll never get rid of it; rode my first (of three) solo century rides on it. Apologies for the crap pic.

kickstart

Funny, It reminds me of a time a guy on a road bike thought I was a beast because I kept up with him while riding my Dutch bike, when in truth it was simply a case of the tortoise and hare on bikes. He would drop me like a bad penny every time conditions allowed, but I would eventually catch up every time when he was recovering from his last sprint, or road conditions came into play.
Without a doubt I was clearly a much slower rider on a slower bike, but because I never went away his perception of my abilities was grossly overestimated.

Perception, accurate or not can have a powerful effect.

coominya

Your back wheel will lock if you apply enough pressure, obviously I wasn't that day though the last thing I expected was the front to lock. But this is just another characteristic of racers, with a super narrow tire and 120PSI pressure of course you have less traction. That IS physics in this world.

Yes, but I personally only know two people who died on a bike, and both were racers. One somehow lost it on a pedestrian bridge and broke his neck on a steel railing, the other was a young woman who was cleaned up by a truck while riding in a group down by the bay. Speed was no doubt a factor in both accidents but the fact is wider tires at lower pressures give better traction, allow you to turn faster due to that, especially on a loose surface.

I am not telling you guys what you should ride, I'm not saying racers are not good bikes, they are great, for what they are designed for, but you guys are carrying on like they have all the best aspects of every bike? Well they don't. They have limitations, just like every design.

Other bikes are now coming along, like the Giant Anyroad with it's 700x32c tires. A fast bike if that's what floats your boat. Personally I think the racer fad is passing into history with the advent of all these new designed hybrids. Sure there will always be true and semi pros, dedicated enthusiasts, all still wanting them, but many the coffee club set which make up the vast majority of those riding them now will transition when they perceive it's "cool" to do so.

Maelochs

Sorry to say this but you are being ridiculous. What, if they had been on MTBs they wouldn't have died?

Fact is, people die riding bikes all the time---all kinds of bikes. Riding a wide-tired bike won't keep you safe. I was run over by a semi-trailer on my full-suspension mountain bike.

[QUOTE=coominya;19317457]I am not telling you guys what you should ride, I'm not saying racers are not good bikes, they are great, for what they are designed for, but you guys are carrying on like they have all the best aspects of every bike? Well they don't. They have limitations, just like every design.[QUOTE=coominya;19317457] So do wide-tired, bikes, flat-bar bikes, unicycles, helicopters ... so in essence you are saying nothing.

What most people here are saying is that bikes designed to be ridden on the road tend to be more efficient when ridden on the road than bikes designed to do other things. You can ride an Abrams main battle tank if you are scared .... but you might find it hard to maneuver, and it burns tons of fuel.

No bike is fast. Riders are fast ... when they want to be.

I don't know exactly what argument you are trying to make here, and I am not sure you do either. please figure out exactly what it is you are trying to say, so we don't talk at cross purposes. This has gone on so long I cannot even remember where we started, and I am getting the feeling we may end up wandering int he wilderness. You are delusional.
Care to supply the raw data which led to this conclusion?

coominya

If you want to ride in a headwind all day feel free, Obviously you consider yourself a legend and no doubt take a day off work if it's really windy just so you can go out and prove to the world, and all the starlings watching from the trees, just how great you are
As for me I do my riding with an eye to the weather, sea breezes from the coast in the afternoon, that sort of thing

And yes yes yes, we all know how great drop bars are, we all KNOW about aero. Just some of us don't care if we have to ride at 30 km/h, we still get our fun and fitness, and actually have a better view of the road in the process.

As I call them? That's what they were called 30 years ago or have you forgotten? Or perhaps you really haven't been riding that long? And guess what, they still call them that, interchangeably with roadies. Your response to my calling them what they are is interesting though, you are obviously so caught up in the "roadie" image thing it's effecting your ability to see reality.

Here, let me help you back.

The racing bike proper has low dropped handlebars, very narrow tyres (20 to 25mm) and high gears. It's good for maximum speed on smooth roads
Racing Bike | Cycling UK

There are several important aspects to choosing a quality road / racing bicycle,
Road / Racing Bikes

A racing bicycle, also known as a road bike, is a bicycle designed for competitive road cycling, a sport governed by according to the rules of the Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI).
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Racing_bicycle

coominya

Probably not. If the woman was on an MTB it's doubtful she would be in a group flying down a busy road and distracted and hemmed in by the bikes around her. Similarly the guy on the bridge would have no doubt been going slower and even if he'd lost control not broken his neck.

You're arguments are pointless, indefensible. You insist on claiming that a road bike is as safe on any hard surface as any other bike but a narrow pedestrian bridge is not the place to be racing. Nor along the verge of a busy road with trucks plying back and forth. I don't ride those busy roads but I'm sure you do all the time. Let's hope you're not the next news snippet.

As for the rest of your post it's all just the rantings of an angry old man and I wont engage in it. This forum has standards and if you can't accept that people have other opinions than your own then that's your problem.

Maelochs

Okaym, but the article doesn't equate "road bike" and "racing bike" and doesn't ever use the term "racer." The article simple says that racing bikes have drop bars ... which I am sure will astound a lot of MTB and downhill racers.

Again, no equivlaency between "road" and "racing" bike and no mention of the word "racer."

Of course, this ignores the fact that most bikes 40 or 50 years ago were very much "Road" bikes but didn't have drop bars--and ALL bikes were designed for the road. There simply were no "off-road" bikes. All bikes were designed to be ridden mainly on roads, with the ability to handle the occasional unpaved driveway or lane.

So by your definition, VERY bike was a "racer," until they actually developed racing bikes ... and then every bike was still a "racer," including bikes designed not to be raced but merely ridden on the road.

In fact, "English Racer" referred to steel bikes, often with three-speed hubs, and upright riding positions with swept bars. (1965 Rudge DeLuxe 3 Spd English Racer, Raleigh 2030, Sturmey Archer, Brooks B72 | eBay) (1950's English Racer BICYCLE Young Man Automobile ORIGINAL PHOTOGRAPH | eBay)

Let me also point out that until sometime in the 70s, there Were no bike tires more than about 1.5 inches wide. There was no "mountain biking" and there were no "mountain bike" tires. So again, it seems Every bike was a "racer" until mountain bikes were developed in the early '70s---if we use your ridiculous definitions.

Face it, so long as you are trying to win a fight on the Internet, you will never succeed.

Please do as I asked: refine and define your message so that people can respond. This pointless wandering gainsaying isn't really helping anyone.

coominya

I have never used IAB or barends but for a change of pace on long straights I often put the heel of my palms on the grips and wrap my fingers around the v-brake controls. that's on an older Giant MTB I ride road with. The new hybrid has very little up top to grip onto in that regard.

coominya

Sorry mello, I put you and your abusive mate on the p*ssoff list. I don't want to involved in pointless squabbling.
This is a curtsy post.

Maelochs

Well .... I guess some people want to fight but also need everyone to agree with them. Maybe someday he will learn to actually form ideas and discuss them.

fietsbob

Why do you ask so many questions?

trail_monkey

Round 15.........