do you like the feel of the road?

[LordOpie]

I tested Lemond Sarthe & Buenos Aries and Fuji Pro today.

The Sarthe is an amazing bike. It took the bumps and vibrations out of the road like i've never experienced. I almost felt numb. The BA let me feel the road more and felt better. The Pro seemed to give me the right amount of feel, but I only rode that for 10 minutes and it was too big. The right size bike didn't show up on the truck today.

I'm certain that I'd appreciate the Sarthe on longer rides, but almost felt disconnected. I'm not saying you should like or dislike the road either way, but...

How much of the road do you like to feel?

[ultra-g]

It should feel like I'm not on road but a soft mat, like a wrestling mat. But without the rolling resistance.

I hope you get the Sarthe. Steel is the BEST frame material.

I ride in NYC so steel takes out a lot of the vibrations from the horrible street conditions.

My steel bikes are a huge difference from the aluminum Lanster I was riding before. HUGE DIFFERENCE.

[el twe]

Love it, when there's a frame, some various parts, and two tires between it and me. Otherwise, ouch. No. Hate it.

[SDS]

Well, the question is, is brand-new perfectly smooth asphalt preferable for bike riding to more deformed, rougher surfaces? Is any vibration at all more fatiguing over 300K than no vibration?

If your answers to these questions are yes, then the appropriate amount of "road feel" is zero. Smooth glass would be the best surface, and the only vibration we would feel (yuck) would be from the drivetrain and maybe the bearings.

I really and truly hate riding in the rain, for a bunch of reasons. But one thing the water does do, is fill in some of the pits in the road and smooth out the ride. Of course, the drag goes up too. Druther have a smooth, DRY road.

Sooo....if I could afford a Novocaine bike, all CF, maybe with elastomer dampers here and there, I might buy one.

As it is, though, I need a 100-mile tolerable bike that does everything well and sprints exceptionally well, and that determines the price point at which I buy.

Others will know more about this than I do, but road bike design is driven by descent from race bike design, with the rules for the design set by the UCI. And they do not like new ideas much, unless they were invented and introduced by a European bike maker. I wonder what we do not have that we would have save for strictures set by the rules. Could we, for example, have smaller suspended wheels, driven by a two-stage drivetrain with a jackshaft in the middle to get the gearing back up to where it needed to be? Would such a bike be faster or better over rougher roads? Would this allow us to consider roads now thought to be too rough for group rides on $2500 ultralight-component bikes?

[LordOpie]

Ultra, the Fuji Pro is steel too (853).

SDS, very interesting points you make.

[ultra-g]

I thought the Fuji Pro was carbon. Did you test the '04 Roubaix Pro? That's pretty nice.

Their only steel bike for '05 is the standard Track bike I think.

The LeMond Poprad was the only bike I was able to find (other than a custom built bike) that uses Reynolds 853. The bike shop said Reynolds 853 went up in prices this year so there aren't too many companies using it. The OX Platinum close to it though I think.

[53-11_alltheway]

I tested Lemond Sarthe & Buenos Aries and Fuji Pro today.

The Sarthe is an amazing bike. It took the bumps and vibrations out of the road like i've never experienced. I almost felt numb. The BA let me feel the road more and felt better. The Pro seemed to give me the right amount of feel, but I only rode that for 10 minutes and it was too big. The right size bike didn't show up on the truck today.

I'm certain that I'd appreciate the Sarthe on longer rides, but almost felt disconnected. I'm not saying you should like or dislike the road either way, but...

How much of the road do you like to feel?

Hmmmm. Might be the wheelset. Either that or it's the frame/fork.

[shiftinjon]

.....

[spinhappy]

Hmmm....like the bears in Goldilocks, there's too hot, too cold, and just right, which for me is somewhere in between. Don't want no feel, or too much. Highly subjective, I know.

I've been following your thread on searching out a new bike because I think your comments on the forum make sense. Good luck and happy hunting!

[53-11_alltheway]

Wait a minute, Were the tires inflated to the same pressure? LOL..I just thought of that.

[LordOpie]

I thought the Fuji Pro was carbon. Did you test the '04 Roubaix Pro? That's pretty nice.
sorry, yeah, the '04.
.
Hmmm....like the bears in Goldilocks, there's too hot, too cold, and just right, which for me is somewhere in between. Don't want no feel, or too much. Highly subjective, I know.
i think you and I are similar in that regard.

[LordOpie]

Wait a minute, Were the tires inflated to the same pressure? LOL..I just thought of that.
yeah, I was real particular with the guys for an apples-to-apples comparison. I almost made them put my saddle on the three bikes. The wheels were stock to each bike.

But I'm wondering how much of the road people like? SDS makes a good point about not feeling it, but I felt weird being detached. I supposed I'd get used to it.

How about you Brett, whatcha like?

[molten]

SDS hates the rain; I don't like the rain either. Threre's others that claim to like the rain (some say to like it a lot). I feel the best with traction/speed --- when the road is slightly wet. A bare film of water. The grip/speed has (noticeably) fully changed. But when the road has collected too much rain, that oil spreads around. The only darn thing that takes away the feel --- of when the road = dry is when there's that wind.

[Shifty]

When you gonna try the Cannondale LO? Is there a Burley dealer there, if your looking a steel, they make a nice frame, try the Wolf Creek.

[LordOpie]

When you gonna try the Cannondale?
when they stop filing for bancruptcy :lol:

[ultra-g]

.....

Another educated opinion from a Jr. High School student. This one gets a gold star.