Did a ride on the Ridley today. It was a very short one--about 20+ miles.
Went out to Wilson Point where I shot this picture of it:
She's definitely a stiffer ride than the Giant. At one point, while going over bumps in the road, I nearly lost hold of the handlebars due to the stiffness. On the Giant, I could hold the bars more lightly. The Ridley will buck you off if you don't watch out.
I'm reserving judgment on the shifters. I'm going to have to relearn how to shift with them. My brain hasn't caught on to which paddle to press for up and down shifting. Fortunately, braking is accomplished the same way as the Shimano shifters.
Speaking of brakes--$%#@%@ squeaky friggin things! The rear finally quieted down, but the front are still howling.
I guess I need to ride with grungy braking surfaces on the rims before they'll quiet down.
So, I spent a little bit of time, today, getting to know some of the characteristics of this bike. Shifting was good, but I did have a little bit of cable stretch I had to tune out at one point--no biggie. The ride is stiff, but I didn't go ape-$hit on it until I build more confidence in it's shifting and that I'm not going to fall on my face due to a missed shift or the cable sticking somewhere causing an incomplete shift.
As far as my position on the bike, dumb luck was on my side. I didn't take any measurements from the Giant, because it's a compact frame and the Ridley is "conventional" (i.e., non-sloping top bar.) Looks like I'm not going to have to change anything at this point. I felt good on the tops, hoods, and drops.
There's a little problem in the drops--I can't get to the upshift paddle on the shifter as easily. The paddle is very accessible from the hood, but not quite so from the drops.
What's more, the shifter is not stealthy. It has a definite audible click for each shift made. This won't be good for trying to get the jump on the pack or an opponent while racing.
CLACK! ...CLACK! CLACK! ...CLACK!
Tonight, I will be mounting my studded tires. They need to be "ridden in" for 25 miles according to Schwalbe. Twenty-five slow miles with rolling resistance. Sounds like fun. NOT!