Originally Posted by
TandemGeek
You make a great point that is easily missed here in the Southeast and for recreational / sport riders like myself who can choose not to ride in wet weather without missing all that much ride time. It's analagous to why I like having a shaft drive vs chain on my motorcycle, which does get ridden regardless of the weather.
Thanks for the recalibration for regional / riding differences; that's a huge plus that weighs in favor of the belt that just wasn't registering with me.
In CA, the climate consists of a wet season (winter) and a dry season (rest of the year). Sure there are months with no rain in the summer, but I remember a few years ago there was a time around march with more than 30 consecutive days of rain! That would be a long time without riding, so we chose to face the elements.
Besides the regional element, there are commuters (ok, not really tandem related for most), like me the past few years, who ride their bike just like others drive or take the bus (rain or shine).
I think a belt/Rohloff single bike would be a pretty cool idea. My wife and I plan on getting a couple of custom Bike Friday Tikits for commuting, errands (shopping) and traveling (think hopping on trains, etc). I wonder how much a belt/Rohloff one would cost, or if Rohloff even makes the proper sized hub. I know I could get the cheaper 8 speed varients, but a 14-speed would be slick!