I <3 friction. It gives me a more relaxed "in-tune" feeling when riding, and minimizes shifting itself so I can HTFU more. I have to choose my gear wisely because I know I'm not going to reach down and shift again while I'm going up that hill. If I wanted a race bike, sure I'd go for indexing and brifters, but that is not my goal at all. I also <3 the ease of maintenance. Tighten cables once a year and never have to go to the shop for a tune-up. It's simple enough to do all the work on my own, in my spare time.