"tire weight is virtually irrelevant."

Unless you have to carry the bike. :-)

Whoa! Isn't that a bit like going up hill? Do we get the extra half a kilo up there without an increase in energy expenditure? Do you have anti-matter tyres, Charles? Actually half a kilo is less than the weight of a full water bottle. But, still, yannow....

"I'm not a big fan of suspension on upright (as opposed to recumbent) bicycles. It is often lossy'

That's what Jur said in his eloquent list of generalisations. Come on Charles, you know that bouncing around on a fat floppy tyre heats the air inside it through compression and flexes the tyre wall. That's a bit, um, er lossy, isn't it? Stiffen up, man!

Oh you have. That suspension fork on your 'bent looks just like the one on a DownTube/Origami. You see, you know you like suspension, really. No fat heavy tyres on that.

Anyway. None of this matters. Who cares what the OP rides? We want him to be happy. He can have fat, heavy, lossy, flexy tyres full of hot air instead of suspension if he wants. :-)

Actually, in response the criticisms, obviously unfounded, that Big Apples were fat, heavy and slow, Schwalbe brought out Big Apple Liteskins a while ago. Anyone weighed those?

(Hi Jur)