Originally Posted by
mdilthey
Group riding is a big question mark, but I can move pretty quickly at the top end of my cassette. The group riding I do is primarily century rides and randonneur-style events, so pounding away at the pedals on downhill sections isn't a necessity. I can clock up to 35mph pretty easily using my 38-11 ratio to accelerate into an aero tuck. My cadence will not be perfect, so that's another sacrifice.
The motivation for losing the front derailleur is pretty much exactly what you're talking about- I do a LOT of off-roading, bikepacking, and exploring. I jump curbs and slam roots and bounce over dry streambeds. I drop my chain pretty regularly; you can see the scratches on my old crank arms, and my new ones unfortunately...:
There are other benefits. A simpler system reduces maintenance, reduces potential problems with mud, ice, the errant crash, etc. It reduces the spare cables I need to carry in remote areas. No cable routing along the bottom bracket reduces the potential for freezing and/or corrosion. The weight savings isn't first on my list, but it's considerable; I lose a cable, housing, a chainring, a front derailleur, and a shifter.
From a riding perspective, it is absolutely beautiful to never worry about cross-chaining (assuming I adjust my chainline- you guys were right, it leans towards the smaller side of my cassette. I will have to move the chainring). The bike responds instantly to a gear shift, from the lowest to the highest gear.
Right now I'm enjoying the positives. Time will tell if the drawbacks begin to outweigh them. I have my front derailleur and my compact double rings in a box, waiting to be called upon if I need them.
Many of your benefits are not issues for most people truth be told. Front cable breaks (never happened to me in over 20,000 miles) take the damn thing off or leave it and fix it into position and keep going. Needs little to no maintenance even when the cable gets gummed up, it still generally works ok, unlike a rear der.
The main reason a 1x system makes sense is for positive chain retention...but like I said, for a properly 2x setup system, it is generally not a problem unless racing cross or at XC race pace.
Don't discount technique involved in riding smooth either, I notice a lot of the lower cats at the cross races drop chains a lot more often than the upper cats. Shifting at the right times, not cross chaining, etc also has a lot to do with it.