Originally Posted by
ColonelSanders
To piggyback on this question, I have seen some bikes(perhaps older bikes) where the top tube slants forward and I would imagine so would the rider's weight more so, than if the top tube was horizontal.
What is the thinking behind this kind of design?
Like this kind of thing?
I believe this design was initiated for time trial and track bikes as a way to keep the front end small and low for aerodynamic advantage.
Haro, most famously, aped that style during the late '80s for their MTB bikes, but it was purely an aesthetic affectation, I believe. I can't imagine what practical advantage it may have had, and anyway, the feature has utterly vanished on modern bicycles, so if there was a greater (or more specific) purpose, it has probably been addressed in material design.
