Originally Posted by
Sangetsu
Racers have been using 700c bikes for decades, and not because smaller wheels are faster. You'll sometimes see old time trial bikes with 650cc front wheels, but this was done for aerodynamic efficiency rather than because the smaller wheel is faster.
Well - that's a bit of an invalid argument. In the first place there are no small wheelers in official competitions because they have been forbidden to take part in those races 50 years ago. Not because they would be slower but because they would possibly be faster (as proven by Mr. Moulton and his mates). There are no recumbents in these kind of competitions either as those have also been forbidden (as early as in the 1930ies) - because they were massively faster than conventional road-bikes (and still clearly are). Aerodynamics are not the least reason for a bike being faster in a race btw...
Originally Posted by
Sangetsu
I've raced in the pro peleton, and the thought of trying to keep up on any 20" bike is enough to make me laugh.
There's enough evidence through the various records held by moulton bikes that this laughter may be misled. A Birdy is not designed to be a race bike, some moultons are to a degree. As small-wheelers are not allowed in official races there is no point for manufacturers in developing small-wheelers dedicated to racing. Still at least the Moultons seem to be more than competitive though having a huge disadvantage in weight. If the same effort towards developing a dedicated racer that went into conventional bikes was put in small-wheelers I could imagine they could be more than competitive. We will never know.