My only thought to add to the pile is Sean Kelly didn't seem to be hampered on his old twist -o -flex Vitus. I thought mine was down right scary in a sprint. My second worst bike I had the builder "Make it as stiff as possible". I was a big guy (165 lbs) at the time. It was fun to ride for about an hour on a smooth crit course. An hour on a bumpy road was more than plenty and I just wanted off. So my final answer is yes and no. Horses for courses.