Originally Posted by Iride01

If you are relatively satisfied with your cycling so far and don't need to go farther and longer, then no, there isn't anything special about the new stuff.

I can ride my old '78 Raleigh with six speeds on the rear just about as well on a 22 mile ride around here as I can my more modern Tarmac. The difference only appears when I'm trying to get that last fraction of a mph more average speed or ride for much longer periods at a time at a high effort.

But if you like riding relaxed and not so high effort, you probably won't see much except the novelty of more speeds on the rear. And maybe a few pounds less bike.

That being said, I seldom ride the Raleigh. The Tarmac is just so much more fun to ride because the less weight makes hills disappear and not be an issue for me. More speeds on the rear give me more choice for cadence selection to give me the power output I feel like I can maintain longer without tiring.