Originally Posted by
Wordbiker
Yes, and I'm sure Shimano says the same thing.
AFAIK, Sheldon never raced MTBs, and in that particular discipline, forcing a downshift is IMO more important than saving wear on the drivetrain in the long term. When a bike is encrusted in mud, it's the low gears to get going again you're concerned about, not whether you'll replace a cassette in August or September.
Funny that Shimano never developed Rapid-Rise for their race-level road groups.
Anyone who has tried to dump a chain off of a middle chainring at the bottom of a steep climb can tell you all about how well those derailer springs work at downshifting under load. Some of Shimano's thinking was that they wanted to have both shifters moving in the same direction...not that anyone who rides even a little can't figure out the shifters on a bike.
Back in the late 80's, Suntour made a front derailer that was high normal. That was a much better way of going then Rapid Fail.