Originally Posted by
gcottay
It's always fun how different riders respond to the same bike. Though I favor SWB bents, the x-stream seems to me quite well behaved for a LWB and with a 41 inch x-seam, had a balanced feel to it.
Just like the bastardized, short lived Formula 26 (which embraces much the same steering geometry as the 'stream). Touted as a speed machine, it too possessed the low speed genes of a Kenworth, and commuting customers quickly realized that the bike was ill-suited for anything less than Battle Mountain. Suffice it to say, You just don't stack 80% of the laden weight over the rear axle, bolt-on 16" of tiller feeding over 3" dynamic trail, and expect the nimble and predictable commuting speed handling of a Stratus LE or Tour Easy. Sorry, it just doesn't happen.