prtyich

I felt after 2 years it was time for a faster, higher gear bike - checked out the speed pro TT but felt the terrible NYC streets would wreck it - so i purchased a VP18.

I loved the Jack, its a perfect city bike that handled the rough biking environment well, the issue was that it had only 7 gears, and more importantly, the comfort achieved by its fat 2" Big apple tires was offset by its lack of speed - there was not a road bike in manhattan, and some hybrids, that did not pass me at some point.

I tested the TT, and smoked alot of roadies, but its thin wheels made me nervous, and I'd be afraid to hit a large-NYC-style pothole in a 700cc-sized wheel, let alone a 20" version of it, at high speed. The Jack was a dream over such things, and it saved me many times riding in the dark when I couldn't see a pothole, and nailed a big one...The VP18 has the thicker kojack tires, which I believe will hold up better to the rough city roads.

My head tells me I did the right thing, as the VP18 has better components, is a lot faster, can travel much further more comfortably (I see a century in my future... )but hope that in 2 months, I'm not kicking myself - and end up selling the VP18 only to buy another Jack...

snafu21

I have the Vitesse D7, and think the alloy frame design is great, stiff and comfortable. Sold my Matrix to buy it. All I miss is the occasional foray into the dirt. I can imagine the higher gear range is a bonus, with a tailwind I can pedal out at 20 mph, - but only with a tailwind. So 7 sprockets is fine for ole slowcoach here. Congrats on the bike, the stripped-out P18 is a looker, I think.