Maelochs

Nah ... the fight is over. flat-bar fat-tire bikes win ... except when skinny-tired bikes with drop bars do ... or MTBs with drop bars, or 'racers" which have drop bars, except fro the ones that don't ....

The real issue was that Coominya had two friends die on bikes with drop bars, so he hates them. Sucks that he lost friends.

trail_monkey

Is that a joke about his friends?

Maelochs

No, it truly sucks that he lost friends. No one who has lost a friend or has a heart and a brain wouldn't be able to feel that.

I realize I am rarely serious, so it might be interpreted as a joke, but no .. I truly sympathize.

trail_monkey

I meant was it a joke that he actually lost his friends. I am sorry to hear that.

kickstart

???

Schwinn introduced the ubiquitous 2.125 balloon tire bicycle in 1933.

jefnvk

Well, that turned morbid in a hurry...

My uncle did the DALMAC century option in Michigan on a fat bike. Four days, obviously 100+ miles a day, on pavement. He's got hilarious things to say about catching roadies, and them thinking a truck was coming up behind them.

I was once caught by a group of roadies, their dozen and a half members swallowing up me and the none too confident fiancee on her first outing on a drop bar road bike for about two miles. Once in their draft, I had no issue keeping pace on them and her until we were both able to work our way out of the group (her ahead of me, and panicking and trying to keep pace because she had no idea what to do) for two miles or so. It was not humorous, and plenty amusing, all at the same time. Easily set some Strava PRs on that segment that day, despite not being on my "go fast" bike.

jefnvk

While I'm sure there were other options (I wasn't around to verify), the ubiquitous tire sizes I've seen from the 70s seems to top out at either 1-1/4 or 1-3/8. This page seems to indicate the fatter tires went out in the early 50s: Vintage Schwinn Tires

kickstart

Growing up in the 70's, the "cool kids" rode drop bar road bikes with 27" X 1 1/4" tires, those less fortunate rode old balloon tire hand-me-downs. Truth be told, the "unfortunate" usually had the last laugh with their ability to lay down mile long coaster brake skids, run circles around us when the pavement ended, and spent a lot less time...as in no time... maintaining them.

ClydeTim

Being a Clydesdale, I get that all the time!

Dave Cutter

And according to my [late] father (and a friend of his): It was the balloon tire that convinced the buying public that the bicycle would be safe for children. As the old bone shaking hard tires were thought to be harmful to bones and internal organs.

And whereas sale of bicycles to adults plummeted (in America).... new manufacturing techniques (developed for cars) and lower prices.... caused the sale of bicycles for children to soar.

Not every child in the 50's owned a bicycle. But most boys did. Although we still thought that owning a bicycle was pretty special. And we took very good care of our bicycles. It was those old well cared for ballooned tired bikes.... that first screamed down the steep logging trails and back roads.

I-Like-To-Bike

Mostly true for the bikes sold as lightweights (3 speeds and 10 speeds) to adults; not true for bikes sold to children where even the 20'' and middle weight 26" tires were seldom less than 1.75".

BF posters tend to forget that not all bicycles are/were sold to adult "enthusiasts."

Leebo

Sad, why would you ride road when you could be pedaling some sweet singletrack? Sad indeed.

Leebo

Sooo, you live in the desert in a retirement community? And wonder why the road riding is limited? Hmmm.

GamblerGORD53

HERE are some old medium fat tire cruisers, restored and pics in recent years I guess. First one is 1939 and the others 1952 or so. Add a Rohloff and they would go anywhere but a forest. Springer forks aren't really suitable for long rides, I suppose.
90%+ of American bikes are exercise toys and will be a long time yet.
Actually in the old days, a lot of racers were just regular bikes with fenders and racks taken off and handlebars turned upside down. Then it becomes a path racer, as now sold by Pashley. The pros did of course have special lightweights. The term for do all bikes later was a Clubman. For anybody to infer they were less than capable compared to the newfangled-speak Gravel/ Cyclocross is LAUGHABLE. The entire PR BS about a separate class gravel bike is nonsense IMO. Diff gearing and tires, big hairy deal.

NoPhart

I ride a Santa Cruz Hightower at the beach, on cement bike trails, on the road, and off-road on multipurpose and single track. Much more comfortable position than a road bike. You can jump curbs and exit the cement off-path to go around people and things. They are just a much more universal ride; not to mention fun ride. IMHO the MTB is not over rated at all!

badger1

Cripes ... wasn't even thinking about that in the course of all the earlier silly squabbling in this thread. Looks like a great location for mtb:

Prescott, Arizona Mountain Bike Trails | Trailforks

Hypno Toad

Nope, drop-bar fatbikes win everything!

IMG_20161118_133932221_HDR.jpg

I'll admit I just jumped from the end of the first page to the last page, my lunch hour isn't long enough to read through all 7 pages of posts.

I like the OP making it sound like its either MTB or road bike, 'cause there's only two options in this world. The point of my ridiculous bike, we live in an era of end-less options and modifications. This drop-bar Pugsley is my answer to the Almanzo 100 (kinda over-kill, but it was great for me). The 'right' bike for you isn't the 'right' bike for the next rider. Stop judging somebody for their choice in bikes, and respect them for biking.

Hypno Toad

I've been on both sides of this: both as the fatbiker that gets riders to turn 'round to figure out "that noise"... and I've been passed by fatbikers and turned to see what was "that noise". Either way, I'm always grinning from ear-to-ear.

jefnvk

I stand corrected. I've rarely seen such bikes at the thrift shops or on local CL, where the skinny tire bikes from the 70s are ubiquitous.

Maelochs

Well ... this thread started out as an exploration of a conclusion (possibly inaccurate) based on the very limited observation of a single poster, that s/he seemed to see more mountain bikes than road bikes, and thus thought MTBs were more popular (I make that same observation every time I go to an MTB race ... and the opposite observation every time I go to a road race or crit.)

My response was that most people who aren't really into biking want a bike which looks like the classic "bicycle" (which would include fat bikes with flat bars) because it is both mentally and physically more comfortable for a casual rider---the bike looks familiar and thus unthreatening, and the seat is soft enough that the rider doesn't need strong legs or core for most casual rides.

Sadly the thread devolved into the false and pointless argument of "Which is better" ("My scissors are more useful than your screwdriver!") which is really that age-old idiocy, "My favorite color is better."

Obviously, it is tool for the job and tool which suits the user. It doesn't matter if you want to do centuries on a single-speed, full-suspension fat bike with bullhorn bars or go down steep singletrack on an $18,000 Emonda with 23-mm tires. If you like it it is right for you.

Why people come here trying to "Prove" that some specific purely personal, purely subjective choice is universally best, shows how stupid even the smartest person can be.

That's why I am Always right. I am not the smartest person, so I am not stupid.

Flip Flop Rider

didn't read the thread but in response to op, mountain bikes look cool, and rugged, like they could take on anything. Road bikes look more fragile. I'm guessing bigger people (Americans !) look at mountain bikes as sturdier

jefnvk

I don't think big Americans look at bikes at all

Chandne

I live in Colorado and I'd prob give up road biking before I gave up mtn biking, in the sense that I have a slight preference for mtn biking. I'd rather not give up either one, of course. Mountain biking gives me access into the backcountry and mountain passes, and the most stunning scenery I can find. It's also technically challenging and sailing off drops and rocks is addictive, once you learn the techniques. Even in Utah- Moab especially...I'd rather mtn bike Porcupine Rim and Amasa Back over road bike anywhere there. It's totally different but I do not ride my mountain bike of gravel roads and paths...it is strictly for trail riding.

Daniel4

Let's put it this way, why are SUVs so popular, especially when so many people drive them mostly in the city?

Eyedrop

Exactly.

If 99% of your riding is on pavement, you owe it to yourself to GET A DAMN ROAD BIKE! And trust me, they can be made plenty comfortable, even for the average fat lazy American.

If you can only have 1 bike to do it all, BUY A HYBRID OR TOURING BIKE OR RIGID MTB AND APPROPRIATE TIRES!

If comfort is a top priority and you do twice a year rides around the block, BUY A CRUISER!

If your blasting down some awesome off road trails like a dare devil, BUY A MTN BIKE!

If you like hopping off curbs and doing wheelies on your way to work, GET A BMX.

If you are an enthusiast with specific needs, and know what you want, BUY A FREAKING BIKE FOR YOU. I CANT TELL YOU YOUR WRONG BECAUSE YOUR NOT. IF RIDING A MTB ON PAVEMENT MAKES YOU HAPPY FOR WHATEVER REASON, GO FOR IT!!

If your riding a MTB on the road or a road bike on the trail, YOUR DOING IT WRONG IMO. JUST MY OPINION. And yes, a pure MTB is technically much more versatile than an out and out pure road racing bike. In fact, it can do everything listed here fairly half assed give or take. The trails is where it shines. They are just like Jeeps. They kinda suck at everything except trails. They are capable of commuting, towing, road trips, etc... But they are not that great for any of those things except trails.. A MTB is jack of all trades, master at 1. I realize that this is a good reason for their popularity and they are wonderful in that respect. But thats besides the point...

And thankfully, todays bicycles are so customizable and there are so many different category that exist. For Joe Smoe, Its probably foolish to go all the way extreme MTB or Road unless thats truly what you want, which would probably make you an enthusiast at some level.

So, my message to most the average non enthusiasts Americans out there on the road, KNOW WHAT YOU WILL REALLY USE IT FOR AND GO TO A REAL BIKE SHOP FOR ADVICE, AND BUY THE BIKE THAT WILL BEST FIT YOUR TRUE NEEDS. In other words, dont buy a semi truck for commuting to work. STOP BUYING $150 FULL SUSPENSION MTB BIKES FROM DEPARTMENTS STORES FOR COMMUTING. ITS A BAD IDEA ON MULTIPLE LEVELS.

If I was the average American that happened to know any better, a Walmart MTB would be my very last choice, even if I was planning to hit the trails. Yet they SEEM to me to be the most popular choice. Just go to any Walmart in this country, and you will see atleast half the bikes are terrible quality MTB, followed by BMX and maybe a hybrid or cruiser sprinkled in somewhere. And if your lucky, they will have a "GMC Denali" road bike in stock...