Soft Ride beam bike
 

I've never seen one of these bikes. Obviously the technology did not catch on, but anyone ridden one of these before?

ROAD BIKE BEAM TECHNOLOGY SOFTRIDE CARBON BEAM AND FORKS | road | City of Toronto | Kijiji

It looks,..I'm at a lost for words.

I've seen one on Craigslist for a while now in Philly area. Seems like a cool idea, but I would be a bit timid while riding it. I am 220lbs, sitting all the way on the edge like that, and the right pot hole? I feel like it would be a tremendous load on the beam and I would essentially snap it, and go a** first into the rear wheel :roflmao2:

I saw a used on for sale at a shop in Houston a couple of days ago. They were a flash in the pan. No personal knowledge about them.

Trek had a Y-frame bike of similar concept (but without the suspension effect on the seat) in the late 90s. I passed one while riding in Miami and had to do a double take. Pretty sure the UCI banned them for time trials, but they may still be legal in triathlons?

Edit: This is relevant-
http://www.bikeforums.net/road-cycli...giant-mcr.html

I'd love to have a ride on one of those, just to satisfy my curiosity.

They're heavy and noodly. I knew a guy who rode one for a while. Dumped it for a diamond frame a few years ago.

The Zipp 2001/3001 in naked carbon fiber is better looking

http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=457406http://bikeforums.net/attachment.php...hmentid=457407

I saw a couple years ago and even a soft-beam tandem but it has been years since. The tandem riders stopped using theirs when the beam developed a crack or some sort of structural problem they didn't want to deal with.

If you search around, you'll find that all the "latest and greatest" ideas are rehashed ones from decades or even over a century ago. New materials and manufacturing techniques breathe life into them, but most don't go very far.

I have ridden one of them before. Many years ago though. They were also very popular with some of the ultra-marathon/RAAM riders in the early 90's. The beam is actually two halves with an elastomer sandwiched between them which adds durability to the suspension action of the beam. Pretty good idea, just not eloquently executed, and it was indeed very hard to get these bikes anywhere close to being lightweight. The one I rode was even a "pro" model and was loaned to be by John Stenner (R.I.P) for a weekend. Honestly, on a long flat-ish ride, it was very comfortable. It was a bit weird though having a super smooth ride in the saddle and a rather harsh ride in the handlebars. The front end of the bike was built like a tank and had a very hard riding aluminum fork.

Is their any thing you want to know in general about beam bikes. I presently have two Zipp2001 that I have ridden since 1993. I have one set up as a singlespeed and the other as a TT bike. The TT bike has over 65,000 miles and I used it in many ultra cycling events. The original Softride used the same main body as the Zipp, but due to a difference of opinion on beam design the Zipp and Softride venture went in different directions. For some time Softride had issues with their beam's integrity. I believe the Softride in the pics is a third or forth generation design. The Zipp2001 I can lock out the suspension which I have from the beginning. The Softride will help make your pedal stroke a lot smoother because if your not smooth you will get a little bounce to the beam. I put a link to my bike stable video which you can see the Zipp's, or check out the Zipp on my you tube channel (George Tessier) and click on first ride of 2015. Let me know if you have any question or concerns about a beam bike.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvSZbelMe-A

I saw one of these Trek Y Foil bikes on the Horsey Hundred ride. In orange metal flake paint, with similar Rolf wheels. Striking looking.

http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTA3MlgxNj..._id=880000500F

Interesting details, too:

http://images1.showmethead.com/nlarg...l_22366006.jpg

Thanks for that. I was just curious about how it rides. Certainly not for everyone. It's a niche product for sure.