> It's very comfortable, but there are things I don't like about it. I > let Grant's propaganda convince me that toe clip overlap was no big > deal.
You need to keep in mind, however, that a design putting the front wheel further from the pedals is going to have different ride and handling characteristics than your Riv. I have several bikes. One is a custom built which does not have TCO even with Schwalbe Big Apples and the largest (700x60 cc) Berthoud fenders Peter White sells. I had a Rivendell Hilsen for a while. (Gave it to a friend in a bad place in his life - otherwise would still have it). The Hilsen does have some TCO. But it is also livelier and more communicative. It is very difficult to make a bike that is perfect for every situation. Even more difficult if the rider uses permanent fenders and does not want to - or is not able to change wheels or tires for different riding circumstances. In my experience, the bikes such as the Rivendell Hilsen and the earlier Rivendell All Rounder are among the best multiple use bikes, even if they do have a few imperfections. On Dec 19, 6:29 pm, Paul Cooley <[email protected]> wrote: > I have a Rivendell from 2001, (I may have received it in 2002. I'd > have to check my records). It was built by Joe Starck, I believe near > the end of his time building for them. > > I bought it, though it is far too expensive for my budget, after a > very bad experience with my LBS. I had been using an old Cannondale > Mountain Bike, and when the components began to go, my LBS said that > they couldn't be replaced. (I didn't know any better then, and had > never looked into bicycles as a topic on the internet). > > I had always wanted a brand new touring bike, and my reference for > that was Eugene Sloane's Alex Singer in his bicycle book. I walked > into my LBS in 1998 or so expecting to find something similar. Boy, > what a shock. It was all either mountain bikes or racing bikes. I > let myself be talked into a hybrid. According to the LBS owner, if I > wanted a touring/commuting bike, and wasn't going to buy a mountain > bike, that was all that was available. I hated it from day one, but > the bike shop wouldn't let me return it, and a further series of bad > experiences with the bike shop ensued, (the most frustrating of which > is that the rear spokes kept breaking while I was riding around town, > and the bike shop accused me of "thrashing around on it" and would not > fix the spokes as a warranty item). > > At that point, I did start to research touring/commuting bikes on the > web, and as a Tolkien fan, I was drawn to the Rivendell. > > It's very comfortable, but there are things I don't like about it. I > let Grant's propaganda convince me that toe clip overlap was no big > deal. It's not, under normal conditions, but just the other day I was > riding on a single track shortcut between two roads over some recent > snow and ice, and I kept hitting the fender with my shoes. I also do > a small amount of single track touring, and when it gets at all > technical, I just get off the bike and walk it. I just can't keep > track of where my toes are and where the fender is when I'm trying to > navigate around rocks, but I'm not much of a single track person anyway. > > Visually, I'm not too fond of the slight upslope of the top tube either. > > But those are small complaints. If I had waited and continued to > research, I might have ended up with some other bike. There are > plenty of other builders I would like a bike from. Thank God we're > not rich, (or even upper middle class), or our house would be full of > custom bikes. As it is, I have a 1984 Trek 830 built into an > Xtracycle, a Miyata 710 that came from the thrift store for $15, a > Schwinn Super La Tour built up as a single speed, an Andre Bertin > Tandem, a Bike Friday Family Tandem, (on loan to a friend), a Bike > Friday Family Triple, a Ryan Duplex tandem recumbent, (also from the > thrift store for $75), my kids' two bikes, my wife's Xtracycle, and my > wife's Easy Racer recumbent, (also on loan to a friend). We justify > it all by not owning a car. That hybrid from the LBS is long gone. > Before that LBS experience, I really just had one bike that I never > thought about and rode everywhere. > > One last question, if you're still with me. Since the Rivendell > doesn't have a fender mounting point on the chainstay bridge, I'm > planning to just use zip ties. I've used them on my Xtracycle, and > they seem to work fine. Is there any special concern, or any better > solution, with aluminum fenders? > > Paul B. Cooley > Santa Fe, NMhttp://carfreefamily.blogspot.com > > On Dec 19, 2008, at 3:35 PM, Steve Palincsar wrote: > > What's this going on? If I ever knew, I've forgotten. --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Bicycle Lifestyle" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/bicyclelifestyle?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
