Really y'all are inspiring me! Got out today in some of the below-mentioned spitting rain, and had a blast. Definitely takes more work than gears. I was/am wiped from the ordeal... :-)
http://www.flickr.com/photos/cyclotourist/sets/72157612950151273/ By the way, these trails are on the itinerary for the SoCal February 21st ride! <http://www.flickr.com/groups/1007...@n22/discuss/72157612151015567/> Cheers! On Sun, Jan 25, 2009 at 7:25 PM, Bill Rhea <billr...@yahoo.com> wrote: > > I rode fixed on a 40x15 for some time, but found a 40x14 to be better > for my commute and rides up to around 30 miles. > > Over the last 4 months I've switched back to freewheel mode, with a > 16T White Industries freewheel and a 46T up front and no small ring - > I just didn't find myself using it. A few of the rollers and short > climbs in Portola Valley and Woodside are a bit of a grind, but I > really like taking the QB out for pleasure, especially when its > spitting rain.... Freewheeling is nice (compared to fixed) - it > really has introduced me to how well the bike corners. > > -br > > On Jan 24, 5:11 pm, PATRICK MOORE <bertin...@gmail.com> wrote: > > On Sat, Jan 24, 2009 at 5:36 PM, charlie <charles_v...@hotmail.com> > wrote: > > > > > I think the Quickbeam concept of a non derailleur or hub gearing > > > system is appealing to many, myself included. It is simple and solves > > > the problem of adequately handling varied terrain without too much > > > convenience. I like the ability of making it a four speed for that > > > occasional long steep climb up towards our local mountain or the > > > ability to add a slightly higher ratio for a ride such as Seattle to > > > Portland. When I get enough money together I would like a QB as my > > > poor mans version of it is not ideal. > > > The problem with just adding a three cog in the back is that you won't > > > get the wider range of ratios that you would using that 32 tooth up > > > front with perhaps a 22 tooth on the flip side or a fixed 14 tooth and > > > the 40 tooth for flat rides. the neat thing is the QB allows one to > > > set it up as they prefer for their type of terrain. If a guy has > > > Charles 'Atlast' legs and an ideal power to weight ratio he can often > > > get away with just one gear. An IG hub is nice but is still more > > > complicated and fragile at least in one respect. For riding off road > > > I'd rather have a freewheeling non derailleur setup. As a road > > > commuter bike it would make more sense to have an internal HG if your > > > route was hilly. Most city commutes however are fairly flat so one > > > gear seems enough unless it starts or ends flat or with a long section > > > of climbing or high headwinds. I just think the QB is kinda cool so I > > > want one. > > > My poor mans version exists atwww.cyclofiend.com > > > > Well put, except that your URL leads to an icon menu and not your > particular > > bike. > > > > If I regularly rode more than 30 miles at a stretch, I'm sure I would, in > my > > condition, be screaming for multiple gears. But still, if the QB allows > an 8 > > tooth gap in chainrings, it will allow an 8 tooth gap in cogs, and each > > tooth difference in your cogs will make much more of a ratio difference > than > > a tooth dropped from or added to a chainring. > > > > This evening as I hauled a 15 lb load home from the grocery store on my > 69" > > fixed Riv commuter, up a 2 mile incline against a 3/4 headwind (NW gusts > to > > 21, I heading West then North), trying to approach 15 mph, the > desirability > > of a lower gear option struck me with, you might say, a painful slap. But > > then I realized that all I had to do was pedal more slowly, so I backed > off > > and let my speed slide down to a 10-13 mph slog that made things much > > easier. But of course, a 6 mile grocery run return leg is far from a > loaded > > tour or even an all day hilly gravel run. > > > > Of which thinking: back in the Uniglide days, when lockrings were screw > on > > small cogs, someone made a portable device for touring kits that allowed > you > > to use the wheel and frame themselves as levers to remove the locking > small > > cog. Would that not work for fixed cogs, too? Not that I'd care to use it > > for routine en-route gear changes, but I'm curious if it might work for > > roadside repairs for the fixed gear tourist. > > > > Another meandering thought: Mitch Harris of the Boblist and of much > > experience riding fixed gears said that old tourists in Britain routinely > > used 72-78 inch fixed gears for touring, which I suppose means, not > carrying > > 40 lb across the Sahara but a loaded Nelson from hostel to hostel. Still, > > 78" seems pretty darn high for long distance riding, unless you are much > > younger than I am. What gears do y'all of longer distance fixed or ss > riding > > (let's say 40 miles or more at a stretch) favor, and over what terrain? > > > -- Cheers, David Redlands, CA --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com To unsubscribe from this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
