My '73 Motobecane Grand Record (which is, come to think of it, eerily similar to the one Patrick used to own) feels plenty fast and lively to me. Switching from Paselas (700x25) to the new Compass Stampede Pass tires (700x32) made a big difference--much more comfortable and responsive-feeling.
P.S. Because I noted the other day on this list that I hadn't had a flat yet with the Stampede Pass tires, I got a flat this weekend. However, the (rear) tire was nice enough to start going soft only a few blocks from home. A less quality tire would have flatted 25 miles from home. --Eric N campyonly...@me.com Web: www.campyonly.com Twitter: @campyonlyguy Blog: campyonlyguy.blogspot.com On Apr 7, 2014, at 3:54 PM, Patrick Moore <bertin...@gmail.com> wrote: > George: the OP's -- or OPs' -- negative perception of the Ram is entirely a > personal matter. (For the record, it is also entirely legitimate.) What is in > question is very obviously NOT a collection of Ram qualities alone, but a > collection of experiences that certain riders have of their Rams. Or perhaps > more precisely, we are discussing the relationship between certain riders and > their Rams. > > Tires have been mentioned as one variable. There are probably an indefinite > number of others, among which is a subset consisting of the many ways in > which a rider's build, pedaling style, gearing choices, cockpit and saddle > setup, and so on, affect the efficiency with which he can interact with the > bike, and, in addition, the way the bike feels when he is interacting with > it. > > I' guessing, but I am no merely groping in the dark, since I've at least > started to see patterns in the relationship between "planing" and the > characteristics of those who experience it. One is pedaling style. Someone > with a mashing pedaling style may well be less prone to benefit from a > light-tubed frame; he may not be able to experience "planing" and may well > find that a given stout-tubed bike performs very well. Someone who pedals > fast in low gears may well find that same bike dead feeling. > > Another possibility: geometry and setup in relation to a rider's build and > pedaling style. Again, no hard data but enough data to raise legitimate > "suspicions". > > Me, I find my blue-category Ram perfectly normal. It's not the fastest > feeling bike I own, but it's not by any means the slowest. My erstwhile Sam > Hill felt more sluggish even with Jack Brown Greens (and the SH's "feeling" > was well within normal by my experience and standards -- just not what I'd > choose as a fast road bike. I sold it for wholly other reasons, not the lack > of spriteliness). Likewise, the Fargo shod with 35 mm Kojaks felt > considerably less spritely than the Ram shod with the very same pair. > > Of which speaking: can anyone tell me the particular specs of the tubing for > a 1973 Motobecane Grande Record? I know it is light 531, but what gauge and > butts? I ask because of all the bikes I've owned in the last 5-6 years, this > had the lightest frame of any bike that I've owned (frameset considerably > lighter by heft, anyway, than either of my 2 remaining Riv customs), but I > didn't experience any particular feeling of speed with it (granted there are > all sorts of other factors here), while a stout tubed and very definitely > heavier Herse that others had found sluggish (I think I am accurate with that > qualifier) felt, to me, particularly spritely. > > Oh my, all of this hurts my little head. > > Patrick Moore, fighting spring headwinds and wishing dead-feeling frames were > his only obstacle in ABQ, NM. > > > > > On Mon, Apr 7, 2014 at 3:17 PM, George Schick <bhim...@gmail.com> wrote: > I've been reading through the threads on this post since it was started last > Friday and finally decided that I'd better get out my '04 Ram to see if maybe > I've been missing something. I haven't been on it all Winter so I figured it > would be like a "new" test. So I rode it today and for the life of me I > can't see any of the same problems being discussed here (except maybe the > pedal strikes which may be lessened by lower profile pedals). Mine is a 54cm > shod with 32mm Paselas (standard, not TG's). Maybe the larger 58cm frame > makes a difference? Maybe the headset or its adjustment? Dunno. But, yes > it certainly does seem as though not every bike is for every person. > > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to rbw-owners-bunch+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to rbw-owners-bunch@googlegroups.com. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
