Leah,
Wasn't your Betty Foy a little lighter than the Platypus? How did that
feel for speed? I was considering a Platypus until I saw that the
chainstays were going to be longer than the Cheviot. The top tube is
already longer than I need since I'm happy with handlebars than only curve
back slightly. So all of that adds weight I don't need. The Rivendell
philosophy considers weight to be unimportant. I get it. Their main
customer base is men and with 2/3 of the population being overweight or
obese they have to design for people who are significantly larger, heavier
and stronger than I am. I love the aesthetics and quality of their frames
as well as their business philosophy. I like my Roadini but I don't want a
bike that's any heavier and I'm pretty sure the frame could be lighter and
still be safe and functional for me.
A lightweight step-through frame would be a design challenge. I like
the step-through idea since it feels safer on a crowded MUP such as I have
near me. I have thought that when I feel a need to switch to that type of
frame I will get a Bike Friday which has low step-over.
As far as getting on/off bikes I have always used the "cowgirl" method:
left foot on left pedal, push off with right foot and swing my leg over
while in motion. I have never had the flexibility to swing my leg over a
diamond-frame bike with my left foot on the ground. I had no idea until
recently that my mounting method is "wrong" because it puts sideways stress
on the frame. I have a true mixte frame, Velo Orange, and can just barely
step over. That frame has the traditional double "top tube" and there's too
much flex if I'm carrying a load or riding on gravel. Rivendell has the
right idea with a single "top tube"
Linda
On Tuesday, January 26, 2021 at 7:50:25 AM UTC-8 Bicycle Belle Ding Ding!
wrote:
> 2 Thoughts:
>
> First Thought: Philip, fascinating! Thanks for posting that link; I had no
> idea there were so many variations of dropped tube bikes.
>
> Yes, I did see Sumehra’s bike years ago. It was her pink custom mixte
> (mixte sport?!) and Cyclofiend’s red Glorius that kicked off my desire for
> the mixte I finally have in raspberry metallic, which is the perfect
> combination of their colors.
>
> Second Thought: I don’t have the guts to call and ask Grant about a
> lightweight Clem L. Others will say that a pound or two doesn’t really make
> that much difference, and I should focus on the engine and get more fit.
> But I have to disagree. I’m happy to back it up with limited, biased
> personal information! 😂
>
> The engine, aka, me: I work out every day, and hard. I’m 39. I run. I lift
> weights. I do core. I ride every day. My husband likes to lift me up in a
> bear hug and say, “You’re like a biscuit. Solid.” This is about the best
> physical condition I ever expect to be in. I have not neglected the engine.
>
> So, what about bike weight? I spent 2020 trying to log 3,000 miles, and
> nearly all of those miles were on my big, blue Clementine. I bought new
> wheels and a tubeless tire set up and it noticeably lightened the bike, and
> it helped with the hills. But even so, I was never fast; I gave up trying
> to chase roadies up Killer Hill because I never caught them. When my boys
> were little and we began to bike to their new school (Killer Hill stood
> between it and us) I got my littler son, a 1st grader, a new bike with
> gears. A Giant in neon yellow. He was demoralized by that hill every day,
> while my 4th grade son had no trouble. One day I realized that the 24 inch
> Specialized was lighter than the 20 inch Giant. Ugh. I had put no thought
> into the weight of the bike - possibly because I was influenced here. That
> day, I bought an Islabike and my little boy danced up the hill and beat us
> all from that day forward.
>
> When the Platy came, magically, I was quick. I catch and pass men on road
> bikes all the time now, Bosco bars and all. My bike feels too easy to pedal
> even in its hardest gear. It’s not a workout for me, even up Killer Hill.
> It’s easy and it’s fun.
>
> Those two bikes now have the same accessories (bags, phone mounts,
> aluminum Boscos, metal fenders, rear racks, dyno) save one thing - the Clem
> has a basket rack with a Wald. And yet, the Clem is just so much heavier. I
> know it when I carry either bike over the median that intersects my bike
> path. I know it when I pedal up Killer Hill. I know it when I lift the
> bikes onto my vehicle bike rack. And every single time I think, “I wonder
> what it would be like to have this Clem in a light-weight version.”
>
> Leah
>
>
>
>
> Sent from my iPad
>
> On Jan 25, 2021, at 11:40 PM, Philip Williamson <philip.w...@gmail.com>
> wrote:
>
> I have only ever heard mixtes referred to as a kind of step-through
> bicycle, not as separate concepts. “All mixtes are step-through frames, but
> not all frames are mixtes
> <https://www.biketinker.com/2014/bike-art/types-of-step-through-frames/>.”
>
>
> To my eye, the Clem L design starts out as an “Anglais,” and kicks in a
> little “col de cigne” at the seat tube, for style.
>
> Philip
> Santa Rosa, CA
>
> On Monday, January 25, 2021 at 8:07:56 AM UTC-8 Mark Roland wrote:
>
>> This is not correct. A mixte is not a step through. Because, at least
>> without serious contortions for a normal person, you can't step through it.
>> They are two separate designs. A mixte can more easily accomodate certain
>> clothing choices, and with more clearance allow for sliding off the saddle
>> for frequent stopping in city traffic. Can also be mounted similar to a
>> step through if you lean it enough or step like a Rockette.
>>
>> Step throughs do not have the same triangulation found in a diamond
>> frame, or even a mixte. (This is also why mixtes with twin, side by side
>> skinny top tubes are often rather noodley in larger sizes and/or carrying
>> loads.) Start using very light tubing on a step through, and you will start
>> to introduce a bad kind of flex--especially if you want to carry a thing or
>> two, which is part of the point of a Clem L, no? A loaded 59cm Clem L
>> apparently verges on this unwanted flexing, according to reports out of
>> Rivendell during the early days of the Clems.
>>
>> Even if you designed it using the same tubing as a Susie, by the time you
>> add everything back on, you will hardly have made a difference in terms of
>> ride response, other than to possibly introduce unwanted flexing under
>> load. Unlike peanut butter and chocolate, some combinations are just not
>> meant to be; they are contradictory by their very nature. Learn to mount
>> the Platypus like a regular diamond frame until you hit your 70s or 80s, or
>> practice leaning it away from you before performing the step through. In
>> any case, I suspect it's those big ole cowgirl boots causing the problem;^)
>>
>> On Sunday, January 24, 2021 at 11:56:42 PM UTC-5 Joe Bernard wrote:
>>
>>> Kai,
>>>
>>> I think the whole mixte/step-through thing can get convoluted and
>>> confusing because a lot of frames we nominally call mixtes apparently
>>> aren't. I believe - I could be wrong - the only true mixte is the Platypus
>>> frame style (also Purple Riv Ana's) where the dropped toptube meets a third
>>> set of stays that travel all the way to the rear of the frame. Therefore
>>> your Rosco Mixte and my Riv Custom Mixte are really step-throughs. But mine
>>> is higher than the Platypus mixte and Clem L step-through so what the heck
>>> do you call *that?*
>>>
>>> What I *think* Leah is asking is if there's ever been a Riv Custom
>>> step-through with a really low toptube, and I can't remember one. But it
>>> sure would be sweet, it could be done with a combination of lugs and fillet
>>> joints just like mine got. Check out the pic and imagine my toptube was
>>> dropped way lower, then did that nice Clemmy curve at the bottom to meet
>>> the seattube with a fillet weld. Someone should order this! I'll bet it
>>> would look great in Raspberry Metallic 😉
>>>
>>> On Sunday, January 24, 2021 at 8:24:05 PM UTC-8 Kainalu V. -Brooklyn NY
>>> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Where does step through start? I consider my Rosco mountain a step
>>>> through, but I do need to lift my leg a bit. I think Clem L is lower, but
>>>> I've never swung a leg through one.
>>>> -Kai
>>>>
>>>> On Sunday, January 24, 2021 at 11:21:14 PM UTC-5 Kainalu V. -Brooklyn
>>>> NY wrote:
>>>>
>>>>> There's a famous one in Seattle, it's purple. Maybe not step through
>>>>> enough? Pretty step through though..
>>>>> -Kai
>>>>>
>>>>> On Sunday, January 24, 2021 at 11:06:41 PM UTC-5 Bicycle Belle Ding
>>>>> Ding! wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> You know I’m a Clem-lover, and mine took me through the worst days of
>>>>>> my life this last year. It’s nearly perfect and has only one tiny flaw -
>>>>>> it’s a bit heavy/overbuilt for a woman my size. I’m also a Platypus
>>>>>> lover,
>>>>>> and it’s only drawback is that I miss my step-through top tube.
>>>>>> Otherwise
>>>>>> both bikes are perfect.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> I was on a night ride tonight, and when I nearly kicked my top tube I
>>>>>> wondered...has anyone made a custom step-through? And why ever not?
>>>>>>
>>>>>> If Rivendell ever saw fit to make a Susie Clem, I’d jump. But I don’t
>>>>>> think there are plans for that, so I’m left to wonder...what a custom
>>>>>> step
>>>>>> through could be like... This is speculation only. But isn’t it kind of
>>>>>> fun?
>>>>>> Leah
>>>>>>
>>>>> --
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