| Interestingly I just went through a similar process, and considered many of the bikes already mentioned (Roadini, Lightning Bolt, Pescadero). I wound up buying a Black Mountain Cycles Monstercross. It just arrived last week and I’m gathering parts for the build. The plan is drop bars, SRAM Eagle 1x12 drivetrain, RH Snoqualmie Pass tires with the new RH TPU tubes (so I’m following that thread with interest too).
What sold me on the Monstercross are the canti studs (I don’t care for centerpull brakes) and brazeons for a rando rack. BB is a little higher than comparable bikes, which isn’t surprising for bike with cyclocross DNA, but I’m hoping it will work out for more spirited road rides while still able to handle non-technical singletrack.
But then I read Diana H.’s epic bikepacking trip reports on her Platypus and it makes me think that I’m probably overthinking things (I’m prone to that) and that Lance was right — it’s not about the bike. But it is fun to experiment!
Jay Lonner Bellingham, WA
Sent from my Atari 400 On Apr 21, 2024, at 8:57 AM, Mathias Steiner <mathiassteine...@gmail.com> wrote:
Forgot to say: If there's a co-op nearby, you'll find kindred spirits and a likely a few bicycles to try. Not a bad place to start the search for something used. On Sunday, April 21, 2024 at 11:51:03 AM UTC-4 pi...@gmail.com wrote:
I haven't seen the Gallop's geometry,. Can you post it?
As for Leah's original question, my wife rode a Cheviot but after she rode my son's Roadini to work a few weeks she decided that she really liked the Roadini better.
We're still vainly hunting for a 50cm Roadini, but the other bikes I'm considering are the Ritchey Logic Road (max 30mm tires, short chainstays), the Crust Malochio (mismatched brakes are putting me off but what's worse is that it has 650b wheels in her sizes which limits choice of fast tires), and the Soma Pescadero (compromised handling geometry compared with the Roadini). We'll probably have to decide this summer as to whether to wait for the Roadini or go for a Gallop. One more option is the R&E Cycles Rainier. All of these bikes would be bikes I would buy frame only because the Bay Area has specific riding needs that default drivetrains made for flat country are worthless for.
On Sunday, April 21, 2024 at 8:42:48 AM UTC-7 Johnny Alien wrote:
- "Would they love it as a road bike? Or is it kind of all-purpose? Thanks!"
Rivendell makes stuff to be pretty flexible so even the Roadeo "could" be built out to be kind of all-purpose but the geometry and intent of the Gallop is to be a road frame that replaces the Roadini. My prototype is pretty light and very lively. I assume the production ones will be as well because the geometry should be the same it just has a straight bar vs a swoop. I think while its not a step through the angled bar will allow it to be more flexible with fitting.
Hi Leah!
I think you would dig a Crust Canti-Lightning Bolt as a complementary addition to your wonderful stable of Rivs - not only for the ride quality, but you can get a cool Lilac (with pink graphics) or Light Sea Green frame in your size now. I own this bike, and it is light, quick, and fun to ride, and can easily accommodate up to a 650B x 48 tire. But wait there’s more….in older Riv road bike style, the Canti-Bolts have flat top tubes, threaded headsets, and a gorgeous curved fork. This is a low-trail Rando bike for sure - even the 650B wheels, etc. This is a fun bike! I’m a Riv head for sure, but I really enjoy a long faster road ride on the Crust every now and then.
Crustbikes.com
Good luck in your search,
Guy On Sunday, April 21, 2024 at 7:01:14 AM UTC-6 David Hays wrote:
Good morning Leah, I’m not sure where I read it but apparently Grant had at one point been a fan of Mercians. A few years after I bought and built up my 650B Homer I found a used Mercian KOM on Craigslist. I’ve since picked up another off the list and had one purpose built for me. Very comfortable and fast. Some thing to consider.
Cheers, Hi Leah,
I'm also excited to hear about your journey towards a road bike; you probably don't know it but your writing on this list was one of my main influences towards ending up with a Riv. Drop bars and pavement are very familiar, comfortable territory for me, and – like others have said here – I still enjoy that type of riding at times.
You're probably already familiar with him, but if not, I'd recommend checking out some of Jan Heine's work – Bicycle Quarterly, The All-Road Bike Revolution, his blog, etc. Bicycle Quarterly was my point of departure from "mainstream" bike culture, and I came around to appreciating Riv a bit later and now enjoy both approaches for different rides. Jan is much more focused on speed than Grant is, but in what feels to me like a healthy way. This is an old blog post that I think may be worth a read, as it's an articulation of the same sort of perspective you seem to be arriving at: https://www.renehersecycles.com/riding-fast-is-fun/. Jan also wrote somewhere (can't find it right now) about how he and Grant are good friends, and he wanted to make it clear he's not dissing Riv by promoting what he likes.
I currently have two of what I'd call "really nice" bikes, a Gus Boots-Willsen and a Crust Lightning Bolt (alongside moderately nice bikes like a Bridgestone MB-3 and a dumpster-find Bianchi Volpe). The Gus is "full-Riv" – friction shifting, Carradice saddlebag, weird bar wrap, etc – and the Crust is full Bicycle Quarterly, with 42mm extralight tires, low-trail geometry, Gilles Berthoud handlebar bag, and all that. (Jan is not affiliated with Crust, but Crust designed the Lightning Bolt with his preferences in mind). The two bikes are a perfect combination for my current riding: there is enough crossover that both work great for doubletrack rides, and the Gus is ideal for riding singletrack while the Crust excels at long, fast road and gravel rides. Rivendell doesn't make randonneur bikes like my Crust, as it sounds to me like they don't like the lighter-gauge tubing and the handling optimized for drop bars and moderate front loads, but Grant has written (quoting from memory, so hopefully I'm pretty close here) that he's glad companies like Crust exist and do different stuff from Riv. I don't feel like riding my Crust is an insult to Rivendell, just an _expression_ of the fact that my riding conditions are a bit different from theirs, though I totally get it if that's how it feels to you.
I've never ridden a Roadeo or Roadini, but I've ridden a LOT of road race and "sport-touring" bikes from the 1960s through 2000s, many of which (like early 80s Trek sport tourers, one of my main rides for a long time) have a lot of similarities to the Roadeo. I prefer my Crust for several reasons: it's designed for bigger tires, which when they're René Herse Extralights are just as fast as 23mm tubulars and far more versatile; it can carry a big handlebar bag for long rides without compromising handling at all; and it feels more "alternative" when showing up to group rides, a feeling we're all used to with Rivendells - but it's still just as fast as the carbon bikes, unlike my Gus. And the biggest factor is that it's made of superlight steel tubing, which I like not for the weight savings (less than a water bottle) but for the flex characteristics – it flexes with each pedal stroke and feeds it back into the drivetrain, taking away the pushing-against-a-brick-wall feeling of hammering up a hill on a stiff bike. Jan calls this "planing," and it's pretty controversial, and others call it a lively frame, a somewhat less controversial term. My personal experience says it works – take that however you want. I do not believe the Roadini would "plane" or be particularly "lively," based on what I've heard, and the slightly lighter Roadeo might or might not depending on how much power you're putting down.
A classic road bike like the Roadeo is also an aesthetic choice, though, not just a practical one, and if that's the sort of bike you want, I don't want to be the one to argue against that! Those sorts of bikes are very well-proven for many use cases, and fast-paced, shortish (~30 mile) group rides are certainly one of those.
Basically what I'm hoping to say here is that "road bike" can mean many things, and that Jan Heine's writing has been a huge positive influence on my riding and maybe could be for you too. Best of luck with the process of contemplation and decision!
Josiah Anderson Missoula MT
I’m starting to wonder about a roadbike. But it has to be a Rivendell roadbike because I’m loyal and all that. Anyway, I don’t know that the Roadini really offers enough of a change for me. I have no idea what is going on with the Gallup. Then there’s the Roadeo - that one looks great but there’s a 2 year wait, unless I can find one used. Which would be ideal.
Who rides their Rivbike in club rides and what do you ride? Who has a Roadeo that never gets ridden and wants to sell it? I don’t even know what size I’d be but I’m an 81 PBH. Must I ride drop bars? I never have before. I know nothing about any of this. Clearly.
Note: I still like my raspberry Platypus for club riding but it does take a toll on me in wind. I recently got a shorter-height, longer-reach stem which marginally helped, but our high spring winds are taking it out of me. I did a club ride yesterday with my women’s group and my heart rate was in the 170s the whole 26.3 miles. It was brutal. Everyone else agreed it was a hard ride, but I felt like it was harder on me than them, and I’m the youngest and probably the most fit.
Leah
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