I had a 56 Sam STT and for me it was definitely more of a country bike than a go fast-ish bike. Started with roly-polys and Noodles but the tires just felt too narrow. Switched to Marathons then threw in the towel. I ended up getting a Ram as the go fast-ish and saving the pennies for the AHH as a country bike.
The San Marcos seems like a good option. It is not a touring bike but can take racks and carry a small-ish load. Designed for 32-35mm tires. Lighter tubing than the Sam or AHH so will probably feel more responsive. Good luck in the search. Dan On Mar 25, 4:13 pm, SeanMac <seanm...@gmail.com> wrote: > I'm considering pulling the trigger on one of the new blue Sam > Hillborne's. They look like really wonderful bikes. Strong, versatile, > attractive are words that come to mind when I think about this bike. These > are qualities that I find attractive. However, I also like to go fastish. > Can I do this with a Sam as well? > > I'm pushing 45 years old. A few years ago I had a custom made go-fast bike > built for me. That bike goes fast, but is limited in what it can do. I > also have a Trek 520 Touring bike. This bike, obviously, is built for > touring. Its not very fast, nor very lively. In short, my Trek isn't much > fun to ride. I'm looking for a bike to fit in between these two bikes -- > one that will be able to carry a few bags and ride on stone dust bike paths > (such as the Erie Canal path), but one that will not feel sluggish to ride > (like my Trek). > > Most of the time, when I see photos of Sams, the bikes seem to be set up to > be workhorses -- carrying a collection of bags and racks. I want to be > able to do this with a bike (thus the attraction to the bike in the first > place). However, I would like to use noodle bars and go on fast-ish club > and recreational rides as well. In fact, the vast majority of rides will > be 20 - 30 mile "out for fun and exercise" rides. Is the Sam well suited > to this as well, or will it likely feel more like my Trek 520? Most likely > I would set up a Sam with Noodle bars and tires such as Roly-Poly or Jack > Browns. > > I'm also considering having a custom built randonneur bike -- one that will > be able to carry some load but also feel quick and lively to ride. > However, if the Sam will meet my needs, it certainly would be a less > expensive alternative. I don't think that my body has any proportions that > would make me difficult to fit (5ft, 11 inches tall, PBH 87.5, arm length > 35 inches) so I don't think that I *need* to go custom (though it sure is > fun to do so!). > > Any thoughts on whether a Sam would be a good choice would be appreciated. > > Sean -- 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.
