I have to wonder whether the increased cost per square area of the ever popular e-bike vs, say, a simple bike that most folks used to purchase for around town has improved the bottom line of many a bike ship. Of course, we also see the trend of big box bike brands buying out many a good local shop.
I also have to wonder whether the increased complexity of disc-brake suspension e-bikes doesn't keep more bike mechanics busy, and busy with keeping up the high volume of technical change in the industry, whether electronic shifting or otherwise. All that said, the simplicity of the pre-electronic, pre-index shifting, pre-brifter configuration is so much of what appeals to me in a bike. I think the late Danny Kahneman and Amos Tversky identified that we humans prefer utility to value. Maybe that's why I like my Clem so much? Besides, don't we obsess enough over the simple stuff? Can't imagine the investment of time debating the details of a carbon electronic wonder gadget. Sheesh. - Chris On Friday, May 24, 2024 at 3:38:54 PM UTC-7 Cyclofiend Jim wrote: > I always appreciated solid designs, but definitively stepped off the train > in the late 90's. > I'd been reading GP's writings and spent a lot of time on Sheldon's site. > Slowly realizing that simple and dependable beat flashy and light every day > of the week. > I was riding a ton through a California El Nino winter, and the > combination of muddy trails and mileage had me grinding up drivetrains > about every month. Most of my disposable income was going to chains, > chainrings, and cassettes. All those shift-assisting bits and narrow/short > teeth just evaporated in those conditions. The only reason I switched to > XTR cranks was that the (ridiculously expensive) chainrings were about 3x > thicker than everything else. But --- ooof! -- when those had to be > replaced..... ugh. > Then I came into possession of an MB1, took off all the shifty bits and > bought a BMX sprocket and a Surly tensioner. Those long, thick teeth on the > back wheel refused to grind down, and the chunky chainring worked fine no > matter how much grit got ground into it. > The penny dropped, and I embraced the simple drivetrain lifestyle. > > Jim > > On Friday, May 24, 2024 at 10:17:33 AM UTC-7 Mathias Steiner wrote: > >> please please please let it be an April-Fool's joke >> >> >> On Friday, May 24, 2024 at 1:09:04 PM UTC-4 Patrick Moore wrote: >> >>> SaaS -- Shifting-as-a-Service, and "your personal power assistant." I >>> love it. >>> >>> On Fri, May 24, 2024 at 10:41 AM Robert Calton <nca...@gmail.com> wrote: >>> >>>> To add an amusing, cynical thought: can you imagine >>>> Shifting-as-a-Service? New fully integrated wireless 5G groupsets charge >>>> you $10/month for 1,000 shifts and then you're stuck with a fixie. Or pony >>>> up $40/month for unlimited shifts and get your shifting analytics pushed >>>> to >>>> the latest Shimano E-Tube app >>>> <https://bike.shimano.com/en-EU/e-tube/project.html>. >>> >>> -- 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 view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/rbw-owners-bunch/527b30df-fd5e-407f-858f-dd3a7773889bn%40googlegroups.com.
