I know you are thinking all of this thru. you shouldn't rush. readd all the posts and the Riv site as well. Read cyclofiends info, too. Check out the various photo sets, etc.
I just wanted you to know that I will be off-line for the next few hours, so if you were to email me, a response is not likely until this evening. Going on a Marin County ride between storms! ________________________________ From: Mike Goldsworthy <[email protected]> To: "[email protected]" <[email protected]> Sent: Sat, January 21, 2012 9:19:56 AM Subject: Re: [RBW] Sam Hillborne 56cm question - diff between the Riv models Jim - that's incredibly helpful. Thanks do much for this! Mike ------- yes it's short & it may be misspelled because it was "Sent from my iPhone" On Jan 21, 2012, at 9:11 AM, James Warren <[email protected]> wrote: >Now that's the kind of question we need on the list right now! > > >The Atlantis came about around 1999 as Rivendell's Japanese-built version of >their legendary All-rounder. The all-rounder is/was a bike-style designed to >work well in the following ways: > > >as a road bike for people not set on racing lightness or racing geometry. >as an offroad vehicle once you mount some wide tires, and the tire clearance >is >wide. Grant would shoot for two inches, although the first Atlantis's in 99 >through 2001 only got to about 1.9. >as an excellent touring bike >and in other ways you can think of, because the bike is so versatile. > > >The versatility came through the very high clearances and cantilever brakes >which gave no problem mounting fenders and very wide tires. The bike has a >pretty long wheelbase and pretty long chainstays (although still shorter than >the 80's Trek 720's). It has a low bottom bracket which improves road handling >and invites larger tires, especially for offroad use. The other part of the >versatility is the rack braze-ons and really nice fender mounting spots. In >the >earlier part of the 90's, one of the distinguishing features of the >all-rounder >was basing it around 26 inch wheels. This came from the Bridgestone days, when >they were one of the few companies making "hybrids" based around the more >useful >at the time 26 inch wheel size when offroading is even considered. When >Rivendell started, the All-rounder model would continue this 26-inch wheel >design, and that was one of the features that made me want one then. But early >in Rivendell's existence, they started not liking the 26-inch wheels on the >larger sizes, and began selling the larger ones with 700c wheels and the >smaller >ones with 26 inch wheel. As a tall guy, this bummed me out until I was >convinced >that in the late 90's, offroad 700c tires, even 2-inch varieties, were >beginning >to blossom, mostly from WTB and Schwalbe. > > >In the late 90's, the all-rounder was a model made in the US and was fairly >expensive, and Grant wanted to make a version of it in Japan that would cost >less. This is where the Atlantis came from. It has those all-rounder qualities >described above, the big tire clearance, the great touring behavior, the >offroad >capability, nice bike to ride unloaded for road rides. It's an amazing bike, >and >it's still available as originally designed, only now it has more rack >braze-ons >for added versatility (mini-racks and such). I speak from experience regarding >the Atlantis. I got mine in 2001, and it really can do everything I would want >to do riding. All my other bikes are specialists in some specific cycling >arena >that the Atlantis can hold its own: sporty road rides, cross-country mountain >biking, commuting, sub-24-hour overnighters, country biking with long days and >mixed surfaces. What the Atlantis excels at that the others can't match is >touring rides that include camping. 700c in the large sizes and 26 inch in the >smaller sizes. Amazing bike. One of the higher price Rivendell production >models, but worth it. And the 700c tire options are wonderful now. I don't >long >for 26ers much anymore. Additionally, the Atlantis was ahead of the mainstream >now so excited about these modern "29ers!" > > >A Homer Hilsen: >Perhaps without the All-rounder, the AHH could not have come about. Let's say >you never want to tour, you love country rides, you like to veer off-road, you >like to go overnight, just not days on end, you like to be comfortable for a >long day. You like to carry stuff on your bike, at least sometimes, and you >like >road rides. But most importantly, in addition to all of the above, you want to >do most of it, including the road rides, on tires that are between 32 mm and >40 >mm, because you've discovered what an awesome size that is, including for road >rides. Also, because you like that tire width so much, you don't want to scale >the tire down just to mount a fender. If so, then the A Homer Hilsen is the >bike. Also, the A Homer Hilsen has a cool refinement: dual pivot sidepulls >work >well and still provide the clearance needed to do what's described above. > > >Another way of describing what's above for the AHH is to say that it sort of >splits the difference between the Rivendell Atlantis and the Rivendell Road >model. So the AHH is a refinement of the all-rounder, moved closer to the road >end of the spectrum. Or maybe it's the other way around, because the tubing of >the AHH is lighter like the road models. The Atlantis uses more sturdy tubes >for >its loaded duties and probably greater offroad duties. > > >The AHH probably tours for days on end better than many bikes that have been >taken for days-on-end touring by many people for the past 50 years. > > >I'll be that big-tire, fast road-biking is something that few people know >exists, and I'll bet the AHH is the best bike in the world at it. Also, >Rivendell calls the AHH a country bike. You should read Grant's description of >the term "country bike." I'll try to find it. If you take fully loaded touring >out of the equation (which could be valid, because it's a rare thing to do), >then I think the AHH is the most versatile and coolest bike ever made. > > >San Marcos: >Rivendell has almost always had a road model available, a bike not designed >for >heavy loads or too much offroad use (but with Rivendells, you can stretch >those >rules even.) Rivendell road models have always had slightly longer wheelbases >than typical road bikes, and their comfort levels are extremely high. You get >handlebar position versatility (high included) and big tire clearances. The >production Rivendells for the road that came before the San Marcos have been >the >Rambouillet, Romulus and the Roadeo. With the San Marcos and the Roadeo, you >can >use 700x33 tires with fenders which I think is extraordinary. If the main >thing >you want is a road bike, get one of these. They are superb performers as road >bikes and they are very comfortable and versatile. The San Marcos is much less >expensive than the Roadeo. You're not supposed to load them too much, but >listen: I have a Rambouillet and I stretch the rules often. I put a rear rack >on >it and take it on overnighters. I put Jack Browns on it (700x33) and veer >offroad sometimes. If I had to knock the whole bike collection down to 1, on >paper and for practicality/versatility, that one should probably be the >Atlantis. But even still, in the end I'd have a hard time not picking the >Rambouillet. I don't know what the San Marcos rides like, but I'm guessing it >is >similar. Rivendell road models are amazing. Also, some people (brilliant >people >who know their stuff by the way) will tell you that the optimum tire size for >these models is 700x28. They are probably right, but for me, ever since I put >Jack Brown greens, 700x33, on my Rambouillet, I have vowed not to take them >off, >the ride is so wonderful (and I think fast). > > >And remember my friends, it is better to feel fast than to be fast. > > >-Jim > > > > >On Jan 20, 2012, at 4:58 PM, Mike Goldsworthy wrote: > >i'll take a look at it. thanks! >> >> >>what's the difference between the san marcos, AHH and Atlantis? >> >> >>On Jan 20, 2012, at 4:15 PM, DustyMerkin wrote: >> >>Have you looked at the Soma San Marcos, the 54cm does not have the 2TT but I >>believe the geometry is similar to the 56cm but not sure. >> >>> >>> -- >>>You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >>>"RBW >>>Owners Bunch" group. >>>To view this discussion on the web visit >>>https://groups.google.com/d/msg/rbw-owners-bunch/-/p8xMS9KuPU0J. >>>To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. >>>To unsubscribe from this group, send email to >>>[email protected]. >>>For more options, visit this group at >>>http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en. >>> >> >> >> -- >>You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >>"RBW >>Owners Bunch" group. >>To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. >>To unsubscribe from this group, send email to >>[email protected]. >>For more options, visit this group at >>http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en. >> > -- >You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW >Owners Bunch" group. >To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. >To unsubscribe from this group, send email to >[email protected]. >For more options, visit this group at >http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en. > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch?hl=en.
