I don't want to take this thread much more OT than it already is. There are a few things that I wanted to chime in on:
I found Rivendell and the BOB philosophy by accident - experimenting with my own bike fit and style. In a sense I pre-screened many of the Rivendell ideals - find a bike that does this or fits this way - rather than find out about fit and utility from Rivendell. I mention this because I like the angle of Jan Heine's work that deals with riding style/ preference evolution. I don't ride in brevets or long events so much of the BQ work doesn't apply directly to me. That said, I do read BQ and take what I can from it - along with ideas from Riv, Dave Moulton, etc. As other people have said there are certain things about Jan's delivery that don't sit well with me. At times he can come across as dismissive and over simplifying things. The cranks for example: It seems to me that his decision to create a net forged replica of the famous Rene Herse crank in the traditional 171mm size is defended by claiming that longer cranks are not needed because it is only a 2% difference (or so, don't have the quote in front of me but i think we have all read it). I think it could be true that once set up well a bicycle with 171mm cranks could perform as well and as comfortably for the same rider as another bike with 175mm cranks - given that many other factors and components establish fit. However, I have not seen him explain it this way. I have seen him dismiss the size difference. I have also been taken aback by his comments on crank fitting: Grease the spindle, install the crank, tighten it up after a few miles then leave it alone... This set-it-up-then-leave-it-alone model of bicycling does not relate to me at all. I don't have the privilege to own several bikes that can be set up and left alone and I like to tinker. I am constantly changing/adjusting/altering and swapping parts to get better/ different rides from my bicycles. Perhaps that is another Riv philosophy thing more than a BQ ideal. His approach just bugged be because it was so foreign to my experience but I don't mean to say it was wrong. Backing up a bit it is too bad that he has to defend the crank size/design at all. Running a small wholesale/retail business is not a simple task and creating a boutique product like those cranks is a financial gamble. I am glad that he has done so much. The happy accident that became the Hetre is another example. They are my favorite tires and it all came about in such and interesting way. Bottom line: I would like to see Jan, etc. at BQ do more to relate the context specific to their opinions/findings about bicycles. JL -- 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.
