Regression - Introduction
December 24th, 2007 by Arleigh JenkinsAs technology expands and new bike products or forms of bike products hit the market the market grows - or so one thinks. If you look at the basic roll of the wheel in the past 5 years we’ve had full suspension to the masses, lighter weight full suspension and now 29ers. I won’t preach too much about 29ers as you have our site over at TwentyNineInches.com to do that for me but I do need to talk about 29ers in the sense that they are where the industry has gone.
The technology that is pushing the market forward is also allowing us to regress. One example of this is the push on 29ers into the industry. Most of the bikes offered are hard tail and there are a good number that are fully rigid single speeds. Why? To me I ride one for simplistic sake and to learn to ride better. As a mechanic I want my bikes to work right. No squeeks, no skips and everything set up as best as possible. With a fully rigid single speed you put air in the tires every once in a while and lube the chain when it gets too dry or dirty.
The 29er is only one example of how technology has allowed us to regress. In the next week I will touch upon different aspects of mountain biking that people might be taking a step back in or simply returning to the tried and true method.
Here are some questions to answer about what you use or prefer:
- Clipless or platform?
- CO2 or hand pump?
- What material do you prefer? (Carbon, Aluminum, etc..)
- Gears, single speed or some type of 1×9 setup?
- Outboard bearing or axle/cup type?
- Camelbak or water bottle?
- Oversized handlebars?
- Wicking material or cotton? Better yet, wool?
- GPS or cyclometer?
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Clipless or platform?
Clipless, Crank Brothers
CO2 or hand pump?
I assume you mean on the trail, since CO2 leaks out slowly and so is only good for out-there repairs. CO2 while riding, pump in shop.
What material do you prefer? (Carbon, Aluminum, etc..)
Any as long as it’s built well. I have an aluminum mtb, carbon road bike, steel fixed gear and aluminum cross bike. They all rock because each of the companies made good bikes.
Gears, single speed or some type of 1×9 setup?
Gears for MTB, mixed for road.
Outboard bearing or axle/cup type?
Outboard, baby.
Camelbak or water bottle?
Camelbak, but only cause the guys who designed my BMC frame put the cage bosses up so high you can’t get a bottle in there.
Oversized handlebars?
Stem clamp? Ja.
Wicking material or cotton? Better yet, wool?
Wool.
GPS or cyclometer?
Both.
Thanks for the comments!
Yes I meant oversized clamp. Sorry it wasn’t better explained.
Clips and straps
Hand pump
Metal
1xSomething
Axle/cup
Bottle
Normal-sized
Wicking polyester in, say, 95+ degree days (here in AR, we get a lot of those), and as a base layer.
Neither.
I’m a grumpy old man.
Clipless
Hand pump, never lets me down
Steel
Single Speed hard tails and as many gears as I can get fully suspended
I have broken two many new fangled splined systems. I’ll take a good old fashoned square taper
Bottles for energy drinks etc. Camelback for water.
Haven’t an opinion on oversized bars, don’t really see the need. I have both and can’t tell the difference.
Wicking or wool. Definatly wool socks and hat right now.
Cyclecomputer if anything. A watch is pretty good and a map.
Another grumpy old man.
* Clipless - defintely
* CO2 or hand pump - both! CO2 for racing but if i use them up i need a small pump for backup.
* Aluminum is fine… carbon is over rated.
* Gears for me although much respect for the SS group
* Outboard bearing or axle/cup type - you got me, i just ride the darn thing.
* Camelbak or water bottle - both, but mostly camelbak.
* Oversized handlebars - not really… just standard 1″ riser with Ergon grips
* Wicking material or cotton - wicking jerseys for sure, but wool socks are comfy nice
* GPS or cyclometer - none, but i like the idea of a GPS.
* Clipless or platform? Clipless only
* CO2 or hand pump? Hand Pump
* What material do you prefer? (Carbon, Aluminum, etc..) Prefer aluminum, but riding steel
* Gears, single speed or some type of 1×9 setup? Gears
* Outboard bearing or axle/cup type? Axle/cup
* Camelbak or water bottle? I use hydration packs, but I prefer bottles
* Oversized handlebars? Nope
* Wicking material or cotton? Better yet, wool? Wicking on rides, cotton for commuting
* GPS or cyclometer? Cyclometer. If I needed a gps, I’m too far from home.
It is kind of weird concept, the idea that technology allows regression. I agree that some technologies, most notably braking technology, allows us to return to the simpler pleasures of bike riding in a safer way. 29″ wheels definitely have some advantages (rolling over obstacles, etc.) that allow us to reduce the need for suspension.
I like how some current trends in cycling make it easier to regress. Sure, anyone can dig up an old fully rigid hardtail and hit the trails, but the popularization of single speeds and urban trials type of bikes as pushed the market towards offering things like high end, disc, single speed hubs, and rigid forks with disc brake mounts. This allows us to return the “roots’ of cycling in a much safer, controlled way. There is nothing quite like bombing trails you have ridden a thousand times on your full suspension on a fully rigid single speed. It feels like a new trail, a entirely new experience. The ability to mount discs front and rear on a rigid single speed doesn’t take anything away from the experience, it just adds to the control and safety.
Similarly, thats why I prefer clipless over toe-clips and straps. It doesn’t change the fundamental purpose of the original technology, but it is definitely safer. Do you remember the last time you went over the bars with toe-clips on. Not pretty.
The only thing is, these newer technologies are generally more expensive. Are external BB bearings really better? Not in mind. Splined oversized axles are definitely better than square tapers (I used break a square taper about once a month back in my freeride days), but I see little advantage of external bearings over an ISIS or Octalink design. I think it is worse, actually, because it relies on the parallelism of the frame to ensure the bearings run smooth. As a mechanic I have seen many frames with a little extra paint on the face of the BB, or even just poorly faced frames from the factory. Most shops do not even have the tool, let alone the skills to identify and correct a poorly faced BB. A cartridge BB is more or less self contained and does not rely on the frame to align the bearings. What are we paying for with external BB’s? Stiffness? Who can honestly say they notice a big difference in the stiffness and can say that extra stiffness is more of a benefit than the extra friction due to a mis-aligned frame? Pros, probably, who have pro mechanics to ensure the frames are more or less perfect.
Sorry for the rant. (I needed a break from the excessive Christmas movies going at my house).
Happy Holidays and I look forward to the rest of the “Regression” series.
1. Clipless except in the most rocky terrain
2. Hand Pump, I rarely run out of hands or arms, and until I drop those last 20 lbs, i don’t care about a pound on the frame of the bike.
3. No material pref yet. I still ride aluminum, but its mainly $$$ that drives my rides.
4.Gears but I could eventually see converting my ride to 1×9 once I get a new commuter.
5. Axel/cup, not a lot of exp yet with outboard.
6. Camel back, see #2.
7. Might convert to Mary bars….
8. Wicking or Wool. Right now, both.
9. Both. GPS distance is a bit shoddy in the woods, cyclocomp is always on my bike, sometimes i forget my gps….or it isn’t charged.
My bike these days is closer to my motobike in 85 in a lot of tech aspects I guess.
pedals- clipless- road and mountain, platform - park
CO2
Steel
1x_
mixed thoughts on 29ers, heavier but has more momentum, and roll nicer.
SS- alots are set up for gear conversions.
A note- I give kudos to the ppl that realized racing/riding isn’t just about speed/gears, but also about strength, and went back to SS.
Clipless or platform? clipless platforms (crank bros Maletts)
CO2 or hand pump? I keep a Co2 bottle in my seat pack, but use a handpump at the trailhead
What material do you prefer? (Carbon, Aluminum, etc..) Aluminum works good for me, even considering getting a lightweight steel HT frame
Gears, single speed or some type of 1×9 setup? Gears….for now cause I’m weak!
Outboard bearing or axle/cup type? Uhh……Whatever came on by bike
Camelbak or water bottle? I used the camelback for a long time, but finally gave it up because it often times took more time to clean that I spent using it. I will still carry it along for long trail rides where a refill at the trailhead is impractical but other than that I use the bottle
Oversized handlebars? Doesn’t matter
Wicking material or cotton? Better yet, wool? Cotton
GPS or cyclometer? I have a GPS, but in most parts of florida it’s pretty hard to get lost…..there’s only so far you can go without running into a house.
* Clipless or platform? - clipless for long ride, platform for commuting
* CO2 or hand pump? - handpump
* What material do you prefer? (Carbon, Aluminum, etc..) - steel, what else is there?
* Gears, single speed or some type of 1×9 setup? - geared, but internal (3) on the commuter
* Camelbak or water bottle? - water bottle
* Wicking material or cotton? Better yet, wool? - mostly cotton, moving toward wool
* GPS or cyclometer? - cyclometer
Clipless or platform? - A mixture of Both
CO2 or hand pump? - Depends on the situation
What material do you prefer? Solid Material
Gears, single speed or some type of 1×9 setup? MTB- One of Each;Road 3 Geared one SS
Outboard bearing or axle/cup type? - A mixture of both
Camelbak or water bottle? CB baby!
Oversized handlebars? Nah
Wicking material or cotton? Better yet, wool? Cotton Kills - Merino Wool!
GPS or cyclometer? - BOTH!
——————————————————————————–
- Clipless for all: road bike, both mtb’s, and my DH bike, although I run Crank Bros Mallets on all my mtb’s.
- Hand pump
- carbon for road bikes, aluminum in general for mtb’s, although my Niner is steel
- geared in general, but I’m quite sold on 1×9, which I’m running on my Niner, and expect to do with my next full suspension bike (when I replace my Reign with a 29er full boinger)
- Outboard bearing
- Camelbak on mtb unless it’s a local short ride where a single water bottle is enough (or where I’m doing laps and can swap bottles at the car). Bottles on the road bike, unless it’s a long enough ride with nowhere to refill that I have to use Camelbak
- Oversize
- Some kind of wicking material or wool. Cotton is for idiots (i.e. the same folks who don’t wear helmets).
- GPS, Cyclometer, and SPOT. I use GPS on rides I’ve never done or want that data for, and I always use my VDO cyclometer on my road bike (and now on MTB), this thing rocks. I haven’t used my Polar HRM since the battery died several months ago, and don’t miss it in the slightest.
As somewhat background and maybe to add some backing to the above, my bikes: Niner MCR9 with 1×9, my current favorite; Calfee custom road bike; Giant Reign; GT DHi (rarely get to ride this though).
Great question, and great topic…a lot of folks seem to be rebelling against new technologies, and discovering that simple bikes do the job with less fussing.
Platforms rock!
Hand pump
Steel is real — I don’t care for the ride quality of aluminum…but then again, I’ve never spent much time on an aluminum frame. That will change soon, though, as a friend gave me an aluminum Trek MTB frame to build up.
Square taper cartridge BB — because outboard bearings and all the other “innovations” in BBs are to solve a problem that didn’t really exist. Seriously, who can really tell that a GXP/Isis/Gigapipe/etc. axle is stiffer than a traditional square taper? Besides, outboard bearings are developing a reputation for decreased durability. Yuck.
I like gears, singlespeeds, 1 x 8/9, fixed — it all depends on the bike and the conditions, and it’s nice to choose!
Camelbak or bottles — whatever keeps you hydrated
Regular diameter bar clamp — again with the stiffness thing…who can really tell the difference? Besides, OS bar clamps look kludgy.
Wicking synthetics…because I’m too poor to afford wool!
Neither computer nor GPS — I’m more interested in the ride than in collecting information.
* Clipless
* Hand pump riding, CO2 racing
* Aluminum, please.
* 1×9 on the hardtail, not giving up granny on the FS
* Whatever is cheap and light. Right now that means I still love Shimano Octalink and the first gen of those XT cranks.
* Camelbak or water bottle? Both. Water in the bag, science drink in the bottle.
* Oversized handlebars? Nope. Why would I want to stiffen up the spot where my hands go?
* I’d buy wool if the price was lower. That’s an investment, I realize. Most of the time I guess I’m riding in recycled carpet.
* GPS or cyclometer? Neither anymore, and I find I like the rides all the better. I will ride for time with a watch, though.
* Clipless or platform? > Flats (I don’t like climbing anymore)
* CO2 or hand pump? > Pump
* What material do you prefer? >Aluminum
* Gears, single speed or some type of 1×9 setup? >2×9
* Outboard bearing or axle/cup type? >depends
* Camelbak or water bottle? >pack (bottles won’t hold on the hits)
* Oversized handlebars? >yes
* Wicking material or cotton? Better yet, wool? >polypro in the winter >cotton in the summer
* GPS or cyclometer? >nope
Clipless or platform?
Clips and straps.
CO2 or hand pump?
Hand Pump.
What material do you prefer? (Carbon, Aluminum, etc..)
Steel.
Gears, single speed or some type of 1×9 setup?
Lots.
Outboard bearing or axle/cup type?
Huh?
Camelbak or water bottle?
Bottle.
Oversized handlebars?
No, thanks.
Wicking material or cotton? Better yet, wool?
Wicking.
GPS or cyclometer?
Um, err, “Seat of Pants”, mebbe.
One more grumpy old man.
• clipless for off-road, platform for commuting and grocery getting.
• hand pump for simplicity’s sake. One less consumable to forget to fill up, re-stock etc
• Steeeel….
• single speed or up to 1×9 if geared. I’m done with the gear race- 27 speeds ??? Where’s that eye roll emoticon when I need it?
• I prefer square taper, but the new fangled out board ones haven’t failed me yet.
• camelback for serious rides, and water bottle for the commuter.
• no supersized handlebars for me, make them drop bar or flats.
• whatever is appropriate for the climate, wool for winter and cotton ( apparently I’m an idiot…) and synthetics for the toasty time of the year.
• GPS and cyclometer-free zone
• an older, but trying to avoid being grumpy-man.