[SystemShock]

Especially when upshifting, I find the jump from 19 to 17 to create a noticeable decrease in cadence and associated leg force increase.

Really? A two-tooth jump is bothersome? Wow. :skep:

You're lucky you didn't do your first double-century on the bike I did... 6-spd freewheel, 14-17-20-24-28-32. Now those are some bothersome jumps, 'least for a road bike.

Said it before, I'll say it a'gin... everybody won't be happy 'til we're all riding 11-28 straight blocks... or CVT. Yeesh.

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[SystemShock]

Regarding the "old" days of 6 speed freewheels, well I lived in those days and I am so glad to still be riding now with 10 speed cassettes and everything else I was dreaming of in those days.

There's a happy middle ground between now and then, tho'.

I wasn't implying that my old 1980s 14-32 6-spd freewheel and 52-42 chainring setup was great (it wasn't) only that one could have it a lot rougher than to have to endure a 2-tooth jump (lol).

Not long after that bike, I got a Bridgestone 550, tricked it out with a 53-39 crank (before 39T was popular), and a 13-15-17-19-21-23-26 7-spd freewheel. That set-up did pretty much everything I wanted to do, and without having to shift across a ton of cogs or having to put up with them there wee little 10-spd chains that used to break a whole lot when they were first introduced. :lol:

I love tech, but as with drinking, there seems to be a point where it's judicious to say, "when".

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[SystemShock]

Well, pretty much every technology advance has made my cycling easier and more enjoyable.

Someone could easily come up with a very long list showing the opposite. In fact, collectively, they have... there's a very popular thread here on RBR listing all the crappy modern fads that've made cycling worse, not better:

http://forums.roadbikereview.com/showthread.php?t=134885


Again, I like technology, but only when it really does make things better... I don't like stuff when it's only virtue is being 'new'. :frown2:

Some tech is great, but other tech (the kind born in the mind of the marketing guy, not an engineer or avid bike enthusiast) can really, deeply, suck. My intro to that was those crappy ultralight/ultranarrow clinchers that the industry pushed on us so hard back in the early '90s... yeah, 700x18C just doesn't work, unless you're as light as a hummingbird.

On the plus side, I sure did get a ton of practice in replacing pinch-flatted tubes. I think I can do it in my sleep now. :lol:


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