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From: Roger Merriman <roger@sarlet.com>
Newsgroups: rec.bicycles.tech
Subject: Re: When is fat too fat?
Date: 24 Mar 2025 11:43:42 GMT
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Frank Krygowski <frkrygow@sbcglobal.net> wrote:
> On 3/22/2025 11:10 PM, zen cycle wrote:
>> 
>> At any rate, yes, there seems to be more and more vindication for wider 
>> tires and the bikes needed to support them as time goes on. It's amazing 
>> how I was brought into the racing world being told skinny high-pressure 
>> tires were the way to go, while older school people back when I started 
>> were pooh poohing the idea. I remember one old codger at the local time 
>> trial in the 1980s saying that skinny tires should only be used on the 
>> track (he was the last guy to show up at the TT with wooden rims). It 
>> seems like we should have taken his word back then.
> 
> AFAIK, the trend toward accepting the benefits of wider tires was 
> started by Jan Heine with his coast down tests on outdoor soapbox derby 
> tracks. He pointed out that those tests were more representative of real 
> world riding than were the smooth rolling drum tests of the day. And he 
> was inspired to do the tests by his fascination with French 
> randonneuring bikes of the '50s and '60s.

I’d suggest this is rather self promotion on his part as ever, wider tyres
and disks came with the use of CX bikes, and CX bikes sold with the
expectation of being used for commuting or hacking around the woods, than
being used as CX race.

Early turn of the century or so, the Specialised Tricross is one bike I
remember from that time.

Took a while for manufacturers to realise what the bikes were being used
for, and even longer for racers who have resisted wider tyres/discs etc all
the way.
> 
> The speed benefits are usually explained by less energy transmitted to 
> the rider's flesh, where it is lost (and adds discomfort). In this 
> forum, I remember Jobst rather fiercely defending rolling drum data, and 
> saying that those energy losses should not be considered part of rolling 
> resistance.
> 
> That may be a semantic argument. It's clear those losses are real, and 
> they need to be considered _somewhere_.
> 
> 
I’d argue that speed shouldn’t be anyone’s sole concern.

Roger Merriman