If you've been reading here recently you are most likely aware that this weekend marks the 20th year anniversary of this blog. The actual date is May 11th, which is Sunday.
I've been celebrating each weekend with stories culled from this blog's past. I have been using headers from the past ten years to celebrate as well since earlier this year.
Tomorrow and Sunday will be special anniversary themed posts which will attempt to convey my feelings regarding this auspicious occasion! Ha! So, look for those posts to go up and then the look back will be concluded. I'm not sure what series will replace this, or even if there will be a series! One thing of note about this blog is that many times I have no idea which direction the blog will take until it rounds a corner.
The Latest On The Guitar Ted Podcast:
Last week N.Y. Roll and I recorded a conversation regarding a few different subjects. We really nerded out over geometry for gravel bikes. N.Y. Roll brought the geometry chart in for a 1989 Specialized Rock Combo, a drop bar 26"er MTB many regard as an example of the first "gravel bike". (By the way, and for the record, I do not regard the Rock Combo as anything but a 26"er MTB with drop bars.)
We comped this bike against a current Specialized gravel bike and found some interesting points to discuss. Then we moved on to discussing the tariffs and their impacts on the cycling scene. There is more to listen to, so I won't spoil it all here. Listen to Episode 74 HERE.
Episode #75 is recorded but I won't have it out until later this weekend. It's a great chat with Mike Marchand, former DK200 and Gravel Worlds champion. Mike was also a part of the first industry backed gravel racing team. We talked about early events on gravel which inspired events you made have heard of before. All that plus more in Episode #75 coming soon!
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Moar Gears!
Long ago now, back when DynaSys 10 speed Shimano MTB drive train bits were introduced, I was able to go to Minneapolis, Minnesota for a super-rare Shimano tour/marketing event. At this event were several Shimano "Skunk" riders - Riders Shimano had retained as test riders for the product development.
I was told a LOT of eye-opening stuff while I was there. One Skunk rider told me Shimano had working prototype group sets in every gear range from 11 speed to 14 speed! At the time, I thought 14 speed was probably something I'd never see in my lifetime, but here we are.
While it isn't Shimano, (yet), this Chinese brand known as "Sensah" in the West has shown a 1 X 14 speed group, which is electronic, (natch!), at the recent Shanghai Bicycle Show. Images I've seen, shown on a You Tuber's channel I sometimes view, made the group set look pretty finished and consumer ready. In that same video it was mentioned that SRAM will likely be dropping a 2X13 road group set this Summer. (Didn't they just drop 12's?)
Gear Wars? I guess... But it seems the march toward more cassette cogs is inevitable. Heck, I haven't moved off 11 speed yet!
Fiber Spokes:
Another 'trend' which seems to have legs now coming out of the Shanghai Bicycle Show are Aramid/polymer fiber spokes, like the BERD spokes I have mentioned here on the blog. Another alternative company making these now from China, called Goosyn, is pushing the idea big time at the show. Used mostly to absorb vibrations from gravel and rougher roads, these spokes are not seen as a road biking alternative, but are used on mountain bikes.
Traditionally BERD spokes have been something of a luxury item since they cost about $8.00 each. That's going to set your wheel price at a pretty premium level, even if you don't consider the carbon fiber rim.
Now with this sort of push, it will be interesting to see if the competitive market between BERD and Goosyn might start to drive the prices down a bit. Obviously, with the chaos induced tariff situation, things might be a bit murky for the near future, but hopefully more affordable options will be presented because this idea really does work.
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| Image courtesy of Cannondale |
Maybe this bike is everything, eh? Check this thing out. Cannondale's new Synapse, which traditionally has been their "endurance road bike" for over a decade or more, is now a new design with a claimed 20% better ride quality than the outgoing model.
Most of the range is carbon, and eye-watering expensive. But there are reasonably priced models in the range like the one pictured here which is mechanical 105, 2X, with 50/34 gears up front and a 11 - 36T cassette. Pretty decent gearing for most places, and definitely gravel friendly. Oh, and all this for a very decent price of $3,999.00 USD.
But what about tire clearance, and what about the geometry? Well, Cannondale says you can stick a 43mm tire in the back and a 48mm wide tire up front and still have 4mm of clearance around the tires. Yep. That'll play on gravel. They also have pretty decent geometry, with my only nit being the bottom bracket drop is a bit conservative on the two largest sizes. With a hair steeper than 71° at the headtube, I'd say this will work just fine on gravel.
So, here's the deal: Why are we fooling around with anything else? I mean, this is the all -around bike which most people should buy. Maybe add some utilitarian features to make it more practical, but this is more in the world I think we all wanted when "gravel" bikes were first talked about, at least on this blog.
The Synapse is not trying to be the next "bro MTB thing", it isn't trying to be super-aero at the expense of versatility. Yes- it could be more practical. (Internally routed cables through the head tube? Yuck!), However; this bike speaks to me as where the whole gravel thing should be headed, especially in how Cannondale is marketing it. Good job here, C'dale! Now let's improve upon this ideal going forward.
That's a wrap for this week. Thanks for reading Guitar Ted Productions! get out there and ride those bicycles!
5 comments:
What sucks is that, to get all the tech Cannondale baked into the Synapse, you have to spring for the top of the line model, which costs $22,000. That’s not my kind of bike in any situation…
@MG - Yep. You are not wrong. Sad but true. It seems the common rider is being forgotten here.
Two different aproaches: 1x14 gears and carbon fiver spokes, versus the Cdlae all road (and this kind of bikes). Interesting. I used to had a Cdale Rush with Lefty. Aluminium fork and frame. Lovelly bike for long distance races. Was my wedding present. Now I am more in the practical bikes. Steel (love Ti), confort, easy maintenance, relaiable,… but looks like the market moves to the other side: racing and performance style.
On the pod’s Rockcombo comparison. Remember that it had 26x1.5” tires when comparing the BB drop. Still likely high but not as much as was implied. The geometry was basically the same as the Stumpjumper, with a steeper HTA. That included the 17” chainstays. If anything, I think the current gravel bike stays are shorter than needed.
Those 1.5” Hardpack tires were OEM on many Specialized MTBs of the time, and I used them, along with the 2.2” version (sound familiar?).
Wish I could have been in on this one. Have thoughts on saddles, too
I have last years model of the synapse and it is the most comfortable road bike I have. Always been a steel guy but this is way more comfortable than my old steel bikes with 700x28 or even 30’s. Have to give some credit to the schwalbe pro one tle tires in 700x34, they are smooth and fast. I’d like to have more clearance and the stash box like the new one, but happy that my cables don’t go thru the headset and still uses a standard round seat post. Might move up to a 38 when I wear these tires out but I’m pretty happy with it the way it is.
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