Front Suspension mtb with Drops

[Dave5N]

You're either joking, or are a weirdo cyclocross type.
It's a bit of a generalisation, but in proper MTBing if you can ride down a hill at full speed with drop handlebars or as fast as you could with proper riser ars then it's only really a 'connector' route, rather than a part of the ride in earnest, and thus you probably need to be re-jigging your route to ride UP that one and down something more technical/steeper/both in order to get the most out of that part of the countryside.
the whole idea of mtbing is that you can get your weight back and thus tackle sections that are tricky due to obstacles at speed, putting drop bars on it defeats the point entirely as it just throws your weight forward and saps all confidence or just sends you flying over the handlebars.

If you want to use drop bars off road, then that's basically cyclocross. and while the actual speeds involved are probably faster, it's not done on the same terrain as MTBing is, it's done on trekking trails, disused railways and mild paths etc., so it isn't the same thing.
Cyclocross is a known discipline. Whilst I don't see much in it myself, I can understand what people do see in it. But having drop bars on a full-on front-suspension MTB isn't a valid discipline. It more fits into the category of "perversion for weird bikes" than anything else. Why do people have to do such crass things just for the sake of 'looking wacky'. It really gets up my nose. No-one who's serious about MTBing (or MTBing and road-riding aswell, come to that) thinks drop bars on a front-sus MTB is clever, or funny, or ingenious. They will just think it's moronic.


Yes, they can. It doesn't mean other people have to like it or agree with it.

Well done Bonj

 

[4F]

Sure it's not a Moulton?

Not unless the Moulton now comes with a basket

 

[mickle]

Is Bonj affected by the phases of the moon?

 

[Zoiders]

I have seen that done on some Cannondale cross bikes, they just added the head shock system, looks much neater than standard sprung forks and drops, I would not want to be riding on the drops with a great deal of travel on the fork though, it could dive under breaking quite badly.

 

[RedBike]

If you want to use drop bars off road, then that's basically cyclocross. and while the actual speeds involved are probably faster, it's not done on the same terrain as MTBing is, it's done on trekking trails, disused railways and mild paths etc., so it isn't the same thing.
Cyclocross is a known discipline. Whilst I don't see much in it myself, I can understand what people do see in it. But having drop bars on a full-on front-suspension MTB isn't a valid discipline. It more fits into the category of "perversion for weird bikes" than anything else. Why do people have to do such crass things just for the sake of 'looking wacky'. It really gets up my nose. No-one who's serious about MTBing (or MTBing and road-riding aswell, come to that) thinks drop bars on a front-sus MTB is clever, or funny, or ingenious. They will just think it's moronic.

Cyclo-cross races are often on the same sort of terrain as xc mtb races; and to my knowledge they're never on disused railway lines.

If you're using a MTB on the road then I can't see a problem with using drops on it. In fact Bonj isn't your "road bike" actually a mtb fitted with drop bars?

 

[bonj2]

If you're using a MTB on the road then I can't see a problem with using drops on it. In fact Bonj isn't your "road bike" actually a mtb fitted with drop bars?

no it's always been a road bike. It was originally a flat-bar road bike, now I've fitted drop bars to it it's a drop-bar road bike.

 

[bonj2]

Cyclo-cross races are often on the same sort of terrain as xc mtb races; and to my knowledge they're never on disused railway lines.

no they're not. in fact longers made a post about a cyclocross race that was going on in sheffield and i asked him where it was, and he said a leisure centre, and i looked it up on the internet expecting that to be just the start and finish with the actual route going right out into some area of countryside i'm not aware of, and in actual fact the race was just round the grounds of the leisure centre! So not really on xc terrain. There's not going to be any major obstacles like rocks and roots, otherwise they'd break their wheels.

 

[Dave5N]

no they're not. in fact longers made a post about a cyclocross race that was going on in sheffield and i asked him where it was, and he said a leisure centre, and i looked it up on the internet expecting that to be just the start and finish with the actual route going right out into some area of countryside i'm not aware of, and in actual fact the race was just round the grounds of the leisure centre! So not really on xc terrain. There's not going to be any major obstacles like rocks and roots, otherwise they'd break their wheels.

Done much 'cross, Bonj?

Cyclo-cross races are often on the same sort of terrain as xc mtb races; and to my knowledge they're never on disused railway lines.

If you're using a MTB on the road then I can't see a problem with using drops on it. In fact Bonj isn't your "road bike" actually a mtb fitted with drop bars?

*Ahem* - tomorrow's league at Wolverhampton is - technical course too, up and down the embankments. I take your general point though. I don't think Bonj really appreciates how bloody hard 'cross can be.

 

[bonj2]

Done much 'cross, Bonj?

no.Largely on account of the fact that it sounds like using the wrong bike for the wrong purpose.

*Ahem* - tomorrow's league at Wolverhampton is - technical course too, up and down the embankments. I take your general point though. I don't think Bonj really appreciates how bloody hard 'cross can be.

I once saw a cyclocross rider up one of the paths i go mtbing down, he looked like he was in pain - the expression on his face was one of "oh, WHY have I come up here on THIS bike?? Oh god, why me?"

 

[Abitrary]

Yeah, I wonder about cyclocross sometimes.

It just seems to me like a bad analogy of rally and track car racing. With the cars it went separate ways, for obvious reasons.

But cyclocross just seems like a dirty muddy triathlon, without the swimming bit. In fact I'd have a bit more respect for cyclocross racers if they swam across the lakes and streams instead of being craply eccentric...

Are they gay????

 

[bonj2]

Yeah, I wonder about cyclocross sometimes.

It just seems to me like a bad analogy of rally and track car racing. With the cars it went separate ways, for obvious reasons.

But cyclocross just seems like a dirty muddy triathlon, without the swimming bit. In fact I'd have a bit more respect for cyclocross racers if they swam across the lakes and streams instead of being craply eccentric...

Are they gay????

i don't think there's all that many of them to be honest, it's one of those 'niche' sports that lots of people like the idea of and the bikes involved, but that hardly anybody actually does.

 

[Abitrary]

i don't think there's all that many of them to be honest, it's one of those 'niche' sports that lots of people like the idea of and the bikes involved, but that hardly anybody actually does.

So what about the people who do do it? Why don't we see regional news programs about them?

 

[longers]

Because we hardly see any cycling racing of any form mentioned on the national news let alone regional. Unless it's bad news with regards to the TDF.

 

[Abitrary]

Because we hardly see any cycling racing of any form mentioned on the national news let alone regional. Unless it's bad news with regards to the TDF.

If they did cyclocross like a proper triathlon, and swim across the wet bits, I'd happily watch it on regional news and not fall asleep so quick.

You heard it here first.

 

[longers]

You might watch it but they'd never show it.