The Spoiled-By-My-Rivendell Effect

[Armand Kizirian]

A Common Occurrence

Several rides go by on your beloved Rivendell, which likely boasts the most upright and comfortable posture of all your bicycles: the perfect balance of weight between sit bones and hands; the tall, erect posture that affords a freedom of your neck to effortlessly glean every bit of curiosity out of your surroundings; the swaying swoop of a turn, from left, to right, and every which way in between, carrying your weight with such poise that the phenomenon never seems to grow old. 

But then, you ride one of your other bicycles. It has a handlebar placement that is about level with your saddle, or even worse, below. This was a bicycle that was exceptionally comfortable for you, perhaps even defined the peak of comfort for several years of your finite cycling life. As you ride it, you question, "Did something here change?" You look down at this innocent, intricate pile of steel, wondering if some sort of mischief took place since you last rode it. You ask yourself a variety of questions; "Have there been this much weight in my hands this whole time? My back is to be at this angle for every riding second? How do most people consider this to be very upright?" Some miles go by and it slowly feels familiar again, but something never feels quite right, no matter the distance. Then it dawns on you. 

The Spoiled-By-My Rivendell Effect

Thanks for reading,
Armand who-just-restored-his-road-bike-and-is-not-very-satisfied Kizirian
Santa Monica, CA

[Joe Bernard]

Yep. There's a nice Bridgestone RB-1 I've been gazing upon - the proverbial "dream bike I couldn't afford when it was new" - and I realize I'll think it's swell but the riding position will be impossible. I already have bikes that work for me, Rivendell made them! 

[David Ross]

My experience of this has been really acute. I had eight bikes a year ago and I’m now down to four with another bike currently for sale. I have two herniated discs in my neck and I’d planned to stop riding when the discomfort got too great, or when my doctor told me it was time. I had seen Rivendells on Instagram and was always curious, but frankly I never considered that I could do the kind of ATB riding I generally do aboard one of them. As I’ve mentioned on here previously, I came across an unbuilt Gus frame and bought it on a whim and quickly built it up. I was half hoping that it wouldn’t solve the problems I was having with my neck, but no such luck. After I started riding the Gus daily, my other bikes just felt ridiculous, even though they would all be considered “relaxed” geometry-wise. At this point, the only thing I miss are disc brakes. 

[J J]

Just chiming into to say, yep, it resonates 100 percent. 

[Caroline Golum]

Every time I have to ride a different bike - whether a bikeshare behemoth or borrowing someone else's - I think "why am I having hamburger when I could have filet mignon?"