In this photo, Eddy is hammering with his whole body, not just his legs, and is one with his machine. You could not do that stretched out. Try it, you'll see.
http://www.memoire-du-cyclisme.net/
Jay Sexton Sebastopol, CA
<snipped from Tom Sanders post> I look at the photo that Chuck sent during the discussion of brake cable routing and wonder at the riding position of Eddy Mercxk. He was perhaps the greatest of all time, but look at how bent up his back is. That would just kill me. I see that and think that the bike is just too small, especially the top tube.