At 09:04 AM 3/16/2008, you wrote:
>Donald Gillies <gillies@cs.ubc.ca> wrote:
>
> Bike weight, with an equivalent margin of safety, has probably dropped
>only 2 lbs since the 1970's. If you rode a 21 lbs bike in the 1970's,
>go ahead and pay $1500 for a 19 lbs bike today. If you want something
>lighter, imho, you are taking large risks with your health and life,
>imho.
Don,
My first racing bike, a 1972 Atala Competition, weighed 21 1/2 pounds. Cost $200 new (on sale from $250. I shoulda bought the all Campy Atala which I think was $300! At the time, the Raleigh Pro was $385.)
My current everyday bike, a '99 Merlin ExtraLight, with Campy Record 9 components, a Reynolds carbon fiber fork and Ksyrium SL wheels, weighs 17 1/2 lbs.
It cost a bit more than $1500 (or would have if I were not a savvy ebay shopper!).
I don't feel any less safe on that bike than on the Atala, and in fact, the Merlin is a *lot* more stable.
The CF fork may have a different set of fatigue and failure characteristics than the Atala's steel fork, but I'll take the better control in exchange.
Just my .02.
Lee
Lee Levitt
Needham, MA USA