When we started this series to celebrate Bicycle Quarterly's 15th anniversary, we thought we'd eventually run out of myths. But it seems that new ones are created as fast as we can debunk old ones. The latest is "700C wheels roll faster than 650B." This is stated with the same certitude...
When we started to publish Bicycle Quarterly 15 years ago, it seemed that most of the technical aspects of bicycles were well-known. And yet, as we tested many different bikes, we started to question many of the things we had accepted as 'facts.' To celebrate our 15th anniversary, we’ll look...
Our series of 'Myths in Cycling' continues with a look at rim width. You often hear that wider tires should run on wider rims. Intuitively, that seems to make sense – match the wider tire to a wider rim. You also hear that wider rims make the tire handle more...
As part of our series on myths in cycling, let's look at wheel size and how it affects speed. Even though all-road tires have grown wider in recent years, many bike makers have stuck with 700C wheels. It's a size that is familiar to road cyclists, and there is also...
This used to be one of the first things you learned as a cyclist: If you want to go fast, make sure your tires are pumped up to the maximum pressure. The harder your tires are inflated, the faster they roll. We now know that this is not true. The realization...
'Marginal gains' are the latest buzzword in cycling. The idea is that many tiny improvements can add up to make a meaningful difference. Make 10 changes that each save 3 Watts, and you'll have gained 30 Watts... Think of Greg LeMond winning the 1989 Tour de France by eight seconds... If...
As the days get shorter, many cyclists are thinking about lights. How do you measure the quality of a headlight? It's tempting to look at how many lumens the light puts out. After all, brighter is better, isn't it? On the road, what matters is not lumens, but lux. What is...
Glancing at the photo above, you might think that I am turning right (seen from the rider's view). Actually, I am beginning a left turn. What you see is countersteering – literally the only way we can lean a bike into a corner. (more…)
To celebrate Bicycle Quarterly‘s 15th anniversary, we are looking at myths in cycling: things we used to believe, but which we’ve since found not to be true. Disc brakes have become popular on allroad bikes for a variety of reasons. One of them is that they are perceived as offering superior braking....
To celebrate Bicycle Quarterly‘s 15th anniversary, we are looking at myths in cycling: things we used to believe, but which we’ve since found out not to be true. Today, we explain why your bike's weight distribution does not directly translate into your tire pressures. (more…)
To celebrate Bicycle Quarterly's 15th anniversary, we are looking at myths in cycling: things we used to believe, but which we’ve since found out not to be true. This week, we have a 'double feature' that looks at fork blades. In the first post, we looked at whether they flex enough...
When we first started talking about shock absorption and fork blades, it was commonly believed that fork blades didn't flex significantly. Experts told us: "All the flex in a fork is in the steerer tube, where the lever arm is longest." And yet, when we rode bikes with flexible fork...
To celebrate Bicycle Quarterly's 15th anniversary, we are looking at myths in cycling – things we all used to believe, but which we've since found out not to be true. During these 15 years we've learned a lot, and perhaps the most intriguing discovery is that modern parts aren't as light as...
When tubeless tires first became available, they were designed for mountain bikes, and it was their resistance to pinch flats (above) that made them popular. Off-road, there are few nails or broken bottles that can cause punctures (and even those usually will be pushed into the soft ground rather than...
To celebrate 15 years of Bicycle Quarterly, we are examining myths in cycling – things that we (and most others) used to believe, but which we have found to be not true. Today, let's look at tire tread: Tread patterns matter – they can make a difference – even on the...
"Raise your handlebars, and you'll be more comfortable." It's one of those almost self-evident 'truths' of cycling. And yet the reality is not that simple... (more…)
To celebrate 15 years of Bicycle Quarterly, we are examining myths in cycling – things we (and most others) used to believe, but which we have found to be not true. Today, we'll look at frame stiffness. (more…)
To celebrate 15 years of Bicycle Quarterly, we are looking at ‘Myths in Cycling’ – things that aren't quite what we (and most other cyclists) used to believe. Part 3 of the series is about fenders. Many cyclists here in Seattle install fenders when the rainy season starts, and remove them for...
In part 2 of our series 'Myths in Cycling,' we'll look at why titanium isn't always lighter than steel. I can hear you saying, "What? Everybody knows that titanium has half the density of steel." That much is true: The same part made from titanium will weigh half as much as the...
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