Dear bike companies – STOP IT!!!!! Just for once, can you quit trying to make everyone’s bikes obsolete in one season? You all know the arguments. I’m saying simply no. Are they faster? Who cares. At some point you have to just stop this type of thing. The problem here for me, is that I buy bikes typically meant to be raced. So if suddenly one team wins even one race on a 32” wheeler, then every single team will follow. Have a rider 4’8”? So what, ride it anyway. Then what will Trek, Specialized, Cannondale all do? Very quickly phase out completely all 29” bikes. The average XC amateur racer will have no choice if they want a new bike at any point down the line. There is no such thing as “well then don’t buy one, just stick with 29”…there will be zero new 29” bikes made with a few short seasons. Which means XC wheels will be rare in the 29 size. Oh their will be plenty of middle and low end tires and wheels around for years. But if you want the good stuff, custom wheels it is.
The wheel size is NOT the limiting factor in XC speed and fun. It’s just not. Just like with the weird in between years with 26, 27.5 and 29” wheels all going at once, if anyone size has a speed advantage, and every single racer uses them, then there is no difference anymore. So stick with what works. Heck, 26” was just fine too if everyone rode them the same. It doesn’t matter if one is slower or faster, everyone is slower and faster together.
Can we hope no one buys the giant bikes and they will fade away? Doubtful.
One last thing to think about. Let’s say 32” wheels do roll over stuff and are measurably faster. And tall riders really love the 32” size. Do they now have a genuine advantage over everyone else? Because as it sits, everyone in a modern XC race has 29” wheels, tall, short, in between. The bike itself is not a factor really. Tall people have the same bike as short people, only the size of the frame changes. That seems like a fair trade.
I don’t like this whole thing. Once was enough. One thing I actually love about Cyclocross is that the bikes are limited by rules. Tire width, wheel size, drop bars, whatever, everyone is basically on the same bike. Let your legs and lungs decide who’s the best.
The wheel size is NOT the limiting factor in XC speed and fun. It’s just not. Just like with the weird in between years with 26, 27.5 and 29” wheels all going at once, if anyone size has a speed advantage, and every single racer uses them, then there is no difference anymore. So stick with what works. Heck, 26” was just fine too if everyone rode them the same. It doesn’t matter if one is slower or faster, everyone is slower and faster together.
Can we hope no one buys the giant bikes and they will fade away? Doubtful.
One last thing to think about. Let’s say 32” wheels do roll over stuff and are measurably faster. And tall riders really love the 32” size. Do they now have a genuine advantage over everyone else? Because as it sits, everyone in a modern XC race has 29” wheels, tall, short, in between. The bike itself is not a factor really. Tall people have the same bike as short people, only the size of the frame changes. That seems like a fair trade.
I don’t like this whole thing. Once was enough. One thing I actually love about Cyclocross is that the bikes are limited by rules. Tire width, wheel size, drop bars, whatever, everyone is basically on the same bike. Let your legs and lungs decide who’s the best.
