May Be Worse

What’s extra seductive than a ribbon of street vanishing into the autumn foliage?

And what’s extra repulsive than the sight of a late-90s’ freak bike?

However right here’s the factor about bikes: in case you actually love using them, all of them win you over ultimately. (Okay, not all, however most. Or many. Or a whole lot of them.) For years, I ridiculed the Y-Foil, a wildly dork-tacular bike that was the very antithesis of the basic supplies and silhouettes I maintain sacred. However you realize what? I actually like using it! There, I stated it. See, right here’s the factor in regards to the Y-Foil: you realize that phrase, probably the most clichéd 5 phrases in all of cycledom?

Laterally Stiff Vertically Compliant

Because the daybreak of time, bike reviewers have instructed us that this materials or that materials possesses magical qualities that may render a motorbike laterally stiff but vertically compliant. “Crabon filters out high-frequency vibrations.” “Titanium has a springy journey high quality.” “There’s nothing just like the magic carpet journey of basic metal.” And so forth–none of which actually stand as much as scrutiny, since regardless of the bike’s made from you’re principally simply sitting on high of a inflexible diamond. Sure, some bikes are undeniably smoother than others, however you’re by no means positive if it’s the fabric, or the geometry, or the seatpost, or the saddle, or the tires, or simply the way you occur to be feeling that day. (I’ve completely discovered a motorbike to be sublimely snug in the future and borderline painful the subsequent–your “health” akin to it’s on any given day informs fairly a bit about how your bike feels.)

However the Y-Foil is completely different: it’s not a diamond. (Effectively, principally. I suppose there’s type of a diamond in there.) As a substitute, you’re sitting on a beam–and the beam flexes. And in contrast to, say, the rolling diving board that may be a Softride, the flex is sort of delicate–adequately subtle that it looks like a traditional diamond street body, till you hit some tough pavement or one thing, at which level you understand you might be in actual fact undeniably suspended. It climbs like a traditional street bike, it sprints like a traditional street bike, it does every thing else like a traditional street bike, however on the identical time you’re remoted from probably the most jarring shocks and vibrations. Is the body design more practical than, say, a 32mm tire or a leather-based saddle? Not essentially. Are these a greater method to enhance journey really feel? Nearly actually. Nonetheless, the actual fact stays: the Y-Foil is certainly laterally stiff but vertically compliant, a top quality that few if any historically designed frames can unequivocally declare to own whatever the components which can be bolted to them.

Once more, the issue of harsh-riding street bikes has since been addressed because of wider tires and all the remainder of it, however at a time when something wider than 25mm on a race bike was thought-about unthinkable, the Y-Foil did certainly “enhance” upon the standard racing body by being concurrently extra aerodynamic and extra snug, qualities that have been lengthy thought-about mutually unique. Does that make the Y-Foil a noteworthy success within the context of the period through which it was designed? Or is it the rolling embodiment of how ridiculous it was that everybody insisted on utilizing slender tires always?

I say it’s each, and that we must always snigger at it and admire it.

However sure, earlier than the UCI cracked down on non-traditional body designs on the finish of the Nineteen Nineties, it’s laborious to understand simply how intent body designers have been to get rid of the seat tube as soon as carbon fiber made it potential to take action. Right here’s one other instance, which a reader jogged my memory of just lately:

The Y-Foil can confound the attention while you’re anticipating to see a diamond body, however on the identical time it’s a design with its personal inner logic, and when you understand it’s not a standard body your mind shortly come to phrases with it. That doesn’t imply you like it essentially, solely that it’s what it’s, which is a bicycle unto itself. The Kestrel nonetheless is principally a standard body solely with no seat tube, so irrespective of how lengthy you take a look at it your mind desires to place that seat tube again:

Talking of the Kestrel, my time with a 4000 was one of the vital vital bicycle relationships in my biking life, and just lately I occurred upon yet one more modern assessment:

These phrases have been each chilling and prescient:

Granted, the timeline was a bit off–Trek’s top-of-the-line bikes have been full carbon 5 years after the 4000, however most others’ weren’t:

However right here we’re in 2024, and in case you head out onto the favored roadie routes in your space you’ll see that the “mantle of progress” (I’m not even positive what meaning) has actually gained out:

Although I’d argue that the prognostication relating to metal being relegated to the “nostalgia market” was not borne out. Certain, nostalgia could also be a part of the explanation metal’s nonetheless round, nevertheless it’s principally since you nonetheless can’t beat the mixture of sturdiness, worth, and efficiency:

The broad tires give it Y-Foil smoothness, you possibly can put fenders and stuff on it, you possibly can carry a couple of water bottle, and as a bonus the seat tube helps shield you from street spray. (You don’t wish to be out on a motorbike with out fenders when it’s actually moist outdoors, however you don’t wish to be out on the Y-Foil when it’s even barely moist in any respect.)

Some go for progress whereas others lament it:

In the meantime, it’s not all deserted Citi Bikes round these components:

I imply there are a whole lot of them, however the metropolis has additionally added a whole lot of bike lanes, which implies we will now take a household journey to Little It’ly nearly solely through bike lanes and greenways:

In fact I took the Platypus, because it’s my devoted leftovers hauler:

That’s additionally bread from the bakery of the man who wrote an op-ed towards the very bike lanes we used to get there:

I can’t inform if the joke’s on him or us.

Really, the joke’s on all of the folks sitting in site visitors–apart from the ices man, who like us was benefiting from the Indian summer season heat fall climate:

I suppose progress is what you make of it.