Urbanus Magnus

UPDATED 07/03/12: Now with pictures! I've had the O8 CX700 for nearly 9 months now, and so have put it through its paces by now. That's about 1000kms of mixed onroad/offorad/singletrack with tweaking, tuning, and general fettling in appropriate proportions. The Good: 1. Big Wonkin' Tires. There are quite a few things this bike has going for it, not least of which includes the capacity for large tires. I've concluded that you can shoehorn a 29x2.3 with fenders in there if you wanted. The 51mm (2.1in nominal) wide CST Critters have been a good fit so far. There is room for maybe 2.3in tires w/fenders, or 2.4 without.   2. A Nice Fork Design. I have had a good experience with the straight bladed fork that came standard with the frame. I know many people dislike them, because of the 'harsher ride' they supposedly give, or for their non-traditional look. Well, I can say that the ride certainly didn't feel "harsh" when riding road with 23...

Don't the size of the tires, on some degree, define what  bicycle you have and who  you are? Bikes such as monstercrossers aren't that different than a regular cyclocross bike - just with wider rubber. And what about the veritable 29er? Not so different than a hard-tail 26in-wheel mountain bike in everything except wheel size!  As it stands right now, there are four well-known sizes for bicycle wheels: 26in, 700c, 29in, and 650b.  Yes, 700c and 29in wheels and tires are technically the same, but for the purposes of everyday cyclists (and morover, the cycling industry), 29in is a buzzword for width. 26in is by far the most common - the VW Beetle of bike wheels if you will. Ubiquitous all around the world (especially the 3rd world, as the Beetle used to be!), and often easy to find cheap replacements, it is loved for its smaller size as this increases its durability. If you ride this size, you are a no-nonsense, function-over-form kinda cyclist.  36er?!? ...