Subject: RE: Softride I've got three Softride bikes (all were custom builds using the Softride beam), and love them. They're all the "classic" style, using the curved composite/urethane laminate, metal tube construction. Yes, they are heavier than a comparable standard bike of the same tubing spec. Just the nature of the beast. I've never had that extra heft slow me down, however (a couple district hillclimb TT titles to back that up). Judicious parts spec can help. The "problem children" of the Softrides were the TT-type beams -- the solid beams which used the mounting hardware to provide the suspension movement. Part of the reason they fell out of favor was the UCI (and ITU) banning them for international competition. I can still race mine in any USAT or USAC race (except for USAC Nationals or USAT draft-legal regionals or nationals). Still legal for WTC events as well. But it effectively killed the international market. That along with some issues in the company, and it went up for sale several years ago with no buyer taking up the flag. Parts can still be found with some searching. There's a Softride Owners Group on Facebook that can be a good resource. The pic below is from last September, at the start of the bike leg of my 50th B'Day Celebration tri, hitting the road for 81 miles. That is the first Softride bike I bought in 1991, I think, with the original beam. Fillet brazed steel by Paul Barkley (who made most of the first runs of Softride branded bikes, and is involved with the Bodyfloat seatpost now). |