nobrakes
Well-Known Member
Yesterday myself and my wife went out for a tandem ride on the Nazca Quetzal. It's the first time I've been back on a non MBB bike since I built the V20. I've only had about 6 hours on the V due to family commitments and the onset of Scottish winter (and therefore high levels of nasty salt on the roads), but in that time I adapted pretty quick and was fairly comfortable on the bike.
Interestingly, the first mile on the Quetzal was a comedy act that resembled a drunkard lurching down the village high street, weaving from side to side. I literally couldn't keep the bike in a straight line even when I deliberately relaxed my upper body and arms. I also found the bike refusing to go the way I wanted on occasion at higher speed, as I was still plugged into the MBB neural pathways. This is a 30KG bike that is super stable and easy to ride. I soon got back into the groove but it gave rise to an interesting observation - the way we pedal still affects the steering on an RWD bike, but just in a different way from MBB. I suspect we feed back subtle signals via the legs to the body even when the boom is fixed and we become used to incorporating that into our steering. Also it became clear that neither is easier or harder than the other - they are just different.
One thing I did notice was that I have very quickly become used to the necessary articulation of the pelvis during turning on MBB that feels very natural once you're used to it, particularly in conjunction with the engagement of the upper body. It feels quite holistic. Having a fixed boom on corners felt a bit strange and 2 dimensional at first, almost like there was something missing. It'll be interesting to see how that difference manifests over time as I get more used to MBB and also swapping between the two platforms.
https://www.strava.com/activities/1270632631
Interestingly, the first mile on the Quetzal was a comedy act that resembled a drunkard lurching down the village high street, weaving from side to side. I literally couldn't keep the bike in a straight line even when I deliberately relaxed my upper body and arms. I also found the bike refusing to go the way I wanted on occasion at higher speed, as I was still plugged into the MBB neural pathways. This is a 30KG bike that is super stable and easy to ride. I soon got back into the groove but it gave rise to an interesting observation - the way we pedal still affects the steering on an RWD bike, but just in a different way from MBB. I suspect we feed back subtle signals via the legs to the body even when the boom is fixed and we become used to incorporating that into our steering. Also it became clear that neither is easier or harder than the other - they are just different.
One thing I did notice was that I have very quickly become used to the necessary articulation of the pelvis during turning on MBB that feels very natural once you're used to it, particularly in conjunction with the engagement of the upper body. It feels quite holistic. Having a fixed boom on corners felt a bit strange and 2 dimensional at first, almost like there was something missing. It'll be interesting to see how that difference manifests over time as I get more used to MBB and also swapping between the two platforms.
https://www.strava.com/activities/1270632631
