Quote by BC:
"Just look at those handlebars! They must weigh a lot. Not to mention other components."
Track bikes, tandems and singles, typically used steel bars and stems and heavy duty aluminum components when those became available. Torque and horsepower handling requirements. The Japan keirin track racing association to this day requires the NJS stamp be cast into only components they approve for track use by professional riders. Failure at speed can mean serious injury or death. A little extra weight on a (mostly_ flat track doesn't mean all that much.
"That makes me wonder...why was the Blackbird retired, anyhow, if it was so fast? I guess satellites are just faster can do the same sort of recon work."
Exactly. Satellites...drones...stealth aircraft...better digital cameras...and the Habu had insane maintenance costs. Still, satellites are largely unsteerable and you have to burn precious fuel to get them over a target when the SR-71 could be there in hours. There was a sled driver on one of the firearm forums I frequent and his stories were very interesting!
"I'm also awed at your memory CampyBob. You seem able to come up with every precise detail of a bicycle that the rest of the world has (mostly) forgotten. If you ever write a book about bicycles, present and past, I'll do my all to make sure I'm the first or among the first purchaser(s)."
Thanks! My memory is still pretty good, but I never considered myself a very good writer and neither did any of my teachers or professors. At best I'm a hack.
However, I could bore you to tears with all the worthless **** I know about racing cars, fast motorcycles and loose women! I won't say that I lived through the Golden Age of American Cycling, but I sure got to see a lot of really good equipment over the years. Unfortunately, while I manage to collect an amount of steel and aluminum that will cause an instant divorce, my meager stash of cycling **** is miniscule compared to some of the hard core collectors out there. Besides, I prefer riding to polishing!