stem, other differences: btwn road and cyclocross?



H

heaventree

Guest
I've seen discussion that the essential difference between a
cyclocross and a road bike is the cantilever breaks and the greater
frame clearance for knobby tires -- but it also seems the stem on a
cyclocross is taller and the drop bar angle is higher. I'm talking
about, say, a Bianchi San Jose or Roger, a Specialized Tricross, etc.

I'm asking because I bought a nice Tricross for riding this winter
through the potholes and slush in NYC and it got stolen 2 weeks later
so now I'm going to convert my singlespeed for winter use. I want
drop bars but a bit more "heads up" than track bars and knob treads
for the nasty streets.

Any thoughts on the stem issue - just curious.
 
heaventree wrote:
> I've seen discussion that the essential difference between a
> cyclocross and a road bike is the cantilever breaks and the greater
> frame clearance for knobby tires -- but it also seems the stem on a
> cyclocross is taller and the drop bar angle is higher. I'm talking
> about, say, a Bianchi San Jose or Roger, a Specialized Tricross, etc.
>
> I'm asking because I bought a nice Tricross for riding this winter
> through the potholes and slush in NYC and it got stolen 2 weeks later
> so now I'm going to convert my singlespeed for winter use. I want
> drop bars but a bit more "heads up" than track bars and knob treads
> for the nasty streets.
>
> Any thoughts on the stem issue - just curious.


Generally speaking, if a person rides both road and cyclocross, the
cockpit length would be shorter on the cyclocross compared to the road
bike to provide better technical control on the intended (cyclocross)
terrain. Whether this implies in practice a shorter stem would depend
on your actual TT measurement of your bikes.
 
On Nov 18, 8:44 pm, heaventree <[email protected]> wrote:
> I've seen discussion that the essential difference between a
> cyclocross and a road bike is the cantilever breaks and the greater
> frame clearance for knobby tires -- but it also seems the stem on a
> cyclocross is taller and the drop bar angle is higher. I'm talking
> about, say, a Bianchi San Jose or Roger, a Specialized Tricross, etc.
>
> I'm asking because I bought a nice Tricross for riding this winter
> through the potholes and slush in NYC and it got stolen 2 weeks later
> so now I'm going to convert my singlespeed for winter use. I want
> drop bars but a bit more "heads up" than track bars and knob treads
> for the nasty streets.
>
> Any thoughts on the stem issue - just curious.


the cyclocross bike is a perfect hybrid between mountain bike and road
bikes. the gear are different, brakes, length of top tube, the saddle.
carlos
www.bikingthings.com