Quote Originally Posted by roguedog View Post
I agree. I don't get it. But then, I don't get that Shimano's hoods are so freaking bulky. Italians and Japanese are smaller folks.. you'd think their stuff it'd be more comfy for women.

Alas, I think it is the racing element of the design process that gets us.

KenyonChris, do like Maillotpois (sp?) did and get a Pegoretti love. I'm not sure how it is for all day comfort but I've heard it's a rocket! I'm kind of a Pegoretti groupie now...
The new Ultegra stuff is the bomb. Slimmer hoods, much better lever design, etc (NO NEED FOR SHIMS, YAY!!!).

O, and I'm 4'11" and ride an Italian frame...
I don't think it has anything to do with point of origin. Lots of smaller bike companies (italian, us, etc) just choose not to make smaller frames for any of a lot of reasons. With carbon it's pretty simply that they can't justify the cost of the mold against the (relatively smaller) potential for sales when competing against "the big 3" in the US market. Doesn't mean they aren't marketing something completely different in their home country where they have more market share.