Responsiveness vs stability

[Catrin]

I am starting to ponder my new Gunnar - have an appointment with my fitter the second Friday in January for the fitting and to place my deposit.

I love my LHT, she is so stable and steady, and the wheel-set is pretty much bomb-proof. I love how she rides, but she isn't fast. Granted, speed is probably more about fitness than anything else, but it does help to have a bike that is built more for speed. Touring bikes are not.

Certainly physical limitations require that I have a very upright riding position and use flat-bars. While my solution wouldn't work for everyone, for me it does and I can ride all day long without having hand pain or other issues from my riding position.

So I am starting to ponder what I want to see different in my new bike. This will be my light-weight steel go-faster bike and will be used for club rides and 200k brevets, etc. My LHT is for rambling in the country and light touring when it doesn't matter how long it takes me to get where I am going. No racks or fenders on the new bike, the wheel-set will be more appropriate for my size, etc.

I want my new bike to be more responsive, yet I don't want to lose much in the way of stability. I suspect that my fit will be quite similar to what I have and that I won't wind up on Gunnars road bike but on something like the Sport or the Fastlane (disc brakes).

Is it a given that I have to give up some of that stability to gain responsiveness? I am assuming that this is a balance...

[bluebug32]

Responsiveness has a lot to do with frame geometry. Other things like wheel weight, choice of stem and handlebars, etc. also factor into how responsive a bike will be.

[indysteel]

It also has a lot to do with fork rake and trail. If I remember correctly, the less rake you have, the more responsive the steering will be. Too responsive and your handling will be twitchy. Not responsive enough and it becomes almost too stable. This is especially noticeable in turns and technical descents.

I more or less opted for a happy medioum when I designed and built my Moots. The builder recommended a certain rake and giev how limited my choice of forks to begin with, it really ended up being a non-decision.

Edited to indicate that less rake, not more, makes for more responsive handling. I really shouldn't respond to posts before I'm fully awake.

[Catrin]

Thanks to both of you for the tips - and I was already considering geometry and wheels, etc., but had not thought about the fork rake. My fitter is recommending that I talk with Richard Schwinn directly about what I want/need to help me settle on the most appropriate frame - and my fitter will speak with him as well after our session. We are fortunate in that Richard has a daughter in the area and he has a personal relationship with my LBS.

I am taking my time this time as I would like this to be the last road-type bike that I buy barring having to replace one of my bikes for some reason.

[indysteel]

Catrin, please read the edit to my previous post. I needed to correct myself.