Tandem recommendation?

Quoted message said:

We're looking at entry level road tandems. The Cannondale RT1000 aluminum frame with Shimano 105
shifters and XT rear derailleur seems like the best value at $2400. The Co-motion Primera cro-moly
frame with a similar group is $400 more. The Santana Arriva SE cro-moly frame similarly outfitted
is $3000. Opinions?

All these are viable options, IMHO.

The Cannondale will offer the stiffest ride of the group, which may or may not be a bad thing for
you and your stoker.

The Santana will typically have a more slack head tube, causing it to handle "slower" than either
the Co-Motion or the Cannondale (Put another way, the Santana will want to track straight and will
require more steering input to initiate a turn). Again, this is not a "good" or "bad"
characteristic, just a matter of what your personal preference is.

A good source of opinions for your question would be the tandem e-mail list:
hobbes.ucsd.eduAAAA SUBSCRIBE.htmlOpen ↗

Good luck!

Chris Neary [email hidden]

Chris & Tracey 1999 Co-Motion Speedster

"Chris Neary" <[email hidden] > wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

We're looking at entry level road tandems. The Cannondale RT1000 aluminum frame with Shimano 105
shifters and XT rear derailleur seems like the

best

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

value at $2400. The Co-motion Primera cro-moly frame with a similar group

is

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

$400 more. The Santana Arriva SE cro-moly frame similarly outfitted is $3000. Opinions?

All these are viable options, IMHO.

The Cannondale will offer the stiffest ride of the group, which may or may not be a bad thing for
you and your stoker.

The Santana will typically have a more slack head tube, causing it to

handle

Quoted message said:

"slower" than either the Co-Motion or the Cannondale (Put another way, the Santana will want to
track straight and will require more steering input

to

Quoted message said:

initiate a turn). Again, this is not a "good" or "bad" characteristic,

just

Quoted message said:

a matter of what your personal preference is.

A good source of opinions for your question would be the tandem e-mail

list:

Quoted message said:

hobbes.ucsd.eduAAAA SUBSCRIBE.htmlOpen ↗

Good luck!

Chris Neary [email hidden]

Chris & Tracey 1999 Co-Motion Speedster

The best way to pick is to take a long test ride on all of them. As Chris says, they really don't
handle the same at all. We thought the Santana handled more like a Lincoln Continental, while the
Co-Motion was more like a 5 series BMW. (Note neither is a bad car, but we preferred the
BMW/Co-Motion.)

Thanks to Chris and Cathy for their input. I certainly prefer a 5-series BMW too!

We've taken out the Co-Motion but could only compare it to the Santana Sovereign since the shop
didn't have the Arriva in our size. The Sovereign was a nice ride with Ultegra shifters and XTR
derailleur, but for hundreds more - it's tough to find shops with all the frames and all the sizes.

JAZ

"Cathy Kearns" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Chris Neary" <[email hidden] > wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

We're looking at entry level road tandems. The Cannondale RT1000

aluminum

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

frame with Shimano 105 shifters and XT rear derailleur seems like the

best

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

value at $2400. The Co-motion Primera cro-moly frame with a similar

group

Quoted message said:

is

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

$400 more. The Santana Arriva SE cro-moly frame similarly outfitted is $3000. Opinions?

All these are viable options, IMHO.

The Cannondale will offer the stiffest ride of the group, which may or

may

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

not be a bad thing for you and your stoker.

The Santana will typically have a more slack head tube, causing it to

handle

Quoted message said:

"slower" than either the Co-Motion or the Cannondale (Put another way,

the

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Santana will want to track straight and will require more steering input

to

Quoted message said:

initiate a turn). Again, this is not a "good" or "bad" characteristic,

just

Quoted message said:

a matter of what your personal preference is.

A good source of opinions for your question would be the tandem e-mail

list:

Quoted message said:

hobbes.ucsd.eduAAAA SUBSCRIBE.htmlOpen ↗

Good luck!

Chris Neary [email hidden]

Chris & Tracey 1999 Co-Motion Speedster

The best way to pick is to take a long test ride on all of them. As Chris says, they really don't
handle the same at all. We thought the Santana handled more like a Lincoln Continental, while the
Co-Motion was more like a 5 series BMW. (Note neither is a bad car, but we preferred the
BMW/Co-Motion.)

Is balancing difficult on a tandem?

J. Zwiebel said:

We're looking at entry level road tandems. The Cannondale RT1000 aluminum frame with Shimano 105
shifters and XT rear derailleur seems like the best value at $2400. The Co-motion Primera cro-moly
frame with a similar group is $400 more. The Santana Arriva SE cro-moly frame similarly outfitted
is $3000. Opinions? Thanks - James Zwiebel

Quoted message said:

Is balancing difficult on a tandem?

Depends.

The stoker must trust the captain and not intentionally lean in reaction to what the bike is doing.
OTOH the captain must avoid making decisions which could panic the stoker.

Obviously, the issue is more important for heavier stokers.

Chris Neary [email hidden]

Chris & Tracey 1999 Co-Motion Speedster

Quoted message said:

We're looking at entry level road tandems. The Cannondale RT1000 aluminum frame with Shimano 105
shifters and XT rear derailleur seems like the best value at $2400. The Co-motion Primera cro-moly
frame with a similar group is $400 more. The Santana Arriva SE cro-moly frame similarly outfitted
is $3000. Opinions?

got any 4 hour centuries in your future? if not, i'd go for 26-in wheels. it's easier to make a
cheap, strong, durable 26-in wheel. go 'used'. (what a misnomer. most likely they're dumping it
because it isn't.)