5'10", 36.5" inseam. Size large with 650c wheels.

Chris

  
I have a Softride TT7, size m/l, I am 5ft 11 inches, 32" inseam.

Holy crap! You have no waist. If you look down at your keyboard, does you chin touch your belly button? :)

To a degree I'm not of much use to you. I am 5'9" and seem to recall being on a small in the red bike with the silver aluminum beam. I had several Softrides, and they were very good bikes. Zero problems.

I had a sense that the beam bike concept was tangibly faster than a non-beam configuration. I think Softride actually had a valid design concept for a number of reasons:

1. Fittability was very good- lots of latitude with various seat angles and you could go steep without affecting the handling too much.

2. I have a sense that the aerodynamics may have been quite good, especially with a rear disk.

3. Ride quality and saddle comfort were superb. You did get a little "beam wag" if your pedal stroke was poor, but this was moderated by becoming familiar with the bike and honing your technique.

4. The worse the road- the bigger the advantage.

On the down side the bikes were:

1. Heavy.

2. Climbed and descended poorly. Because the top tube is effectively very high, climbing out of the saddle was cumbersome. Descending could be horrifying (to me). You felt like a passenger. The top halve of the bike behaved laterally on a different plane that the bottom half of the bike, and the two halves seldom agreed. To me, it was a flat or rolling course bike.

3. Make sure you have spare seat clamp assemblies as those had cast parts that were fragile.

I also briefly had a Zipp bike that used a beam as well. It was also good, about the same as the last versions of the Softride, the RocketWing.

Those were good bikes. I had two good seasons on them. Never had major technical problems. Always seemed to put down some good bike splits and ran well off them. Fond memories.

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Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

6' 2", 34.5" inseam, size L Softride frame. Don't have the bike any longer but I sure miss that one!

My 5' 5" wife is taller than me when seated. It's pretty ridiculous.

let me be the first to say that you might look into titanflex as an alternative.

Titanflex is still in production, offers most of the same comfort and fittability advantages and you don't need to worry if that 8 year old carbon beam has about had it yet.

I have a Rocket '04 that I have had for three years. My height is 6' and inseam is 32". The bike is a med. large. Just so you know the beam on the Rockets can be a problem as the sleeve is bad for coming apart. Softride is no longer in business and not producing the beams. That said, there is a guy in FLorida who is on Ebay that repairs them and makes the sleeve so it wont come apart. I love mine and ride it religiously, probably have over 6,000 miles on it. It is slower going uphill but I love descending on mine. It is like riding a Cadillac! Any questions please ask or P.M. me.

Rocket beam failure is a certainty unless you have a shallow/horizontal beam angle, or weigh less than 60kg. Shallow beam angle, light weight and infrequent riding might delay beam failure for a year or two. Horizontal is the only sure prevention, and it requires making a custom seatpost.

Rocket sizing is similar to FasTT sizing:
http://www.softride.com/bikes/fitting.html

What beam?

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What if the Hokey Pokey is what it is all about?

Unless someone is GIVING you a Rocket I would forget it.I have had 4-3 Rockets and one FASST.The beams all delaminated which is a serious design flaw with this model.Some of the earlier models were actually more sturdy.I would second the opinion of another poster-the TITANFLEX is better than any Softride ever made.Not only is it lighter but it has no durability problems and rides more like a regular bike.Yes my 2 titanflexes are more comfortable than my Serotta Meivici at a fraction of the price.Also the P4 which is totally done up goes only to short races and the Titanflexes go to the Ironmen.

When you have the guy in FL repair your beam...it becomes a static beam. There is no longer the suspension aspect the to elastomer that Softride used. Just an FYI.

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What if the Hokey Pokey is what it is all about?

I know, I had mine done a couple years ago. Have put 4000 miles on it since and it still rides great!

I was helping with the RD at Softride for years. Got a ton of free bikes....the de-lam issues were only on the Carbon Rocket beam. Al beams never had issues. But yes, TitanFlex are awesome and offer the same type of ride.

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What if the Hokey Pokey is what it is all about?

I am 6ft 155lbs and ride a med/large frame. This will be my 7th season on the same carbon beam and its still going strong. I tell myself every year its time for a change but running off that bike in IMs and halfs is hard to pass on. Maybe 2012 will be my year for a new frame!

I agree with Tom. I was on Softrides for about 6 years, the last 3 of which were on a Rocket TT with the carbon beam. I'm 200 to a little more, and never had a problem with the beam, bolts, brackets, or anything else. I miss that bike. Had a lot of good rides, including 2 IM's, on it.

Those were comfortable and fast bikes. I wish someone would bring them back, so long as it was done with enough capital to be done right and not be a cheap sell-out.

To the OP: I'm 6-02, rode the size L with 700 wheels.

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Blazeman Warrior - so others may live
Live more than your neighbors.... Bark at the moon like the wild dog that you are.... And by all means, whatever you do, get it on film.

I'm 5'10", 32 inseam, M/L RocketTT, 650 cm wheels. I do use the "high seat clamp" to ride at about a 80 deg seat angle. I had a beam delaminate in 2005 but customer service sent me a new one (they said that there was a defective batch) and haven't had a problem since. Don't overtorque the height bolt assembly -- it will shear in a heartbeat! Love the bike, I don't ride it in any hilly triathlons but it is a great ride for something like Ironman Germany or Austria as it never ever gets passed downhill with a rear disk on it. Here I am in 2007 approaching the cobbles in IM Germany:

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FIST Certified Fitter
Salt Lake City, Utah

Thanks for pointing out the Titanflex. I'll keep that in mind.

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Running is a gift.

I don't know what beam. I haven't ran across any information about beam size or type?

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Running is a gift.

Aren't the rocket beams and the fastt beams the same?

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Running is a gift.

Just want to say thanks for everyone for posting. I was expected a few responses but not the Titanflex suggestion, the problems with the beams and that it probably has to do with a bad batch made by softride, also the way to fix the beam, and to not over tighten the height bolt assembly. So WOW and THANKS!

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Running is a gift.

Of course if you have the dollars there is the Pearson Beam Bike:

http://www.pearsonbikes.com/bicycles.php

Yes, the Rocket and FasTT used the same beam. It was a straight beam that came in either carbon (black) or aluminum (silver).

The difference between the two bikes is the rear triangle (Rocket had a small triangle, FasTT had a solid chainstay).

The problem beams were apparently a batch of carbon beams for the Rocket / FasTT. Aluminum beams, and beams for other models (beams with a curve in them) did not have these issues.

I must have been lucky with a good beam, because if anyone should have damaged a beam, it should've been me. Top end of their weight rating (sometimes over, especially with behind the seat bottles), and I rode hard. But no problems.

Only qualms were it was so adjustable, it took a bit to dial in a fit. And it was hard to find a fitter who understood how to adjust it.

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Blazeman Warrior - so others may live
Live more than your neighbors.... Bark at the moon like the wild dog that you are.... And by all means, whatever you do, get it on film.

Jiowa

I have a Rocket am 5'11" with a 33" inseam in a M/L size. I have the carbon beam and raced it for about 5 years. I never had any problems with the beam and it is still solid. In fact my frame is for sale if you are looking. I will make you a good deal, because I need to clear some space for a new CX bike !

Dave