I have owned two Softrides and have been training for triathlons for 8 years. I have been criticized heavily by friends and fellow cyclists for the bounce in my seat beam when I am riding. How much power am I losing when I bounce, if any at all. Does this mean I am riding incorrectly? Or do most people ride incorrectly and they would not really know it unless they rode a beam type bike like a Softride?
Any thouhts or insights would be greatly appreciated.
To prevent the bounce you need a smooth circular pedal stroke and without that you probably loose power but I couldn’t tell you just how much.
your losing power. that bouncing is you just pushing down and not pedalling circles. I’ve owned two and I’ll say that was one of the best investments you can get to correct your pedalling stroke
Hey there, When I bought my Classic tt last year I had the same problem. The problem declined with the passing miles, but it is important to remember that your beam will respond to the bumps in the road, that by the nature of the beam were not harsh on your tail. Your friends perspective probably does not take this into account. I have found that these beams do not like a heavy pull stroke while seated, but on the other hand at a 79-80 degree seat angle I am always spinning up hills in my aerobars, not trying to mash gears for power, and I can do this for hours in comfort. I have a feeling if you are riding for power you might be unloading and loading your body weight on the beam, try shifting a few teeth up in the back increase your cadence, and smooth out the stroke. At a shallow road seat angle (about 73) cadence above about 95 will definitely cause bounce (bad bounce), but at a seat angle of like 79-80 degrees I have been able to spin up short steep hills at a cadence of 115 with no bounce at all. The steeper seat angle also decreases the leverage your weight has on the beam. It would help to have some of your personal and bike specs, but all said, you may have to fiddle with equiptment adjustments until you and the bike are happy together, I feel lucky to have found my perfect set-up after only about 6 months, and dropped my 40k almost 9 minutes in the process. I am unable to imagine racing on anything else. Hey if you are in So. Cal lets ride, softrides are few and far between.
don’t worry about all the people making fun, Softrides are the best, I still miss my powerwing… But yes if you ride with roadies you will be ridiculed, and ridiculed, and then they’ll say mean things about you bike… Best to drop them quickly or else wait for one of those rough patches in the road and just blow through it while their chattering away:)
Ahhh my Softride brethren…we are so very few…yet so very blessed. I wouldn’t trade my Softride now for any other bike on the market (and some that aren’t available to the public either). When the pedal stroke smooths out and you find the perfectly dialed in fit on your Softie life is a wonderful thing. Until then…bounce…and your posterior will be glad the beam gets it instead. While on topic…anyone else join the Beam Team? Got an email early press release that they are making a Classic TT version of the special edition Rocket SE…calling it the Classic LE. Polished Powerwings…mmmm. Planned on doing exactly that to my current rig…now I can buy it from the factory like that. Word is…frame fork and beam…$999 (or something like that…and complete for under $1700).
What I love is for people to look at my Softride and ask why I ride that…and tell them that I prefer it over my custom Litespeed’s…usually get a shocked look.
the other thing you can do it tighten the beam if it is a classic. remove the little cover near the headtube, carefully lift out the little tray, take a socket wrench and give it a few righty tighty turns. Bingo a stiffer beam.
All this softride love makes me think about getting another one, if only the damn things didn’t require so much wrenching. Maybe I’ll rebuild mine for the IM
All good posts here and some good advice for KFISHER. Some recommendations I have for this are:
The beam only reflects the loads placed upon it. Unlike a rigid frame, a beam will adapt to your body instead of forcing you to adapt to the frame. If your pedal stroke isn’t smooth (round) or efficient, the beam will let you know by moving up and down. As you ride more on a Softride and your stroke improves, the bobbing will disappear. Unlike any other frame, a Softride can help you become a better rider by giving you feedback.
Beam motion can be caused by improper saddle height. If your saddle is too high or too low, your muscles are unable to revolve smoothly and will cause the beam to bob. For example, if your saddle is too high on a rigid bike your hips are forced to extend out of the hip joint on every revolution. On a beam, the hips will stay in joint with every revolution, but the beam will pull down instead. The result is bob. The solution is to adjust the saddle.
One recommendation listed in this thread that I would be cautious of is the tightening of the nut on the front attachment assembly of the Classic beam. The nut should be tightened 1 revolution after initial contact with the washer.
If you have any additional questions feel free to contact Softride @ 888.258.7299
Thanks
Adam
Softride Bike
…as you ride more on a Softride and your stroke improves, the bobbing will disappear.
I don’t think it ever completely disappears. I’ve been on my Softride Powerwing for 5 years now and I know I still bob a bit. I’ve ridden behind a lot of other Softriders and they all bob. I wouldn’t worry about trying to eliminate it. Just try to minimize it.
You might want to mention to those ridiculing roadies, that Alex Steida, who was the first North American cyclist to ever wear the Tour de France Yellow Jersey, while racing for 7 - 11, finished up his pro road racing career riding and racing on a Softride road bike and winning a number of North America road races and criteriums.
and from the current breed of roadies you’re likely to get an ‘Alex who?’
.
I’m sure this is too obvious…but make sure you are sized correctly. I think people see consistent bob if their seats are placed incorrectly.
I love mine, and I don’t care how many roadies make fun of me. 
I’ve got one (original Powercurve frame) and while the bobbing has minimized with use, it still re-appears from time to time. While I like the ride, I think that a stiffer beam might be better for me.
Along those lines, I think I’ll eventually replace the Softride with a Titan-Flex. I like the fact that you can get booms with different levels of flex, and have heard nothing but top notch reports about Tom Piszkin (the inventor and main dude I’d be dealing with). I’ve also never been able to climb well on my Softride, and hear that the Titan-Flex climbs really well.
In the meantime however, I might try tightening the beam bolt a bit (as suggested above) to try for a stiffer beam.
I have what I suppose is a historical question? Why were the softrides invented in the first place? And is there a particular rider (size and weight) or riding style these were designed for?
thanks
Softride currently has two beams in the market that offers all the performance advantages of beam technology. The Classic beam is offered in two different spring rates to accommodate virtually any application - you decide how stiff or soft you like it. The Softride beam, both Classic and Rocket, are the only two beams in the market with controlled damping. The added element of controlled damping, found on all high performance vehicles, and keeps the rider from bouncing up and down uncontrolled. To further explain the difference in the two beams I have included the following:
Classic Beam: The Classic beam is the best example of all that beam suspension technology offers. It is designed for those people who are open to understanding all the benefits beam technology offers and who understand that the more comfortable they are, the better their body will be able to perform. The Classic beam maximizes the Performance Advantages of comfort, reduced rolling resistance, cornering traction and adjustability, all the while still offering a responsive and aerodynamic chassis.
**Rocket Beam: **The Rocket is stiffer and lighter than the Classic beam and thus helps to bridge the gap between traditional rigid frames and suspension technology. The Rocket is designed to maximize the Performance Advantages of frame stiffness and aerodynamics while still providing the rider with greater comfort, better handling and less rolling resistance than a rigid frame at the same time. The Rocket provides a more “traditional” ride and doesn’t take as long to get used to as the Classic Beam.
Note: tightening the nut on the front attachment assembly is not recommended as suggested earlier. The front attachment parts were designed to work under certain loads and have specific torque recommendations. If you are looking for ways to stiffen your Classic Beam it may be in your best interest to go to a higher spring rate. If this is the case give us a call.
Adam
Softride Bike
888.258.7299
Hey Adam, thanks for the information. While I was aware of the 2 beam styles, I had no idea that the classic beam was available with different spring rates. Is there a way I can tell which I have by looking at it? I purchased the bike 2nd hand, so I really don’t know all that much about it.
Thanks,
Khai,
To tell what beam you are currently riding look at the sticker underneath the beam near the Made in U.S.A decal. The sticker should indicate a 510 (soft) or a 530 (firm) Every beam out of Softride is tested and a measure of deflection is recorded on the sticker.
No worries for the info.
Adam
Cool - I’ll check as soon as I get home! What’s the MSRP on a new (stiff) beam? I suppose it will depend on my dealer, but a ballpark figure would be good to have…
Thanks,
Khai,
New Classic beams MSRP are $229.99
Thanks,
Adam
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