A friend of mine sent me this great link on 650 vs. 700 wheels. It seems like I'm one of the few triathletes out there still riding 650 wheels, and it's true that sometimes it's harder to find tubes and tires for them. For me, it's a real bonus because I have almost no torso whatsoever. No really, I'm not kidding. I look so ridiculous in my white karate gi because the belt is about an inch below my boobs. I have to tug the belt down to my hips just to look normal. And you're supposed to chamber your non-punching hand several inches above your belt, which puts mine somewhere in the vicinity of my armpit. When I was pregnant with each of the kids, I looked like I was carrying a torpedo because my torso is so short. I'm 5/7" and have a 34 inch inseam. All legs. Buying jeans is a nightmare too, but that's another story.
So anyways, I had to buy a bike with a top tube sized for a 10 year old, and then I had to get the absolute shortest possible stem ever made. This is all so that I can reach my aerobars. This is most easily facilitated with 650 wheels, and then I just have to put my seat up ridiculously high because of those legs. In any case, it was cool to read this article, which gives a good techie description of the differences in wheel sizes, why tri bikes were originally switched to mostly 650 and why many of them have switched back to 700. Just thought I'd share.
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