defconfour

...then Shimano is fine.

I feel cramped everytime I put my hand on a Shimano equiped handlebar. On the Stinky I'm running old GS shifters with a full length ODI lock-on. Plenty of moving around room.

I do have XT shifters on my Park - but I hardly shift that bike anyway - the shifter is pushed into the bend.

defconfour

I've riden with SS dudes that just crushed me and my 21 gears on some pretty big hills in VT.

Some of the other guys were riding DS style bikes w/ a handful of gears and slammed down seats up some impressive inclines.

It showed me you don't have to have tons of gears and a seat 3 feet high to climb

defconfour

...Ridemonkey.com and Hcor.net. Bunch of lunatics on those boards.

veloAR

<center><img src="http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/31421/dscn0365.jpg"></center><p>Shimano makes great gear, but I find the shifting too "buttery." SRAM is much more direct and positive (as long as you're running Gore cables). It's the same on the road, as I think Campy rules. But, I digress. I'm in Wauwatosa. The Kettles are now overcrowded and massively rutted, be there's plenty of fine single-track around Milwaukee. Its perfect 34/17 ss territory.

veloAR

It makes you feel like a kid on a bmx bike again. Seriously, you jump curbs and do silly things you've been missing since dual air/carbon fiber/titanium etc came along. Also, the light weight and rigid fork make for the sweetest handling bike ever (think Lotus Elise), enough of a difference that you really can crush your buddies on their full-on rigs.

Ironically, the single-speed motto is "cars are coffins."

Arnzo

is you'll probably need spacers. I'm not aware of a 19 with the correct offset for the ar. Good luck.