[fabsroman]

The forum wouldn't be simple because there would still be plenty to talk about. We could even talk about which flintlock is the best on the market. What ammo and powder works best, what hunting techniques work best, etc. I think a lot of technique is lost due to all the technology out there that people have to sort through.

I just got back into cycling seriously after being out of it for several years. Well, my bike is 20 years old so I decided to buy a new one. Man, it took me about 6 months to understand all the technology out there. There is so much that has happened over the past 20 years that it is mind boggling. When I was racing, there were only steel frames and two component manufacturers, Campagnolo and Shimano. Now, there are steel, aluminum, titanium, and carbon fiber frames, and mixes of the stuff. There are more component groupos then I care to shake a stick at and there are several manufacturers of components, along with a bunch of frame builders/bike builders. However, with all the technology out there, what still matters the most is how a cyclist trains. While riding my 20 year old sled, I have passed several riders on their technological marvels and dropped some of them. They even have hubs out for wheels now that can measure wattage output, but that hub costs $1,000. They have computers that measure altitude, incline grade, heart rate, cadence, speed, average speed, max speed, mileage, etc., and those cost around $300.

At the end of the day, it is more about the hunter and the cyclist, than the equipment that they have. If you hunt more, you have a greater chance of success. Same thing goes for bike racing. Now, if you spend all your time behind a desk trying to afford all the whiz bangs and carbon fiber frames instead of hunting or riding, your changes of success are rather limited. Of course, there is a happy medium somewhere, but I am just trying to figure it out.