Paul Lee displayed a 'flying gate' at Cirque a couple years back in Greensboro, so he might be a good person to ask about the bike's ride. My thoughts are that the design was primarily to shorten the chain stays, putting the tire close to the BB giving the bike better hook up and climbing ability. The Trevor Jarvis 'Baines Gate', e-bay item # 350278214650 demonstrates this well by how much the tire overlaps the chainring. ... "My guess is that this, like the "curly" stay Hetchins and the "Cantiflex" with "diadrant" (?) recurved forks was an effort to do almost anything to make your brand identifiable in races where no brand markings were allowed. Or did the makers actually believe their hype?" ... as Harvey Sachs pointed out.
A similar bike would be the curved seat tube Jack Taylor which was described as a short distance or hill climbing time trialer. The Taylor, while having a very short wheelbase is otherwise a perfectly normal fitting bike with no toe clip overlap and whose only surprises are noticed while riding over tightly undulating roads or when reaching back to dust the 'very close' tyre. And which also has the tire significantly overlapping the chainring. And of course I totally 'believe' the hype.
http://image55.webshots.com/
Happy trails,
Dan Artley in Parkton, Maryland USA
Archive-URL: http://search.bikelist.org/
... (Some cutting) ... Although the design might appear quirky, it does work, and can give a very stable and exhilarating ride. The vertical main strut ... (liberal cutting) ... permits a very short rear triangle even with mudguards. ... (more liberal cutting) ...
Norris Lockley, Settle UK