Hi John!
Welcome to the Thorn Cycling Forum!
Congratulations on your new bicycle; nothing like a new bike, and this is a Lovely!
Thanks also for your impressions of how belt drive works for you in daily use. Though not currently used by Thorn, it is always interesting to hear how "the latest" operates in practice, and we're seeing more belts in use today than ever before. Locally, Co-Motion is employing them as tandem timing chains, which can be a pretty severe duty, and they've reported no problems.
I think for my use in sometimes largely off-road expeditions, a belt might not fare so well; a few unnoticed pencil-sized twigs flipped into my Rohloff drivetrain and were neatly cut in two by the chain rear sprocket with no harm on my last test-tour. However, like most things it is probably horses for courses, and the belt surely seems to be working ideally for your use. A belt-drive bike passed me on the bike path yesterday, and I was astounded at how silent it was. Really, the only noise was a quiet hissing from the tires and that was all. I asked the owner about the trouser clip she was wearing, and she replied it was partly out of habit and partly because she had found dirt could accumulate on the belt sides in winter months and she didn't want to risk soiling her light-colored trousers now it was summer. Hers was a commuter bike with front basket, upright position, mudguards, battery lights, and matching floral-pattern saddle cover and rear panniers. The panniers obscured her rear hub, but I think it was likely an Alfine. She said she rode this more than her previous bike simply because it ran cleaner and required less of what she called "nuisance maintenance" (oiling the chain). She's found something that makes her riding more likely than before, not a bad thing.
Andre's not alone in his goal of a maintenance-free bicycle, something that can pay dividends for all of us, no matter how we get there!
Best,
Dan. (...who wants a 36T Hebie Chainglider more than ever)
