heya thanks. I hadn’t gone back and read that article since last September - my point of view hasn’t changed much since then.
The feel of 24 GUni in high gear (virtual 36’er) can’t really be replicated on the single speed 36. As Sam mentioned in the Total Gear Ratio thread the closest thing to riding high gear on a GUni is a bike e.g. riding an MTB in a gear that creates a similar load on your legs.
On a single speed 36’er there’s a lot of spinning lightly and making use of that giant flywheel. It almost rolls itself along once you get it going.
Compared to the single speed 36’er there is minimal flywheel effect on the 24 GUni in high gear - there’s a lot more pushing on the pedals, through the gearing, to keep buzzing along.
For road riding it would be hard to imagine a circumstance where a single speed 36’er wouldn’t be a ‘better’ i.e. more efficient choice than a 24 GUni. Off road though it’s a different equation.
There are a bunch of other differences that come into play when comparing a single speed 36’er to a 24 GUni. I guess rather than generalizing too much, which one has better performance etc depends more on the rider, terrain, situation etc.
Fwiw, since putting the hub into a 24" last September I pretty much haven’t ridden the 29’er at all, and the 36’er not that much. Of course the 24 GUni is still a compromise, but for me it’s just a lot more satisfying/fun to ride - that’s my performance criteria 