Mountain Biking is now 40 Years Old

[Repack Rider]

On October 21, 1976, I met a few friends at the top of a steep dirt road we called Repack. The object was to settle for all time who was the undisputed Universal Champion of Downhill on Klunker Bikes.

It didn't settle anything. It started something and we now call that something "Mountain Biking."

We recently celebrated the 40th anniversary of that day, and my friend Rob Korotky documented it in the current issue of Dirt Rag.

http://i419.photobucket.com/albums/pp271/repackrider/Singletrack/Rag1_zpsa9hfijn5.jpg (http://s419.photobucket.com/user/repackrider/media/Singletrack/Rag1_zpsa9hfijn5.jpg.html)

http://i419.photobucket.com/albums/pp271/repackrider/Singletrack/Rag2_zpspni9o0ca.jpg (http://s419.photobucket.com/user/repackrider/media/Singletrack/Rag2_zpspni9o0ca.jpg.html)

[simplemind]

Thank you! :beer:

[54ny77]

cool stuff. :beer:

[weisan]

Repack pal, thank you for being a pioneer.

You are perfectly positioned to answer this question:

"What are some of the new equipment or technology found in today's mountain bike that you would consider as true improvement over what you had back then?"

[Repack Rider]

Repack pal, thank you for being a pioneer.

You are perfectly positioned to answer this question:

"What are some of the new equipment or technology found in today's mountain bike that you would consider as true improvement over what you had back then?"

Aside from everything, you mean? The downside to most of the improvements is additional maintenance. Increased performance always comes at the price of reduced durability. The original bikes were quite a bit more bulletproof, but did not perform like modern bikes.

I volunteer as a docent at the Marin Museum of Bicycling. One of the displays is a Ritchey MountainBike that Gary Fisher and I built in a rented Garage in 1980. I point out to visitors what it took to assemble a mountain bike then.

F derailleur, SP, rims, shifters, pedals are Japanese
R derailleur, brakes, crankset are French
Hubs are American (Phil)
Saddle (Brooks) is English
SP QR and headset, Italian (Campy)
Spokes are Swiss
Brake levers are German
We made our own brake cables because we needed higher standards than were then on the market.

No matter what we did to improve braking (heavy cables, stops on the frame, tandem brakes), the best rim brakes we could devise were marginal at best. If I had to give up every other advance over the last 30 years, I would keep disc brakes. They were the product we couldn't devise in a garage.

[weisan]

>>downside to most of the improvements is additional maintenance. Increased performance always comes at the price of reduced durability.

Thank you for the insight! That was really good.

[lzuk]

Thanks, so many cool places to ride!

[crownjewelwl]

Repack Rider - may I ask what your currently ride?

[hummus_aquinas]

You rule, ck!

[Repack Rider]

Repack Rider - may I ask what your currently ride?

Every bike I own has one of my friends' names on it. Those names are Ritchey, Fisher and Breeze. My OG friends keep me well supplied with machinery.

I am currently riding a Breezer Repack.