We changed the world!The the latest issue of Mountain Bike Action (January 2009!) lists the Mountain Cycle San Andreas as one the the “50 mountain bike designs that changed the world”. Not only were we listed but put right up near the top. “Mountain Cycle San Andreas: This monocoque, dual suspension, inverted fork, disk-braked bike originally appeared in the November 1992 issue and sold for $1950 (frame and fork)…. Still a magnificent piece of engineering”. Thanks guys! MC in BikeBiz about Kick A$$Krien was recently interviewed by BikeBiz magazine, one of the leading bicycle trade industry journals, who were interested to find out more about our Kick A$$ policy. There is no doubt that this decision we have taken (to offer our products for sale to both consumers and bike shops) has caused some disgruntled muttering from some, old school, sections of the cycling industry. But it’s something that we believe in, and it also appears that we are not alone. Since this got published we’ve had a couple of messages of support from other bicycle brands, it is probable that they would also want to take this step, but that their business model doesn’t allow them to do so. Whatever the industry conjecture about this, the end result is clear and honest; we have reduced our MSRP prices by between 30-50% from where they were three years ago. We’ve done this without affecting quality, and in a period of time where, like all other bicycle brands, our manufacturing costs have gone up quite substantially in the last 18 months. You can read the article here. Rumble RideNot long ago I built myself a little Rumble play bike, from an assortment of bits and pieces I had lying around in my garage. It’s one of the 2005 Rumble frames, in medium, and it’s really surprised me just how fun it is for XC. Even though we sell the rumble as a “do it all” bike, it is true that it’s been designed to withstand some serious abuse, and therefore gets categorised more as a free ride bike, than XC.
On the front I have a Revelation with 120 mm travel, which keeps the steering nice and lively, even though it’s a bit more travel than I’m used to for pure XC. Wheels are my trusty Mavic CrossMax, which are running with big fat Schwalbe UST tyres. I have got one of the new shadow rear derailleurs from Shimano on the back there, as well as a pair of well used, but still sturdy, set of Truvativ carbon cranks. The brakes are a personal favourite, the formula K24 with a few factory fitted prototype parts. Equipped like this, it’s a really nimble and lively machine on the single track. The backend is certainly stiff, but with those wheels and tyres it’s not at all uncomfortable. The great thing is I can get out and pedal, just like on a traditional XC rig, yet things like the super short stem and height adjustable seatpost really do change the character of the bike. Eurobike NewsLive and direct from Eurobike on my iPhone. We’ve just received today’s copy of the show daily magazine, and to my surprise I found a photo somebody had taken of my two year old who had spent a bit of time with us on stand yesterday!
US Open of MTBThis past weekend, Team Mountain Cycle were at the US Open of Mountain Biking held at Diablo Freeride Park in Vernon, New Jersey. Mountain Cycle displayed at this event with a prominent pit space on the corner of the pit area; right next to Giant-Michelin and behind e.thirteen. We displayed with a 10′x10′ MC pop-up tent and showed off some of the new Shockwave frames. In racing news, Mountain Cycle’s Ecuadorian racer Alejandro Ortiz won the Amateur Dual Slalom on board Jim D’s white prototype Battery bike. In the downhill event, Alejandro qualified 5th on Saturday and placed 12th in the finals on Sunday. His time would have qualified him for the Pro event. Congrats to Alejandro! In other event news, Mountain Cycle sponsored the event coverage on the popular Freecaster video site by providing food and lodging to the freecaster guys at the event. You can see the Mountain Cycle logo on the below video. Freecaster Video of US Open – sponsored by Mountain Cycle |
