Interview with Bicycle Frame Builder Ted Wojcik

Ted Wojcik has been designing and building custom bicycle frames for the past 28 years. As he informed me of this he said, “how time flies when having fun”…it was 100% genuine. Hearing that was one of the highlights of the phone call…it didn’t sound cliché.

A true American hero, not just for the frames he builds, but serving in our armed forces during the Vietnam War. Ted gained extensive engineering and mechanical experience during his years of service in which he worked on gas turbine engines and helicopter transmission systems.

Ted Wojcik Custom Bicycles got its start while Ted was working at a motorcycle repair shop when his now wife brought a moped in for repair. It was the beginning of a relationship as well as the foundation of which the business would evolve from. It was Ted’s wife who changed his focus from motorcycles to bicycles. His wife was, as he put it, “altitude challenged”, being that she is 5’2” and an avid cyclist having trouble trying to have a bike frame to fit her. Having already learned the art of motorcycle frame fabrication, Ted ordered tubing from a local bike shop to build what would become his first bicycle and a wonderful present for his beloved. Being an accomplished welder, Ted decided to try his hand at creating bicycle frames. Built in Ted’s cellar, the next frame was sold before it was completed. In 1986 Ted went full time into bicycle frame building and in 1990 he moved out of his cellar and into his shop where the business remains today. The current shop is about 1600 square feet and is well tooled with a number of dedicated machines. He has collected a large amount of jigs and fixtures over the years and uses them to insure accuracy and repeatability in his builds.

Business slowed after 9/11and a great opportunity awaiting, Ted worked for a little over 2 ½ years on a project with the perk of spending $7.5M of a companies money building training aids for automotive vocational schools for the Venezuelan government. In 2004 when Ted returned to his business he noticed that it had moved backwards considerably. He has spent the past few years rebuilding his brand, awareness, and reputation which has enabled him to produce about 50-100 frames per year.

Ted is the lone employee and that doesn’t appear to change anytime in the near future. He is fussy about his work and there is a long learning period, he says that if he brought someone on they’d either end up hating him or they’d wreck stuff.

Unfortunately Ted is unable to do much off-road mountain type riding due to nerve damage from diabetes in his feet. He didn’t say it, but I have a feeling there’s a bit of peace in knowing that his work provides others with a riding experience matched by none. Seeing the joy and excitement of others probably helps ease any frustration regarding his situation.

Ted’s logo is as unique and as interesting as his story. The font came from a Santa stand in Harvard Square in 1990, “it looked like it represented something happy, so we adopted it…mountain biking is suppose to be fun and happy.” The colors represent the colors of Poland; red, white and black. If you look closely at the logo you’ll notice the “T” and the “W” representing the initials of his name.

I spent a little less than an hour on the phone with Ted, but I could have spent hours; days listening to him. If there was a book about him I’d read it. He is very engaging. I can’t count the number of times that I have visited his website, read the same text, or looked at the same pictures over and over. Take a look yourself, I’m pretty confident his work and story will engage you too.

Below are some additional photos of his craftsmanship…look at those welds!

Learn more, watch the video of Ted below.

Trail Tested - 26 vs 29er Single Speed Mountain Bike Comparison - Which is Better?

The post below originally appeared on Steve Zdawcynski’s website, The Steve Z Photography Photo Blog and has been posted with his permission.  Enjoy!

A lot of my singlespeed friends are riding 29ers these days. The idea of wheels that roll over terrain more easily is quite attractive. But what about all that rotating weight? Won’t the bike still be slower and harder to pedal up these tough Colorado climbs? I set out to find out the answers myself with an informal little shootout. In this article I will comparison test two somewhat similar steel hardtail singlespeed bikes. I will outline the component spec on each, describe the course they were tested on, and detail my on trail impressions. Finally, I will give my personal thoughts and conclusions, followed by recommendations on which bike might be the best for you. Keep in mind this is a 26 vs. 29er article, tested in single speed configuration. Why single speeds? Why on earth would you want to climb mountains with only one gear? Lets not get into the why’s, pluses, and minuses of singlespeeding, that is another story entirely! This story is already way too long as it is, so let’s get started!

THE COMPARISON

I drove both bikes up to the Betasso Loop outside of Boulder. I rode each bike over a set loop and timed myself, meanwhile making notes in my head, comparing the bikes over the same terrain on the same day. I wanted to compare the bikes one right after another. It can be hard to compare bikes on different days, as my energies and motivations vary day to day. I did not wear a heart rate monitor. I did not have a power meter. I did not set the bikes up exactly the same way. If you want a totally scientific comparison, check out CyclingNews’ Tech Feature: 26 vs. 29 inch wheels. Unfortunately, that project has been in the works for well over 6 months with no final results published, so I decided to conduct my own. While the CyclingNews comparison is all about science and performance, I want mine to be all about fun and feel. With a little bit of numbers; because getting dropped is no fun at all!

The subjective nature of this test is of course the biggest limiter towards any sort of validity relating to my course times. I just tried my best to go the same speed on both runs. I did not go all out, rather, “comfortably hard”, which is around 80%. Well, except on the Canyon Link, because on a singlespeed that trail is an all out event, but more on that later. I have ten years of heart rate race training experience, as well as a season on a PowerTap under my belt. I’m pretty confident in my ability to monitor output and effort. Plus I’m a bit of a wimp these days; I don’t like to suffer too badly, so I’ll generally ride as fast as I can without really suffering too much. I’ve had enough of the pain cave. I like to smell the flowers a bit more these days. On to the 26 verses 29 inch wheel trail review.

THE BIKES

Bike #1: On-One Inbred 29er Single Speed. This bike to me is kind of like the British Surly: Economical, Image-conscious, bombproof, but not particularly light or high tech. The sliding horizontal dropouts are cool. This bike can be built as either a geared or a singlespeed without derailleur. There is pretty good tire clearance, and a lot of standover. Unfortunately the Rock Shox Lockout knob does hit the frame, thus the piece of rubber stuck on there. This is a common 29er problem. The seatstay tubes and yoke are a cool design, although not a particularly weight efficient one. The bike has Avid Juicy 7 hydraulic disc brakes, a Rock Shox Reba 80mm fork, and XT Hubs laced to WTB Trail 29er rims. Traction is controlled by Maxxis Ignitor 2.1 29er tires. The rest of the parts are reasonably light components. Gearing is a 32×20, which on a 29er is 47.2 gear inches.

Bike #2: Curtlo Single Speed. I bought this bike cheap and used at VeloSwap two years ago. I don’t even know the year or the model. This bike was hand made by a small builder in Washington State. It has True Temper Platinum OX steel tubing, butted and ovalized at the bottom bracket. The S bend seatstays have monster tire clearance, 2.5’s are no problem. I love this bike; it is very smooth and very stiff. It still steers pretty quickly even with the 120mm Fox Talas Fork I have on the front. It has Paul’s Components V-brakes, which are the best V-Brakes that I have ever used. The brakes grab ceramic rim surfaces on my 1st generation Bontrager Race Light wheelset with Chris King Hubs. Ceramic rims make a huge improvement for rim brakes. They are a whole level of performance increase over regular machined surfaces. The front tire is a WTB 2.5 Weirwolf and the rear tire is a WTB 2.4 Motoraptor. The rest of the parts are a small bit lighter than the On-One, but the spec is similar. Gear is a 34×19, which on a 26er is 47.4 gear inches, which is almost identical to the On-One gearing.

Comparing the bike builds: I have a detailed list of all the parts on each bike, and their approximate weight IN A CHART CLICK HERE. The frames are functionally pretty similar. They are both steel hardtails weighing approximately 5-ish pounds. The On-One has a distinct braking advantage with the hydraulic discs. This should not affect the test since there is only one downhill with a lot of braking on this course, and it is not very long. The biggest discrepancy is in the wheelset. The XT/WTB wheels weigh 2400 grams for the pair while the Race Lites are only 1435 grams! Some of this weight is due to the larger size, but most of it has to do with the performance. The Race Lites were $800 retail in their day, have 400g rims, 24/28 DT 15/18 Revolution Spokes, alloy nipples, and top of the line Chris King hubs without discs. The XT/WTB wheels are price point, do-it-all-for-everyone, 32 3 cross 14g spokes with brass nipples, plus disc brake rotors (weight not included above). In order to balance the weight a LITTLE bit, I put my biggest and heaviest 26 inch tires on the Curtlo, the fatty WTBs, along with heavy tubes. The tubes and tires on the Curtlo actually weigh more than the 29er’s, which should balance the inertial drag by a bit. Gearing on both bikes are essentially the same. When all is said and done, the 29er is 26.2 lb and the 26er is 23.3 lb. Exactly two pounds of that weight is in the wheels. Wow. There is also a difference in fork suspension travel. I made the Curtlo’s suspension a little stiffer than normal, to compensate for the 50% increase in travel of the 120mm Fox over the 80 mm Rock Shox.

RIDING THE COURSE

The course consists of 2 distinct parts: The Betasso Loop and the Canyon Link. I know these trails like the back of my hand, so riding order shouldn’t matter from a technical sense. I planned to ride the Loop once, take a split time, then ride down the Link to Boulder Canyon, then back up the climb and stop the clock. The Betasso loop itself is 3 miles long, and is generally rolling, fast, and hardpacked, like a BMX track at times. It is very NORBA race course style, and it is perfect for a singlespeed as none of the climbs are very steep for very long. That changes very quickly when you plunge down the Canyon Link. The Link is straight down, then straight up, maybe a mile each way. This part of the course would be the real test for climbing performance. The lower part of the trail varies from barely rideable to unrideable on a single speed bike. The upper half is steep, but poses no real threat of getting knocked off the bike. Also, the Park Service alternates bike riding direction once a month on the loop. On this day the Loop was ridden clockwise.

26er VERSES 29er ON THE TRAIL

I had been planning this test for a while, but I really have things that I should be doing other than spending my time writing this for fun. But God do I love bikes.

So I woke up Thurs morning, and saw the sunrise peeking in my bedroom window. It was already hot in my room at 5:45. I laid there for a minute, then decided it would be a great day do get up early and beat the encroaching heat. I didn’t find out until that afternoon that it was the Summer Solstice! Cool.

I decided to ride the On-One 29er first. It is only fair that I ride the heavier bike when I am fresher. I headed out on a warm-up lap of the link. Since it was early there was no one was out on the trail yet to get in the way of my blazing speed. Haha.

This was my 4th ride on the On-one, and I’m getting quite used to it. The cornering traction is amazing. Hey maybe it could be the Maxxis Ignitor tires, but I kinda doubt it. It feels to me like the gyroscopic action of the big wheels helps to keep you upright and pointed forward. I can definitely two wheel drift more securely and predictably with the longer contact patch that the 29er wheel offer. The Loop does not have too much in the way of rough terrain. There are a few patches of rocks and roots here or there, but you can blast over most of them without slowing down. The big wheels surely roll over these obstacles smoother. In really rooty terrain such as East Coast riding I’m sure this is even more predominant. I have the wheel moved quite forward in the dropouts, I find that manualling (wheelie-ing) this bike with 17.3 inch chainstays is no problem. Finishing the Loop portion of the course (I actually only did a partial loop before heading down the link); my 29er time was 16:01.

Downhilling is where big wheels get really fun. All that spinning inertia between your legs is confidence inspiring. I feel more secure with the big wheels, like it will take a bigger obstacle to knock me off my line. I rode a prototype Ellsworth Evolve full suspension 29er in Moab back in October. I noticed that on the rock drop offs and ledges that Moab has to offer, that big front wheel made it feel like I could nose dive bigger without feeling like I was going to go over the handlebars. Back to Boulder, I finished the descent without much fuss. Now the work begins, 15 minutes of singlespeed pain, here we go! Summer is here and the trail is drying out quick. The dirt is getting loose and sandy, and rear wheel traction is the difference between cleaning the section and walking. Oh, I should mention that the second pitch is unrideable on a singlespeed; it is just too steep. (Disclaimer: I’ve heard that Travis Brown has cleaned this section on a single. Olympians don’t count!) After a short push up the second pitch, there is another very steep and painful but not technically hard third pitch. Then, a VERY short flat spot, followed by the crux of this climb, a 4 tiered maximum output section that is rocky, loose, and rutted. The rear wheel traction of a 29er is wonderful. I’m able to grind away at 40 rpm and still hook the rear wheel up into the dust. I cleaned the rest of the climb without any real close calls. Make a left at the picnic table, to the top of the next short climb, second split was 19:02, for a total loop time of 35:03.

Now, I’m out on the Betasso Loop on the Curtlo Single Speed mountain bike with 26 inch wheels. I’ve been riding 26 inch wheeled mountain bikes for 16 years. Four rides later and now I feel like I’m on a kids bike! The wheels are just so LITTLE! Into the first high speed corners, whoa, almost lost it trying to drift as fast as the other bike. I felt like I had to take the corners a tiny bit more carefully than I did on the 29er. OK, but the 26er should feel more nimble, more flick-able, a better jumper, right? Yes, it does. A little. But not much. On the rough patches I could feel the wheels packing up in the ruts more than the 29er, but I didn’t feel like I was going any slower. It was just felt a little more choppy. On the short and steep climb that finishes the Loop I could feel the lighter wheels. I could definitely hold a seated position more easily while grinding away at 50rpm. I held the more efficient power position for longer on the 26er, which was fortunate since out of the saddle traction was greatly reduced compared to the other bike. As it was getting later in the morning, I had to slow down twice to pass hikers this time around the Loop. I tried to sprint spin back up to speed to make up for lost time. I finished the loop in 15:47, 14 seconds faster. I’m certain that much of it was gained in the steeper uphill portion where I remained seated. Or maybe I was just riding faster after my previous warm-up laps?

On the upper parts of the Link downhill I felt like I was riding exactly the same speed this second time. Both bikes maneuvered the twisties and the turnies equally. The bottom quarter of the run features steep loose and rocky high speed sections. This bike maybe felt a little twitchier and nervous, but I’ve ridden this trail so many times that I’ve got it pretty down. I DID notice the decreased power of the V-brakes, and these Paul V’s with ceramic pads are the best V’s that I’ve ever used. I was getting noticeable forearm pump on the descent which I did not encounter at all on the previous run. So I may have lost a little bit of time on this bike, but I doubt that it was more than a handful of seconds.

Turning around to come up the link, I realized that the first Link run took more out of me than I wanted. I’m not quite fit enough to maintain maximum anaerobic efforts with repeatability. On the first pitch I could feel the lactic acid built up in my quads. Oh crap, the rear tire is spinning out, A LOT! I dismounted for the hike a little earlier than I did last run to try and save my legs a little bit. On the 3rd steep pitch I was glad that I had wheels that were two pounds lighter because I needed to stay seated to keep that rear wheel hooked up. On the small recovery spot I started having nightmares about the lactic acid that was going to pack through my body over the crux. And what if I don’t clean it? That will throw off my times! Well, my lapse of mental focus bit me in the ass, and I missed the very first small root and rock section for the first time in a couple years. I had grown used to those big wheels rolling over the section smoothly and forgot to slam the pedals as hard as I could. I lost maybe 7 seconds and remounted. 20 seconds later while grinding up the hardest part of the section I accidentally pulled my worn right cleat out of the pedal and had to dismount a second time. Bummer. This bike is definitely more difficult to clean these maximum traction technical sections. Once I regained my composure on the more moderately graded upper half I felt like I was going a little faster on the lighter bike. Maybe it was mental. Maybe I just thought I was going faster because the light wheels are supposed to be faster. I can’t say for certain, but once traction was no longer a concern, it just seemed easier to keep the pedals turning over while staying in the saddle. Final time for this split was 18:53. So even with 2 dismounts I was still 9 seconds faster. Total time was 34:40 which was 23 second faster than on the 29er.

THOUGHTS AND CONCLUSIONS

It doesn’t surprise me that my times were very close to being the same. 23 seconds variation over 35 minutes is a difference of only 1%. Since I only had one gear it makes sense that I rode roughly the same speed! What I wanted to find out is which bike made that 35 minutes more enjoyable.

Riding around the loop, the 29er had superior cornering capability due to a larger contact patch. The larger wheels lessen the angle of attack that the wheels hit obstacles on the trail, thereby rolling over them with less jarring. On this loop I was not bothered by the longer wheelbase. There is only one real switchback on this trail, and this bike negotiated it without problems.

On the steep downhill, the larger wheels are confidence inspiring. The bigger bike feels more stable at high speeds. Flicking small kicked out tabletop jumps off of waterbars may have been a little easier on the 26er, but not much. On previous trails I have noticed an increased level of confidence on drop offs with the bigger wheels.

Steep and technical climbs on the limit of singlespeedability (Yay, new word!) are where the big wheels really shine. Cleaning the Canyon Link was undoubtedly easier on the 29er, despite a 3 pound weight penalty.

So far I’ve been mostly promoting all these benefits of the 29er. I’ve listed; a less jarring ride, better cornering, stability at speed, increased rough terrain performance, and better standing climbing traction. Yet, it was still slower. When you look at the stopwatch, when it comes down to steep high altitude climbing, VO2 Max is King, and light makes right. This is why I want to get a custom 29er wheelset that is very light, so I can have the best of both worlds.

WHICH BIKE IS RIGHT FOR YOU?

Well how tall ARE you anyway? Not in Internet Inches, like, I mean for real. I am 5 foot 11, so the big wheels fit under me quite nicely. I would imagine that the threshold for 29er sizing is around 5 foot 7. At that point toe overlap with the front wheel begins to become a concern, and the frame head tube angle needs to be slackened to increase front center distance, all of which are all trade offs that lead to a less nimble bike in the singletrack. This is a *rough* guideline for around the point where size becomes a consideration. Can you be shorter and ride one? Sure! But it *may* not give you the best performance possible. Conversely, if you are a gi-normous 6 foot 2 or above type, well, don’t even think about it. Airplane seats were not made for you and neither were 26 inch mountain bikes. That said, flame away.

Secondly, where do you live? If you live in flatter to rolling terrain then go for the 29er! The rougher the trails the more you are going to like one. If your terrain finds you keeping more of a constant speed on average then you are not going to be spending a lot of energy spinning big wheels up to speed. In fact, that inertia that you put into the wheels is going to help you maintain that speed when you encounter something that is going to try and slow you down. On the other hand, if you spend a lot of time on long climbs, then maybe you would be better off with the lightest option that you can find. And that is going to be the smaller wheeled bike.

Thirdly, what is important to you? Are you a go fast at all cost racer? Do you just ride trails for fun with no other agenda? Do you like cleaning climbs on a singlespeed while geared full suspension guys walk? Do you have every part of your bike weighed and calculated in a spreadsheet? If you are a racer, you still might go faster on a 26er depending on your racing discipline and location,. But then again, maybe not. 29ers make a lot of sense to me for endurance racing, where the race is more about conserving energy and maintaining a high average speed than it is reacting explosively and powerfully. And that is what big wheels are good at.

After 16 years of riding wheels of one size, to try something new is just fun, plain and simple. Feeling a bike that rides differently is fresh, interesting, and exciting. Additionally, I find that riding a 29er makes me feel more of a man. Ooooh, Big Wheels (insert Tool Time Man Grunt). Does this mean it can also make a female feel more like a woman? I guess all you 29er riding ladies will have to blog us and let us know. There is one thing that do know for certain. Last week I went up to Nederland and did my first highly technical ride of the year (too much photo and computer time . . .). I was on the 29er and I cleaned a section up there for the first time of my life, on my first attempt of the year. I was on a 29er; was it coincidence?

Mountain Bike History 101 and the Single Speed

With the growing buzz about single speeds and the bike industry answering what many riders request of “back to the roots of mountain biking”, I feel its time we talked about the history of mountain biking and how single speeds mountain bikes fit in.

Like snowboarding, mountain biking has evolved a lot since its first conception. Around the turn of the century it is said that road racers in Europe would race each other to neighboring towns but were allowed to take any shortcut they wanted. Even if it meant that they would be climbing fences or riding through fields. This would evolve into the sport of Cyclo-cross. It became popular after Octave Lapize credited winning the 1910 Tour de France because of his off-season Cyclo-cross training. In 1950 Union Cycliste Internationale, a cycling association that oversees competitive cycling events internationally, held its first Cyclo-cross race in Paris. It wasn’t until the 1970’s that Cyclo-cross gained popularity in the US and in 1975 Berkeley California. was the site of the first US National Championship.

Also around that time in California, people were starting to take old fat tire cruiser bikes and modify them with gears and BMX style handlebars. After people started racing these modified fat tire bikes, people started to think about improving the bikes. One of the first things improved was the wheel hubs and breaking system. Racers were always having to repack the bearings in the wheel because of the speeds they were reaching while racing down hill. Racers started to build new wheels combining road wheel hubs and stronger rims to handle the bumps off road.

In the early 1980’s road bike manufactures started making bikes for the mountain bike arena. Using the technology of the time, these new bikes were lighter and stronger then the old fat tire cruiser bikes. Like road bikes, mountain bikes go through the same kind of trends. In the mid 1990’s the single speed trend started with the road bikes and moved its way to mountain bikes by the late 1990’s. The start of the trend for road bikes was from bike messengers. They started taking the gears off their road bikes and making them into single speeds. The reason single speeds appealed to them were because they were more reliable and noticeably quicker and easier to pedal.

Fast-forward to today and you will notice that bike manufactures are now starting to produce single speed mountain bikes. Just like bike manufactures answered the trendsetters’ call to make mountain bikes in the 1980’s they are doing the same for a new bunch of next generation innovators. The benefit today is that technology has come a long way, components on bikes are better then ever and more reliable.

So why should you get a single speed mountain bike? Well single speed mountain bikes are not for everyone. They lack the gears that allow you to make up hill climbs easier and down hill descents faster. That’s not to say you can’t go fast down hill. You just won’t be able to do it as efficient with out gears. If you want a mountain bike that is easier to maintain, more responsive when you pedal, and are looking for a great workout, single speed mountain bikes offer all of that and more. There is nothing wrong with either type of mountain bike. It is more of a personal preference. If you’re looking at getting a new bike I strongly encourage you to look at single speeds. There are some great ones out there and they are a ton of fun to ride.

In the next couple of months we are going to bring you every single speed mountain bike in production that we can get our hands on and put them through their paces. We are working on some of our favorite picks right now but if there are specific bikes you want to hear about let us know.   All I can say is “Are you ready for the ride!”

Interbike 2008 Expo: Pronghorn Racing Debut of Top Mounted Suspension Mountain Bikes

Interbike 2008 sees the International debut of an innovative line of top mounted suspension bikes from Danish company, Pronghorn.

Definitely one of the more eye catching designs of the show, the complete line of bikes utilizes a top mounted suspension system that maximizes leverage and eliminates pedal bobbing.. Mtobikes.com spoke with CEO and founder of Pronghorn, Kenneth Dalsgaard, about this stylish line of bikes.

“We were looking for a way to take away some of the disadvantages of the range of suspensions systems on the market. We have a team in Denmark that completely engineered this system from scratch. It is a very efficient riding system, and until you try it you cannot believe the quality of the ride”.

Definitely something we would like to get our hands on for a test this fall.

Check out their products and company mission at www.pronghornracing.com

2008 Interbike OutDoor Demo: 2009 Ventana El Chucho

The bike: 2009 Ventana El Chucho

The cool:
29” front wheel and 5” of front travel rolls over some pretty big obstacles
26” rear wheel accelerates faster, is stiffer and maintains standard gearing ratios
5.5” rear travel soaks up the bumps that the front rolls over
Rock solid rear suspension – no slop whatsoever

The luke warm:
Slightly slower 29’er steering
Need to carry two tubes on rides

The Options:
Shock options
Custom geometry, paint and sizes

The review:
If you’ve ever ridden a Ventana mountain bike you’re probably familiar with the solid trail feel that few other bikes can muster. The El Chucho is no exception. What makes this bike different is the 29” front wheel and the 26” rear wheel combines the benefits of both schools of current mountain bike design.
Now how does it ride? To me it feels a just like my two year old El Saltamontes. But the big front wheel on the El Chucho simply rolls over things where my Salty needs a little encouragement. The El Chucho also maintains the wheel stiffness and quick acceleration that most 29’ers lack since it sticks with a standard 26” rear wheel. It’s shorter (than a 29/29) wheelbase and standard 26’er gear ratio also make the El Chucho a quicker handling than any 29’er I’ve ridden. Great for attacking the steep and rocky trails we have in the Las Vegas area or any place where rocky technical conditions prevail.

Many of my riding buddies think it’s funny that Ventana hasn’t adopted a new fangled suspension design like all the other boutique mountain bike brands in the USA. But after riding the other brands, I still find the plushness and stiffness of a Ventana second to none. Sherwood Gibson has finely adjusted his faux bar suspension so that it performs at a higher level than most frames on the market.

The History of Mountain Cycle

Mountain Cycle was started in 1988 by Robert Reissinger, a man many claim to be the true father of the modern mountain bike. In an era when MTB’s were still very road bike influenced; rigid steel frames and cantilever brakes - the bike Robert built was nothing short of revolutionary. Mountain Cycle is considered to be a pioneer in the use of hydraulic disk brakes, inverted suspension fork technology and aluminum monocoque frame construction.

The San Andreas was launched with little fuss - but it’s radical, motocross inspired, looks, long travel suspension and disk brakes (used for the very first time on a MTB!) grabbed people’s attention and desire. It’s the only bike to be featured in the Museum of Modern Art as a shining example of modern design.

As a company Mountain Cycle fared less well, eventually Robert transferred ownership to Kinesis (the Taiwanese frame factory) but this marriage too was short lived.

Finally in 2006/7 Mountain Cycle found a new home, after being bought by large Taiwanese company Ideation Industrial.

In an effort to better serve the European market, MC established a European subsidiary based in France, with Krien Dawson as Managing Director. Prior to Mountain Cycle Dawson worked as product manager for Shimano and most recently was Brand Manager at Vario Bikes.  Krien is joined by his North American counterparts in Eric LaPointe, John and Diane who look after the US.

Mountain Cycle recently released the hardtail freeride Mountain Cycle Rumble limited edition frame with graphic work by Chris Bourke.  This week at Interbike in Las Vegas, MC is unveiling the long awaited Mountain Cycle Battery slopestyle frame.

With an experienced and passionate staff again running the brand, the History Continues…

Mountain Cycle Rumble Limited Edition Frame Review

Awhile back we published an interview with Chris Bourke a tattoo artist located in the UK who was contracted in order to create the custom graphics featured on the Mountain Cycle Rumble Limited Edition frame.  Mountain Cycle only produced a total of 50 limited edition frames; 25 for distribution in the United States and 25 distributed in the United Kingdom.

The Rumble hardtail frame is specifically engineered for urban assault, dirt-jumping, trail and XC riding.  Mountain Cycle is known for using the best materials and fabrication techniques in the business and this frame carries the image with its stylish and functional beautiful monocoque gussets, aggressive geometry and high-quality aluminum 6061 construction.  The frame weighs in at around 5 pounds with all hardware installed.

It’s super short and thick square chain stays make the Rumble a great jumper and fast on the berms. A slightly steeper head tube angle allows for fast handling making the Rumble a top competitor for 4-Cross. Large gussets and interchangeable dropouts designed by Mountain Cycle make it obvious that this frame is designed to be used and abused.

If you are looking for a XC specific bike, this bike is probably overbuilt and a bit overweight for your needs.  However, we really like this frame because as a hardtail this can be your only hardtail that you own, say goodbye to having a different bike for every type of riding, this frame does it all!

Making this frame truely unique and absolutely brilliant is the artwork by Chris Bourke.  I sometimes catch myself gazing at the bike’s rad graphics.  In fact, when I first received the frame my thought was that it was too nice to ride and so I have decided to mount the limited edition frame on the wall above my monitor in my office and order a new non limited edition frame to build up and ride hard.  I can’t think of another bike on the market that features such amazing graphics and great functionality in one!

Stay tuned as we will be following up to this post with several others about the build up of this frame.

Check out the pics of the Rumble Limited Edition frame below:

Rumble Specifications

Rumble US Pricing:

Standard:  $522.00
Limited Edition:  $577.00

The guys over at Mountain Cycle are doing some great things…the company is under new ownership and the new staff are working hard at producing some of the best frames on the market.  At Interbike this year, MC plans to finally unveil its slopestyle creation, the long awaited Battery.  Mountain Cycle will have 1 raw and 1 Prismatic Orange at the show (we’ll have pics up soon!).  The Battery will be available in Oct./Nov. of this year.

Commencal Furious Freeride Mountain Bike Review – Crankworx Colorado 2008

One of my favorite things about mountain bike festivals is the opportunity to ride a variety of different bikes that I would normally only see in magazines. Enter Crankworx Colorado, 2008, Winter Park resort and the Commencal Furious. The nice gentlemen at the BTI booth had the entire Commencal lineup on hand for the shredding, thank you Preston and Mike. BTI, Bicycle Technologies International is a distributor based in Santa Fe New Mexico and they are the Commencal distributor here in the United States.

Commencal, pronounced, Co-Men-Sal, is a mountain bike company born out of passion for the sport in the mountains of Andorra. Andorra is a mountainous region in southwestern Europe, located between Spain and France. The people of Andorra are reported to have the highest life expectancy of any other place in the world. This might have something to do with the seemingly endless recreational opportunities available there. Andorra is home to Commencal team rider and world champion mountain biker, Cedric Gracia. The Commencal Furious was designed with CG’s input to be his exclusive slopestyle and hucker bike. Having always been a fan of the rowdy Frenchman, this was the bike that I had to ride.  Read more

Are 29er’s Really Faster? The Physics Behind the Big Wheels

Some love them, others love to hate them, but hype aside, are 29er’s really faster? The simple answer is yes, but if you are the type who constantly wonders why, here is your explanation.

I hear a lot of talk about momentum whenever 29er’s come into discussion. It is in fact true that 29er’s carry momentum better than 26’s but for different reasons than you may think. Momentum is equal to mass times velocity. Let’s say we have a 26” bike and a 29” bike, both made of the same components. The 29er will naturally be a bit heavier due to the bigger frame to accommodate the wheels, as well as larger wheels, tires and tubes. If we look back to our momentum equation, if both bikes traveled at the same speed the 29” bike would carry more momentum because of the extra weight: However because of this extra weight more energy would be required to maintain the same speed as the 26” bike. In other words if a rider using the exact same effort rode each bike, the 29er would actually be slightly slower than the 26 because of the extra mass. But the big picture is not quite that simple…

Now to the core of the issue, the secret behind the big wheel; contact angle. Contact angle is simply the angle created by the tire and the ground. A 29” wheel has a lower contact angle to the ground than a 26” wheel because of the larger diameter.

Because of the lower contact angle the 29” wheel will cover bumps, rocks, ruts and other obstacles with ease. The 26” wheel has a harsh contact angle and will not climb over these obstacles as gradually as a 29” wheel. This more gradual climbing nature of a 29er means less energy lost to conquering terrain features. The larger wheel diameter also means that the 29er will not hit ever minor bump and rut. Now don’t confuse this with the contact angle principal; in this example the larger wheel simply skips over ruts and bumps.

Because the 29er can conquer technical terrain features more easily, less energy is lost to impact with the terrain, and more is preserved in the momentum. Also less energy is required to maintain a current speed, so less energy is required to maintain the level of momentum. All-in-all 29er’s do indeed carry there momentum better than 26’s in any technical terrain. 

Another consideration is momentum capacity. On the trail we have certain sections where we feel comfortable only riding at or below a maximum speed. For instance a very technical flat run with big exposure might cause us to dial down our speed even though we easily have the energy to go faster. Because a 29er is a bit heavier than its’ 26” equivalent, the momentum equation shows us that the 29er will carry more momentum than the 26” when they are both traveling at the same speed.

Five Bikes This Downhiller Owns

I call my self a downhiller because it is the type of riding that I most identify with. However, I am a lover of all bikes and riding. I will never participate in the argument of which type of rider is better, (except maybe the fixie, indie rock, mustache clad hipsters; but they are an easy target). We riders on a fundamental level are all the same. We love to get out with our two wheels on the ground, and enjoy the world around us.

My Downhill Rig- It is the most ridiculous bike I own. It is the most expensive, time consuming and has an incredible appetite for parts and tires. This type of bike has put me on the operating table and has knocked me out twice. It has 9 inches suspension of travel in the rear and 8 in the front. This is my baby that I only get to ride maybe 20 times during the course of the year. Every day on this bike feels like a vacation (if there are no major crashes). It is a 2006 Foes Racing Fly with a Marzocchi 888 RC2X.

Cross Country Mountain Bike- I use the term cross country loosely. I don’t care how long it takes me to get to the top just as long as I get to ride down. My XC bike is heavy, with 2.35 wide tires, short stem and wide riser bar identical to my DH bike. It has six inches of travel front and rear. Despite the weight this bike is the one that I ride most. Trails are dry almost year round here, and Moab is a short drive away. The more time that I spend on this bike, the better off I am when the mountains dry out and I can take out my rig. It is a 2006 Trek Remedy 6.

Urban Hard Tail- As the name suggests, this bike never leaves the city. It is mandatory to own because it becomes the dumping ground for all the parts that I go through on my XC and DH bike. It started out as a cheap bike but has slowly accumulated some top shelf parts that have a little life left in them. The bike technically is two sizes too small for me, it feels like a grown up’s version of a BMX. This is also the bike that I practice the minimal trials skills that I have. This is also the closest thing that I have to a “townie” bike. It is the only one that I will lock up outside a bar, restaurant, or grocery store. Despite all of the nice parts on it, it is the cheapest bike I own. It is a 2005 Specialized Hard Rock, with nothing stock including the paint job.  Read more

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