MTB History & Origins | Founding Fathers of Mountain Biking
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- čas přidán 13. 06. 2024
- Saddles Down! & Open your text books. Learn the History of our favorite sport!
Its taken me 2 years to compile this video.
Meet the amazing people who helped shaped mountain biking as a sport & industry to what it is today.
From UK to USA! Geoff Apps to Charley Kelly, Joe Breeze & Gary Fisher.
Meet the Founding Fathers of Mountain Biking.
Sources & References below!
Go Deeper down the trail & Learn more about our favorite Sport below:
Birth of Dirt Book: amzn.to/3AGzPUe
Fat Tire Flyer (written by Charley Kelly): amzn.to/3lFK1YQ
(Intro)
2 wheels, some suspension, & the desire to explore. Mountain biking has brought me & you some of the best times. So where did all these epic times & bikes in the woods originate from.
Mountain biking as we know it. Off-road biking for adventure started in the 1970s, North of San Francisco in Marin county, California.
They were looked at as crazy. Outlaws. Hippies. These hippies like Joe breeze, Gary Fischer, Charley Kelly & many others started modifying their fat tire paperboy style town bikes for off-road in the trails of mount Tamaipais.
let's not forget the ruff stuff foundation & Geoff apps from the UK in the late60s. Geoff realized the only thing he can do is build the bike that was in his head. A constant development and evolution building upon
Little did these hippies know, that their hobby became the launching pin for the commercial mountain bike industry.
They quickly realized the bicycles weren't suited for the mountain & trails they were riding.
Eventually they started racing down the mountain to see who was the fastest of them all. One of the veteran Klunkerz, Charlie Kelly organized the event. Repacking the grease in their hub after the race of the name repack.
Racing was very hard on the bikes.
Building a bike was a developing process until they found the best type of parts to put on a bike
These bikes were called Klunkerz.
Charlie Kelly asked his buddy Joe breeze to build them a sturdier bike frame from scratch.
Breeze's bike frame set off a revolution in design and usability in the bike for industry.
Everybody wanted in on this crazy new hobby in the woods. They needed their own mountain bikes too. Word started getting out.
Kelly and business partner Gary Fischer started selling Richey built frames, calling them mountain bikes.
This was the inspiration for specialized stumpjumpers. Known as the first mass produced and advertised mountain bikes.
Next, millions took to the streets and trails on these new bikes..
By the late 1980s, Moto designs were starting to find their way into mountain bikes.
From Rockshox suspension fork in 1989.
full suspension frames & disc brakes were right after.
Tension started to build between bikers and hikers of Marin county as well as horseback riders
Which led to the banning of singletrack riding to mountain bikers
Independent Rogue trails were built in response to create a "flow" experience. A network of trails turns and features that easily challenge the rider into an experience of a blissful State of mindless fun
The bikes of today are longer, slacker, stiffer & more gravity oriented, evolving their klunker predecessors.
These trail systems have cropped up in nearly every corner of the United States providing a fun flow experience for just about everybody. It's safe to say, mountain bikes are here to stay.
Stay junkie!
Sources:
British history of Mountain Biking: • Mountain Biking The un...
Kluinking: • Klunking - 1979 - Even...
Joe Breeze Interview: • Origins of mountain bi...
Daredevils who invented mountain biking: • The Daredevils Who Inv...
Who is Gary fisher: • Who is Gary Fisher
Klunkerz: a Film about Mountain Bike History: • Klunkerz: A Film About...
Mountain Bike History: • Mountain Bike History
Charley Kelly Interview: • Godfathers of MTB_Char...
#MTB #MountainBiking #History - Sport
My Mom had 2 rules, no football or motorcycles. Now I am a happy hockey player and mtn biker. Thanks Mom!
Why not?
@@awangkumohamaddanishbinawangja she thought they were too dangerous...
😂
I get what you mean but it probably saved your life. Football is probably statistically more dangerous than hockey and so is motorcycling more than mtbing
I rode Repack for the first time in '85. After a few times up and back I made a loop trail incorporating Whites Hill. I rode it lot with mostly my brother. I ridden it in the winter cold with iced over puddles and in the dry August heat. The stream shown in the video is at the bottom of the hill and must be crossed to get to Repack. We figured out to stash beer for after the ride in the sandy bottom of the stream. We'd bury it completely and fetch it after for a nice cold and unshaken beer or two.
One bike is shown with black wall beach cruiser knobby tires, it took me some searching but I found some a few years ago and ride on the them to this day on my back up bike as a homage to the glory days of riding Marin County Trails.
my dad salvaged a 1950's Columbia and in the 1960's I would take it camping in the Oregon mountains. A big hill on the old 101 in Seaside Oregon and some gravel and dirt roads in the MT Jefferson area were my inspiration for this old Columbia. This lead me to make my own off road bike using parts from the Seaside Dump in Seaside Oregon. I managed to ride this thing 2 miles up a wilderness trail to Lake Marion. This was the late sixties! The horse back riders at the top of the trail looked at me and my bike in disbelief. The only reason i road it up there was to go down hill fast! I remember burning my coaster brake up also. I still have this bike. I used a 24 inch Japenese girls light weight frame with a 20 inch fat tire from aa kids bike and a 26 inch X one and 3/8 wheel and tire up front. My handle bars are a ram design. The girls bike cranks are a short reach with a smaller sprocket than a males, there for it is rideable up hiking trails! my seat was a vintage brooks leather saddle also from the Seaside dump.
Gary Fisher is a legend!
🙌The TRUTH!💯
@@TrailJunkiemtb Owned GF Big Sur 1998 and GF Hoo Koo E Koo 2000...nice memories!
Love these old clips of such a beautiful time in history.
I just bought a used Gary Fisher Mountain Bike at a local pawn store for $189.00
I'm stuck in the late 80's-90's for mountain bikes. I snag stuff all the time for parts. got a Brodie full bike at a yard sale for 80 bucks. i bought it for the Bontrager Crowbar 4130 cromo riser and the frame. great wheelset with sun rhinolite rims and a Race face front hub. gotta love the scores. Never scored a Gary Fisher yet though.
Notice that old footage not a single one of them hit a 10foot jump or any drop, tried a backflip or any of that. I miss old mountainbiking
haha right!? just give em a few decades. But just as they say cross country is best form of klunking
Love those days in Marin and the people! Magical history!
Thank you for this wonderful history discourse!😊💙💛 These klunker bikes look awesome!😎👍🏻
Outstanding video!
In the UK the rough stuff fellowship is an off-road cycling club that started in the 50s I believe in the Peak District.
Thank you for including Geoff . They are a real hero to me .
No Problem! No way I could tell the history of MTB & off road cycling without mentioning Geoff! 👍👊 Thanks for watching! -Stay Junkie!
@@TrailJunkiemtb I'd like to build my own clydesdale style bike . They look so much fun . I used to exchange e mails with Geoff app regularly .
@@edmundscycles1 Very cool. Exchanged letters w/ Geoff?! Even cooler! 👍
Best of luck on the bike build
@@edmundscycles1 How cool. Geoff is no doubt one of the mtb legends.
@@thorazine8402 they are super cool . I got to see photos of protypes . Which I won't talk about even though I think they are on the website . Apps is such a lovely person . 😌
We did it when we were kids in the 6ties
I live in Marin and unfortunately most of the gnarly trails are illegal but they are still very fun
Well if they are the founding fathers then that makes a grandfather of off road riding . 😂
i lived in marin in the late fifties and we did everything these guys talk about except we didn't have the creativity or skill set to make bikes and or alter them . These guys really are the fathers of mt. biking , no question about .
haha! Soo cool!! that definitely makes you a Grandfather of off road cycling!👍🤘
Great video on the birth of mountain biking !! Im still on an 80's Stumpy.
And today some think that if your MTB didn't cost thousands of dollars it's not a real mountain bike, it's a beginner's bike for beginners aka entry level.
In 1970`s Britain it was favourable to put Cow Horn handlebars on racers with Knobbly Tyres and then arrived the Raleigh Bomber .
In the 70’s my Dad would make a ‘Scrambler’ bike by taking an old road bike put on straight bars, nobbled tyres & make it single speed. We would take it to the woods & go scrambling..I guess you could call this early MTB’n this started my long life love of bikes to this day I still ride regularly. Currently on a Canyon Lux ‘trail’ down country bike & still having a blast & 54years old 😽
Love this!!!
Thanks!! stoked you enjoyed it!🙏🤘 I got more of these types of videos planned, they just take forever to write & research
-Thanks for watching, ill have to hit ya back up on IG and ride Allaire. Lifes been crazy for me lately✌
@@TrailJunkiemtb Awesome, looking forward to more of these types! Yeah any time you plan on hitting Allaire warn me and I'll meet you out there. I started a super fun new line out at the "ravine" near the parkway too. ;-) Cheers! 🤙
@@SecretSpots Sounds good man, def will! 👍
So, i am gathering that i may have the answer to so many people question about who invented the gt style triple triangle. i know Norco did it before GT did but Geoff Apps seems to have at least drawn the triple triangle in 1977
About 1979-1980 I was thinking about disc brakes on bicycle and somebody put that in 1989! Thank you for you made my wish to became true and very much usable thing!
awesome to hear! one can dream!
@@TrailJunkiemtb thanks. That was my dream because ruber brake melt or jump of from holder and cause more problems... I didn’t break any bone but my falls was for candid camera!
Disc brakes we available way back before WWII, and mostly used for tandems. This film is a good study of "economy of scale" I guess: once the factories figured out they could sell a purpose built item, we got the real thing with purpose built parts. And it did not take long from the mid 70s to the early 80 to go from Klunker to a real MTB.
While disc brakes are great, I remember when "V" brakes came out.....unbelievable stopping power!
"There's nothing new under the sun!"
The Data Book proves this time and time again. Pretty much every new bicycle "innovation" was done over a hundred years ago. This is just another example of this.
That said, today's mountain bikes SERIOUSLY ROCK! The improvements, no matter how unoriginal or incremental, have improved the riding experience considerably. Especially for new riders; comfortable and confidence-inspiring.
I made the HUGE leap from a 1998 hard tail to a 2021 Ibis Ripley. (Yeah, I skipped a few steps, didn't I?!!!) And I'm a former industry guy. Just cheap and on a budget made riding that beautiful ti XTR hard tail a joy for 23 years.
But now I've seen the light! Dropping down Scotts Flat, Hoot and now Talon Show above Nevada City last week, and Soquel Demo two days ago is so unbelievable. Why oh why did I wait so long????
I was lucky in '84 when I embraced my first mountain bike. I feel as lucky today as I did back then.
I remember my beautiful pink spider bike when I was 11, all the kids in the neighborhood would line up and see who could skid the best or jump the best. It was amazing. My dad accidently ran over it with the car and only warped the back wheel but that did not stop me I rode that thing forever and I believe it was a better skidder because of that warped wheel. I have it in my genes and I love riding in the dirt and on gravel.. yes baby bring on the charm
Take a look to the V.C.C.P "Velo Cross Club Paris" to see the genuine roots of mtb, in the early 50's in Paris...
In the mid seventies I saw guys riding in the san juan mountains near ouray. The bikes had smaller like 17" rear wheels and like 26" front. I have watched a few of these mtb docs and never any mention or pics of those bikes?
Prof. John Finley-Scott was decades ahead of these guys. And NOT riding a 'klunker'. In 1953 modified from a 'lightweight' Schwinn World, converted to steel S2 Schwinn sized 26" wheels and larger volume tires (originated 1930's in Germany by Semperit). Aluminum rims were not available back then in this size. The frame was far more conventional to the so called early production modern 'mountain bike', so much that Tom Ritchey early bikes have a very close geometry, hence Mike Sinyard copied Ritchey for the Japan made Stumpjumper. John Finley-Scott also rode with gears for climbing, Sturmey Archer IGH (4 speed) with additional Cyclo cogs, a tensioner and single chainring. There was no racing back in the 1950's so no reason for rapid gear change. He would dismount, lift the tensioner, relocate the chain on the rear cog and away he went. As mentioned, this was 'decades' before the coined klunker and Marin gang.
Not to argue, but this is more than just modified bicycles. It was and is about the culture of racing and competition. Like Gary Fischer said, bicycles have always been ridden off road, because back in the day, there were not many paved roads. There was a bunch of riders in Colorado at the same time doing similar things on the bike but that group of guys in Marin went on to start a huge industry. That is why the get the credit. Perhaps it was just in the culture of the Bay Area that spawned the idea to commercialize mountain bikes. Like the Fat tire bike thing, started in Alaska, but not until QBP and Surly started marketing rims and tires, then eventually the Pugsley frameset was the fat tire bike a common segment of the bicycle industry.
Some in WW1 used bikes designed for off road, ( the earliest pictures of off road bikes that I've ever seen ) but it didn't catch on until the hippies in California started racing them. According to Y.T
Academy. They don't give the earlier account of when those hippies were kids they were racing sting-rays behind the MX tracks where their dad's were racing which I believe is the true start of MTN bike racing after BMX took hold.
Great video but you’re also missing the klunker crew from crested Butte, Colorado
While I was pushing my old Schwinn & Mongoose BMX bikes up south bay fire roads and complaining, "Why don't they put GEARS on these things!!!!" the folks in Marin were doing JUST THAT! Ha!
Nice choice of Steve Miller Jet Airplane toward the end.
I watched a movie about Tuvan throat singers way back when and this song came on during the credits. I was perplexed. Why would they play Steve Miller song at the end? Great song and all; reminds of me of my childhood in the 70's. But Tuvan throat singing??? Turns out, Paul Pena, the main character in the movie, a blind musician and fan of throat singing wrote the song! Funny connections. RIP Paul Pena.
0:16 lol an Info Wars sticker? Oof! Might wanna edit that out.
Wasn’t all biking Mountain biking before asphalt ..?!?
The Coconino cycling club rode Flagstaff to Grand Canyon in 1897.
It all starts when you just ride with friends on a Sunday,
Somebody becomes the crashking,
Somebody becomes the speedqueen,
HAHA
Naked crit forever
haha yes!
My Dad did with a Schwinn Stingray JR as this looked closer to the Moto Cross/trials bike with the even tires he was seeing thinking this would be best to copy the off road BMX style racing you see to day on his bike in early 1970's from about 1970 to 1974 but after modifying it to have beefier spokes fro the beach cruiser bikes and fitting them to the bikes 20 inch wheels same as his friends who had that or a Murry of a similar model. Dad or rather some of his friends also experimented with ways to get more grip on the tires or in my dads case glue a second set of tires over the worn out set for better durability when riding this area all dirt that is now a park with 1/2 paved BMX racing track and 1/2 dirt BMX trail. This was in Lompoc California where my dad lived from age 5 to late 20's.
2014 Trek X Caliber 8, g2 geometry, xc 32 Rock Shox g2 forks, 29" 2.2 tires...27 spd, avg spd 35 mph vs 28ph on a 26er......
Whistler set the tone...
It's a shame that barely anyone recognizes the Crested Butte Klunkers in Colorado that were racing down mountains a year before they were doing it in Marin County.
So say the Chico folks. Read below and the central CA folks too. And then there are the British & French who insist THEY did it first.
This is all baloney. EVERYONE was "mountain biking" in the late 1800's! That's all there was - horrible dirt "roads" that you had to bounce over and through. The pneumatic tire was a huge breakthrough that reduced the "boneshaking" while riding off road. Every generation has hit the trails on a bike. This is nothing new. Give it a rest.
But the kids in Marin gave it a name and created a new sport in earnest. Everyone wants to SAY they did it first or whatever. And many did. But no one actually launched it into the mainstream. They launched a MASSIVE resurgence for bicycling in the US and world. If they hadn't done it then, someone would have eventually. Simply a matter of time. But before them, it was niche. After them it was a worldwide phenomenon. So fair or unfair, they get the credit.
I feel very lucky to have been there from the start to see a new sport that I embraced, learned, loved, and supported take root. It's been quite a ride!
Not really. We don't want Colorado to turn into California population or politics...
They can have the fame even if it's not real.
U dang clunckers, ggz 👽
Group shot @ 4:16 captures them all. How many can you name?
cool video but you missed the most important scene . . . the miners in crested butte Colorado. look em up. probably just as important as the Marin county crew.
Myth. "we went out to crested butte, and it turned out they weren't anything like us, they were just a bunch of town bikers who just happened to live in the best biking riding place in the world. But they didnt know about these bikes... we introduced mountain bikes to crested butte" - Charlie Kelly.
This makes me wanna build a clunker fuck these fancy new bikes
No mention of Crested Butte?
Myth. "we went out to crested butte, and it turned out they weren't anything like us, they were just a bunch of town bikers who just happened to live in the best biking riding place in the world. But they didnt know about these bikes... we introduced mountain bikes to crested butte" - Charlie Kelly.
@@TheVintageDownhillMounta-io8pp the kids in CB were making their own clunkers and riding them on actual trail while Gary was still on a dirt road.
Do not forget Victor Vincinte of America and Mt. Wilson in SoCal (!). Marin/the Bay Area wasn't the only genisis spot for mountain-biking... We had fire roads and folks bashing around the Backcountry too. Yes verily, many of the trails had been carved by dirt bikers but, ignoring SoCal's part/contributions to the sport is rather NorCal-centric...
So did Aspen area people riding modified crap bikes too. My dad was in the start if mid California, Lompoc in early 1970's doing more a Moto Cross on bikes kind of racing with a circuit but it was almost all off road on Schwinn Stingray Jr or Murry Nock off for one of the group that had a 5 speed on the bike. They put thick spokes made for beach cruiser fat tire bikes on the 20 inch wheels somehow I forget how they did that. They even tried ways to make the tires more durable when riding, my dads was to take an old worn out no tread left tire as the under tire for better innertube protection but he cut off the sidewall and put it on the bike. Others were using Shoe Goo to attach on used worn out brake pads onto the bikes tiers or one of them covered the entire back side of the tire in Shoe Goo.
@@caseysmith544 That is some Serious improvisation (!); makes me all that more grateful, that when I was 'baptised' into the sport ('89) i didn't have to jury-rig like the hippie forefathers and mothers did. Sketchy engineering at it's finest..!
The funny thing is how now folks are rediscovering the older, non-racing aspects/roots (Bikepacking, direct descendent of road touring) that the focus on racing momentarily obscured. A silver lining of the COVID cloud i suppose...
Don't really like where the sport's going now though. It's metaphorical soul is being sucked through a Corporate black hole replete with marketing gimmicks (gravel bikes and 'e'-bikes for starters) and a general drifting away from the fun/practical human-powerd ethos. It's too many generes and sub-generes designed by an industry and folks within who see us All as suckers all too willing to part with our coin for (at times) dubious innovation.
@@bartmullin8018 Gravel bikes were going to come regardless, by either modifying a cyclocross bike to have wider wheels or adding downturned handlebars to a MTB. There is lots of Gravel roads in the Plains states and western Midwest states that just needed a bike like this. I saw guys riding the skinny tire Giant crossover trail/city flat handle bikes in the 2000's right before the Gravle Cross bikes came out as the preferred bikes for this type of event with some taking right diameter handlebars that are for cyclocross as they are similar to the style used on Gravle Cross bikes.
The one that is telling the greed has sucked the sport is that people have to get new bikes with 12 back gears and nothing else like the 18 and 24 are going away as being sold on bike mid level on up MTB with having to order the front gear system later and can't get it even as a special order the item made by the company because special chain made only for that model why not and forbid they stop making the specific for you exact model of bike. This is greed at its worst especially if where you live or ride nearby could use an 18 or 24 speed bike. It is like they forget that the 1x12 works well for replacing 15 speed2as the extra 2 gears for the old 3x5 are often not needed. But for the same design in the stock sold on bike 1x12 however dose not work for those who want a 3x6/2x9 or 2x12 that has been in past around for those that need it sold as a stock item on bike models, not as a having to buy an after the fact item specific to the model of MTB from company because why not make each model have its own width and design to the gears and chain.
Giant hardtail/semi-hardtail with one of the first crossover trail/commuter model that had skinnier wheels/tires with flat handlebars in 2000's was the start of single gear in the front but not until the mid to late 2000's with the then latest version of that model with a 1x12 or 1x9 option but an option, forget the back chain number and I can see why for that bike as it was made for flat/gravel riding mostly and as a bike in cities often during winter or poor roads.
Ron Skarin riding a 'skinny tire road bike' 100% titanium frame and fork Teledyne Titan placed 2nd, behind Gary Fisher.
@@caseysmith544 as someone who's seen bikes by the dozen with front derailleurs rusted in place, I can appreciate the reasoning, functionality and purpose of 1 X drive systems. Many people simply do not take the time to learn how a drivetrain works. I've taught enough "intro to bicycling" courses to educated top notch college students and faculty to know it's beyond many people's radar range. Just like how some people simply cannot learn to drive a manual transmission with proficiency, especially parallel parking on a hill! I can accept that.
Simplicity is a wonderful thing and it's what makes the bicycle so amazing. I'm perfectly happy on my 1 X 12 Ripley. More than happy.
That said, I also appreciate my 3 X 10 tandem gearing. Each is appropriate for the use and intent.
покры от куда такие вте времена ?
The blue jeans.
Dogs are made for walking, bikes are made for riding.
Now you got thousands of dollars for bikes that look the same. WTF...
I guess Joe Murray is too young to make the list.
This is a lie. It started in Crested Butte in the 60s.