Peachy!
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Claud Butler Fan
VCC Claud Butler ME
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**EDIT** June 2020 BotM winner!
Quick history lesson….
It’s 1984 and the British cycle industry is more or less struggling… and Holdsworth, who had owned the brand rights of Claud Butler since 1958 are amongst those feeling the pinch. One thought to improve sales was to look at this “new” idea, ‘Mountain Biking’.
So, someone senior at Holdsworth bought a new bike from across the pond to evaluate angles etc…. nothing was documented, but the more commonly held belief was that an early Specialized Stumpjumper had been purchased, one of America’s earliest production bikes (although possibly made in Japan?) along the lines of custom frames sold by the likes of Tom Ritchey.
https://dirtragmag.com/articles/blast-f ... tumpjumper
The result first advertised in 1985 was the Claud Butler Canyon, but with production starting in late1984 surely this puts it in the group of earliest British built semi-mass production bikes?
A few have appeared on RB over the years, but they are very scarce these days and I’ve never seen an appropriate size for me (20”) …..And one had appeared on here way back dressed as a tourer;
Then a Youtube video popped up by the same owner this summer… the rest, well you can guess the rest…
Quick history lesson….
It’s 1984 and the British cycle industry is more or less struggling… and Holdsworth, who had owned the brand rights of Claud Butler since 1958 are amongst those feeling the pinch. One thought to improve sales was to look at this “new” idea, ‘Mountain Biking’.
So, someone senior at Holdsworth bought a new bike from across the pond to evaluate angles etc…. nothing was documented, but the more commonly held belief was that an early Specialized Stumpjumper had been purchased, one of America’s earliest production bikes (although possibly made in Japan?) along the lines of custom frames sold by the likes of Tom Ritchey.
https://dirtragmag.com/articles/blast-f ... tumpjumper
The result first advertised in 1985 was the Claud Butler Canyon, but with production starting in late1984 surely this puts it in the group of earliest British built semi-mass production bikes?
A few have appeared on RB over the years, but they are very scarce these days and I’ve never seen an appropriate size for me (20”) …..And one had appeared on here way back dressed as a tourer;
Then a Youtube video popped up by the same owner this summer… the rest, well you can guess the rest…
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