pw_pw_la
Senior Retro Guru
Well, it's taken me a long time to even get this thread started, mostly because there's so much to say.
But I think in order to make sense of it all, I'll start at the beginning...
(Apologies in advance for the massive first post)
I've wanted a Phoenix for a very long time. It was one of those mystical bikes you'd hear whispers about growing up in the 90s, and while I didn't really understand the significance of Charlie and Steve's work and contributions to the "sport" back then, and I'd never even seen one in the flesh, since getting back into old mountain bikes there's been one thing I've been drawn to most of all: small production, handcrafted Northern Californian bikes and builders. With Cunningham and Potts at the very top of that wishlist.
The whole early WTB/Potts/Cunningham ethos resonates more strongly with me than almost any other aspect of mountain biking. I'm not a race guy, I'm not even a push myself to my limits guy. I'm an out in the woods, up a mountain, ride as far as you can to be closer to nature guy. I like weird, homemade, progressive tech; bike shed mechanics; weird brakes! I love the marriage of function to form that Steve and Charlie managed to harness so beautifully, for as long as that early era of WTB existed.
Now, I can't say I ever held out much hope of actually getting my hands on a bike touched by either of them. But I suppose a Phoenix, however unlikely, seemed the most promising route. I didn't think it would happen anytime soon, but I made the decision last year, after my first two builds, not to purchase anything else willy-nilly. To instead, bide my time and actively seek, in a somewhat focussed manor, the handful of bikes that really resonated with me, that I wanted most of all; however long it took and (within reason) whatever the cost.
Now, I'm not a rich man, I don't expect I'll ever be, but I started researching, adjusting my eBay and Craigslist alerts, and making some inquiries.
Some of that research led me here:
https://www.retrobike.co.uk/threads/wilderness-trail-bikes-phoenix-se-size-15”.397786/
It didn't say who bought it, only that it was sold.
Then later, I noticed @uno-speedo's post here:
So now I knew who'd got it!
I reached out to Nick, more out of curiosity than anything, and he confirmed it was in his possession, in a storage facility in San Diego, and that he was thinking of moving it on.
He sent me a couple of photos:
I got very excited.
Deep breaths. Hold nerve.
Well, a few months of covid related drama for everyone later, and Nick was suddenly back on the West Coast, off to his storage facility to move along a few bikes, and I was given a very sudden opportunity, at a very fair price, to own one of my unicorns.
I would say THE unicorn, but a few things disqualify it from that: it's not from 1994, it's not blue with the original decal style, it's not in the larger 17" size, and it's not the 1" threaded version with a Type II fork and a WTB Chris King!
Still, it was a 15" Phoenix, from 1996. And it seemed like it might be a ridable size for me (coming in at the very top of the heights recommended by WTB originally for a frame in this size, and considering I tend to prefer a smaller-sized frame anyway). Plus, it was coming fully loaded with WTB kit!
Togglecam rear brake with WTB booster? Check! WTB hubs laced to Powerbeam rims? Check. WTB Speedmaster Cantis and the very hard to find WTB Judy fork brace? Check. WTB/Cunningham custom Suntour seatpost in the massive 31.8 size? Check!
So yeah, I was excited.
I mean, how could I not get this bike?
Well, because I didn't have the money. And I wouldn't have it for a while. But Nick was only in town for a week, and who knew when he'd be back. Which is when a minor miracle occurred...
I have a friend, an excellent friend, who loves both people and bikes. And, I guess, me. We talk bikes all day long, from across coasts and time zones; we send each other things we've found that we like, things the other might like. He helps me with builds from afar with endless support and advice. I'm already eternally grateful to and for him. But the thing is, he's starting his own custom wrenching/building business, called Supertuck Speed Shop (great name, brilliant dude), and I suppose good karma and cool bikes matter more to him than commonsense and his own bank balance, so he swooped in with an offer to help make this happen for me.
I only say this part of it because it really f**k**g matters. People doing amazing things for other people out of the goodness of their hearts should always be credited and hopefully rewarded, and I won't ever be able to thank him enough.
He's the reason I have this bike. There's no if's and but's. It's that simple.
Anyway, Nick was driving through LA from San Diego to pick up his (and all of our) dream Potts (you may have seen it on here since) and dropped the Phoenix off with me at work on his way. It was great to meet him, and he was nothing but a pleasure to deal with. Another excellent human who just loves old bikes!
I won't go into too much more detail on the bike itself right now, but here are a couple of photos of how the bike looked on arrival:
And after a quick clean:
And that's the 10 photo limit already...
But I think in order to make sense of it all, I'll start at the beginning...
(Apologies in advance for the massive first post)
I've wanted a Phoenix for a very long time. It was one of those mystical bikes you'd hear whispers about growing up in the 90s, and while I didn't really understand the significance of Charlie and Steve's work and contributions to the "sport" back then, and I'd never even seen one in the flesh, since getting back into old mountain bikes there's been one thing I've been drawn to most of all: small production, handcrafted Northern Californian bikes and builders. With Cunningham and Potts at the very top of that wishlist.
The whole early WTB/Potts/Cunningham ethos resonates more strongly with me than almost any other aspect of mountain biking. I'm not a race guy, I'm not even a push myself to my limits guy. I'm an out in the woods, up a mountain, ride as far as you can to be closer to nature guy. I like weird, homemade, progressive tech; bike shed mechanics; weird brakes! I love the marriage of function to form that Steve and Charlie managed to harness so beautifully, for as long as that early era of WTB existed.
Now, I can't say I ever held out much hope of actually getting my hands on a bike touched by either of them. But I suppose a Phoenix, however unlikely, seemed the most promising route. I didn't think it would happen anytime soon, but I made the decision last year, after my first two builds, not to purchase anything else willy-nilly. To instead, bide my time and actively seek, in a somewhat focussed manor, the handful of bikes that really resonated with me, that I wanted most of all; however long it took and (within reason) whatever the cost.
Now, I'm not a rich man, I don't expect I'll ever be, but I started researching, adjusting my eBay and Craigslist alerts, and making some inquiries.
Some of that research led me here:
https://www.retrobike.co.uk/threads/wilderness-trail-bikes-phoenix-se-size-15”.397786/
It didn't say who bought it, only that it was sold.
Then later, I noticed @uno-speedo's post here:
So now I knew who'd got it!
I reached out to Nick, more out of curiosity than anything, and he confirmed it was in his possession, in a storage facility in San Diego, and that he was thinking of moving it on.
He sent me a couple of photos:
I got very excited.
Deep breaths. Hold nerve.
Well, a few months of covid related drama for everyone later, and Nick was suddenly back on the West Coast, off to his storage facility to move along a few bikes, and I was given a very sudden opportunity, at a very fair price, to own one of my unicorns.
I would say THE unicorn, but a few things disqualify it from that: it's not from 1994, it's not blue with the original decal style, it's not in the larger 17" size, and it's not the 1" threaded version with a Type II fork and a WTB Chris King!
Still, it was a 15" Phoenix, from 1996. And it seemed like it might be a ridable size for me (coming in at the very top of the heights recommended by WTB originally for a frame in this size, and considering I tend to prefer a smaller-sized frame anyway). Plus, it was coming fully loaded with WTB kit!
Togglecam rear brake with WTB booster? Check! WTB hubs laced to Powerbeam rims? Check. WTB Speedmaster Cantis and the very hard to find WTB Judy fork brace? Check. WTB/Cunningham custom Suntour seatpost in the massive 31.8 size? Check!
So yeah, I was excited.
I mean, how could I not get this bike?
Well, because I didn't have the money. And I wouldn't have it for a while. But Nick was only in town for a week, and who knew when he'd be back. Which is when a minor miracle occurred...
I have a friend, an excellent friend, who loves both people and bikes. And, I guess, me. We talk bikes all day long, from across coasts and time zones; we send each other things we've found that we like, things the other might like. He helps me with builds from afar with endless support and advice. I'm already eternally grateful to and for him. But the thing is, he's starting his own custom wrenching/building business, called Supertuck Speed Shop (great name, brilliant dude), and I suppose good karma and cool bikes matter more to him than commonsense and his own bank balance, so he swooped in with an offer to help make this happen for me.
I only say this part of it because it really f**k**g matters. People doing amazing things for other people out of the goodness of their hearts should always be credited and hopefully rewarded, and I won't ever be able to thank him enough.
He's the reason I have this bike. There's no if's and but's. It's that simple.
Anyway, Nick was driving through LA from San Diego to pick up his (and all of our) dream Potts (you may have seen it on here since) and dropped the Phoenix off with me at work on his way. It was great to meet him, and he was nothing but a pleasure to deal with. Another excellent human who just loves old bikes!
I won't go into too much more detail on the bike itself right now, but here are a couple of photos of how the bike looked on arrival:
And after a quick clean:
And that's the 10 photo limit already...
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