Geoff Apps 1981 700c Range-Rider prototype
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Found it among my brochure collection: my brochure is the same as the one posted, the letter is a standard one with just my name and address handwritten and the senders - Jeremy Torr from English Cycles in Telford dated 28/11/85.
On the letter's reverse is a price list (with specifications)
Range Rider - £549 (£1634)
Trekker - £429 (£1277)
Racing Rodents - £489 (£1455).
Prices in brackets are 2018 prices adjusted for inflation.
Rk.
roadking":3g1k1mc2 said:
Found it among my brochure collection: my brochure is the same as the one posted, the letter is a standard one with just my name and address handwritten and the senders - Jeremy Torr from English Cycles in Telford dated 28/11/85.
On the letter's reverse is a price list (with specifications)
Range Rider - £549 (£1634)
Trekker - £429 (£1277)
Racing Rodents - £489 (£1455).
Prices in brackets are 2018 prices adjusted for inflation.
Rk.
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Re:
Thanks for that Rk.
When Cleland Cycles Ltd stopped making bicycles in mid 1984 Geoff Apps gave permission for Jeremy Torr (the Cleland frame-builder) to make them under his English Cycles brand. Though in 1983 Torr had made a few Range Rider bikes for his own use. However, Jeremy didn't make his bikes to the same specification as the Cleland bikes. Instead he used standard bottom bracket shells & bearings and bent the chain-stays to clear the rear tyre, whilst the Clelands used 90mm BB shells and straight chain-stays. Torr also offered a mixture of 26" and 650B wheels with the choice of Leleu or Sturmey Archer Elite hub-brakes or cantilever rim-brakes.
About two years ago I bought an English Cycles 'Trekker' and emailed Jeremy Torr to find out some details about the bike. He thought that the 'Trekker' was roughly mid 1980s but wasn't sure, so this is the first time I have a precise date for the availability of the Trekker.
I suspect that a 1985 Range-Rider would have has 650b wheels and that the 'Racing Rodent' probably refers to bikes fitted with a smaller rear wheels. The bike with a 26" front wheel and 20" rear wheel being known as the 'Rat'.
Thanks for that Rk.
When Cleland Cycles Ltd stopped making bicycles in mid 1984 Geoff Apps gave permission for Jeremy Torr (the Cleland frame-builder) to make them under his English Cycles brand. Though in 1983 Torr had made a few Range Rider bikes for his own use. However, Jeremy didn't make his bikes to the same specification as the Cleland bikes. Instead he used standard bottom bracket shells & bearings and bent the chain-stays to clear the rear tyre, whilst the Clelands used 90mm BB shells and straight chain-stays. Torr also offered a mixture of 26" and 650B wheels with the choice of Leleu or Sturmey Archer Elite hub-brakes or cantilever rim-brakes.
About two years ago I bought an English Cycles 'Trekker' and emailed Jeremy Torr to find out some details about the bike. He thought that the 'Trekker' was roughly mid 1980s but wasn't sure, so this is the first time I have a precise date for the availability of the Trekker.
I suspect that a 1985 Range-Rider would have has 650b wheels and that the 'Racing Rodent' probably refers to bikes fitted with a smaller rear wheels. The bike with a 26" front wheel and 20" rear wheel being known as the 'Rat'.
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Here is a photo that shows just how influential this prototype bicycle and its tyres became.
On the right is an original 47x700c Nokia Hakkapeliita ice tyre from the bike. This was one size of tyre sizes that Geoff Apps exported to Charlie Kelly and Gary Fisher in the US on the early 1980's.
To its left is an almost identical looking Bruce Gordon / Joe Murray Rock'n'Roll tyre, who's design was copied from the Hakkapeliita in 1988 when they ran out of supplies of the original tyre.
US frame-builder Wes Williams then built his bikes around the 700c Rock'n'Roll tyre and later persuaded Gary Fisher to fund the creation of a 52mm wide 700c tyre, the WTB NanoRaptor in the late 1990s. Thus the 29er mountain bike wheel-size was born.
On the right is an original 47x700c Nokia Hakkapeliita ice tyre from the bike. This was one size of tyre sizes that Geoff Apps exported to Charlie Kelly and Gary Fisher in the US on the early 1980's.
To its left is an almost identical looking Bruce Gordon / Joe Murray Rock'n'Roll tyre, who's design was copied from the Hakkapeliita in 1988 when they ran out of supplies of the original tyre.
US frame-builder Wes Williams then built his bikes around the 700c Rock'n'Roll tyre and later persuaded Gary Fisher to fund the creation of a 52mm wide 700c tyre, the WTB NanoRaptor in the late 1990s. Thus the 29er mountain bike wheel-size was born.
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Since I started mountain biking in 1984 I have seen this bike either ridden by Geoff Apps or its previous owner on numerous rides. During this time it has always been fitted with 700c wheels as it was when it appeared in the second issue of bicycle action in July 1984.
Today I changed the wheels back to 650b, as it was configured earlier when it was photographed fourty years ago for inclusion in the first ever book about mountain bikes.
Here is a photo of it in 650b mode:
Today I changed the wheels back to 650b, as it was configured earlier when it was photographed fourty years ago for inclusion in the first ever book about mountain bikes.
Here is a photo of it in 650b mode:
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Here are some scans of Rob Van der Plas' Mountain Bike Book (1984). This was the first book about mountain bikes to be published.
Below the 1981 Cleland Range-Rider is shown in an earlier configuration fitted with 650x54b tyres and cow-horn handlebars.
As a prototype the bike would have evolved over time as different components were tested. What Apps discovered from testing this prototype was used by the next Cleland frame-builder Jeremy Torr, to create improved prototypes. After three years of development and seven prototypes, in late 1982 Apps was satisfied that the design performed well enough that it could be safely sold to the public. Whilst Apps used the Cleland Aventura name for his production bikes, Jeremy Torr's English-Cycles company produced similar bikes that continued to use the Range-Rider name.
Below the 1981 Cleland Range-Rider is shown in an earlier configuration fitted with 650x54b tyres and cow-horn handlebars.
As a prototype the bike would have evolved over time as different components were tested. What Apps discovered from testing this prototype was used by the next Cleland frame-builder Jeremy Torr, to create improved prototypes. After three years of development and seven prototypes, in late 1982 Apps was satisfied that the design performed well enough that it could be safely sold to the public. Whilst Apps used the Cleland Aventura name for his production bikes, Jeremy Torr's English-Cycles company produced similar bikes that continued to use the Range-Rider name.
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5th of December 2021 and the Clelands are off to play in the woods once more:
Video of last year's ride
Video of last year's ride
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The is bike was entered into November 2021 BotM. This BotM was for 26" wheeled mountain bikes.
BotM Nov 2021 - The Nominations
Botm Nov 2021 - The Vote
Also taking part in this BotM was this 1982 English Cycles' Range-Rider.
This 1982 bike was the next design in the evolution of Geoff Apps' off-road bicycles. It marks Apps' transition from using the Liverpool based frame-builder, Bill Whitcomb, to using the Telford based Jeremy Torr, owner of English Cycles.
For this bike, Jeremy Torr abandoned the use of 90mm wide BB shells and straight chain-stays in favor of standard 70mm BB shells and bent chain-stays. However, the original prototype had a problem with the cranks catching on the chain-stay.
Torr also replaced the two parallel frame cross-braces with a single one and the bi-plane fork crown, with a almost solid, Hayden cast crown onto which the fork-legs were brazed.
This 1982 Prototype this bike would have been originally fitted with 650b tyres and wheels.
1982 Range-Rider Thread
BotM Nov 2021 - The Nominations
Botm Nov 2021 - The Vote
Also taking part in this BotM was this 1982 English Cycles' Range-Rider.
This 1982 bike was the next design in the evolution of Geoff Apps' off-road bicycles. It marks Apps' transition from using the Liverpool based frame-builder, Bill Whitcomb, to using the Telford based Jeremy Torr, owner of English Cycles.
For this bike, Jeremy Torr abandoned the use of 90mm wide BB shells and straight chain-stays in favor of standard 70mm BB shells and bent chain-stays. However, the original prototype had a problem with the cranks catching on the chain-stay.
Torr also replaced the two parallel frame cross-braces with a single one and the bi-plane fork crown, with a almost solid, Hayden cast crown onto which the fork-legs were brazed.
This 1982 Prototype this bike would have been originally fitted with 650b tyres and wheels.
1982 Range-Rider Thread
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Here are some pictures of the type of road frames that Bill Whitcomb was better known for:
He also built frames for Harry Quinn, Soens and Walvale.
After spending some time building frames under his own name in the US, he returned to the UK and rejoined Harry Quinn and son in Wales. I wonder if he made any mountain bike frames whilst he was there?
He also built frames for Harry Quinn, Soens and Walvale.
After spending some time building frames under his own name in the US, he returned to the UK and rejoined Harry Quinn and son in Wales. I wonder if he made any mountain bike frames whilst he was there?
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Mark Manley
Raleigh Fan
A bump to this thread to ask if anyone knows if Geoff Apps is still active in the cycling community? I only heard of him for the first time a year or two ago and rather admire the bikes he built, which in my mind anyway bare a passing resembalance to my Roberts Roughstuff which was built to my requirements in 2008 without any knowledge of the Range Rider.
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