Pre 1997 date, how did that come about

Thing is, the '97 cut off was only ten years old (or perhaps not even that) when this site started so '05 would still be older than the youngest bikes were that got discussed at the start. If it's not current I'd say it's in as a general rule otherwise it just becomes another cliquey, 'your face doesn't fit' site, and in five years everyone will be wondering why the site's dead (and the answer will be because you've chased away all the potential newcomers). Personally I think '95/96 is probably the changeover between old-retro stuff and mid-retro, almost pre and post Shimano M950 as an example. Before that point full suspension was predominantly poor and after that they started to become marginally more reliable and real world useable. You then have another step change around '10 for trail stuff where they really were significantly more reliable. The '97 cut off seems as sensible as any IMO as, like all of these things, it's very subjective based on your own experience and critical time points. In time I guess '98-'08 becomes a segment and then newer stuff it's own category, but at the end of the day a cool bike is a cool bike and if you're after some parts you know what you're after.
‘97 is fine, wouldn’t matter which year was chosen. They (well John), could have picked any year and they’d be people upset at it. Should there be ‘97 to ‘07 group/sub forum, possibly, but frankly there’s bigger issues to resolve - bar ends with risers (it’s a no!).
 
‘97 is fine, wouldn’t matter which year was chosen. They (well John), could have picked any year and they’d be people upset at it. Should there be ‘97 to ‘07 group/sub forum, possibly, but frankly there’s bigger issues to resolve - bar ends with risers (it’s a no!).
Exactly. It's all semantics IMO as if it's not related to the latest fad/tech then it's retro to a degree, it just depends what degree is acceptable to the gate keepers.

I'd also add to your 'bigger issues' of people who genuinely think V brakes are better than discs having ridden one of my old bikes in anger on some technical stuff. I liked the light weight and fast rolling but very much not the brakes that were either off, or locked, or the suspension that was either up or down with nothing in between. I miss the memories and the times, and love how the bikes looked but not the tech, not even slightly.
 
We weren't having less fun, but our bikes didn't work so well.😃
Very true, and as we didn't know any better we really didn't care, or at least our rose tinted specs would have us believe that! Personally I remember swearing at every puncture, snapped chain, blown damper, cracked frame, or even when I just couldn't slow myself down but really, really needed to (I never took the lack of brake performance as a sign you shouldn't push so hard). But that was all part of the fun and the learning, and I certainly wouldn't change it, but nor would I go back to it for a lot of my riding. I love that modern stuff can be ridden hard, washed, lubed and put away, to bring it out and do it again with zero maintenance or replacement of parts. Maybe that should be a barometer of cut offs; how frequently things broke? 😂 I think for the riding a lot of us were doing twenty plus years ago they were fine, and if the riding being done hasn't changed then there's less need to change tech, but as I've said in other threads, I like cycling but I also love going down harder stuff that's steep and techy where the tech allows you more scope for trail development and that's why I also love the good of modern tech. Not all of it mind, a lot is superfluous marketing fluff but then wasn't that always the case? It's just more MTBs are sold these days so there's a lot more scope for many, many more standards and bad ideas.
 
Punctures still happen, frames still snap, chains still pop.

Nothing has changed

Social Media however, that is responsible for what you ride now
 
Back
Top