What state is retro biking in at the moment?
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Silvergoat
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Some good points there Ranger. The successes of Team GB, two wins in Le Tour and grand opening stages held in Yorkshire have done wonders for the profile of cycling as a sport and generally encouraging people to take up riding (aside of the rabid anti-cyclists). It's also great that more women have been encouraged to join in too.
There are some fantastic looking road bikes out there, both cutting edge new and vintage. Fixies and single speeds are in abundance and have probably got more people into cycling, may be because you can just get on and ride without hours of grimey tinkering. A visit to any bike shop clearly demonstrates where the market is.
Mountain bikers have always been on the wild edge of things and are outsiders even more now. Road racing has all the glamour and coverage on TV. You have to scrape around on the web for clips of MTB racing and it's mostly just reported briefly in editorial copy, say, on BBC Sport for example. Although ITV's Cycling Show has run MTB-related features often.
I commute through London on my [retro] bike and get a lot of people asking about the unusual bike. And looking like a mountain biker too I'm automatically at odds with the rest of the general cycling population there. I guess I'm like some 'old timer' pootling around with a vintage car.
I'm just wondering if Retrobike has reached a saturation point. Are people growing bored of it having got the bikes, got the bits and fulfilled their dreams from their younger days? Fads come and go, people move on. Hopefully not just yet, though. For me, finding RB was a revelation and rekindled many things. It reunited me with my rusting bike which in turn improved my health for the better. It sparked many other beneficial things and interests too. For that, and the wealth of knowledge that lives on Retrobike, I'm truly thankful.
Some good points there Ranger. The successes of Team GB, two wins in Le Tour and grand opening stages held in Yorkshire have done wonders for the profile of cycling as a sport and generally encouraging people to take up riding (aside of the rabid anti-cyclists). It's also great that more women have been encouraged to join in too.
There are some fantastic looking road bikes out there, both cutting edge new and vintage. Fixies and single speeds are in abundance and have probably got more people into cycling, may be because you can just get on and ride without hours of grimey tinkering. A visit to any bike shop clearly demonstrates where the market is.
Mountain bikers have always been on the wild edge of things and are outsiders even more now. Road racing has all the glamour and coverage on TV. You have to scrape around on the web for clips of MTB racing and it's mostly just reported briefly in editorial copy, say, on BBC Sport for example. Although ITV's Cycling Show has run MTB-related features often.
I commute through London on my [retro] bike and get a lot of people asking about the unusual bike. And looking like a mountain biker too I'm automatically at odds with the rest of the general cycling population there. I guess I'm like some 'old timer' pootling around with a vintage car.
I'm just wondering if Retrobike has reached a saturation point. Are people growing bored of it having got the bikes, got the bits and fulfilled their dreams from their younger days? Fads come and go, people move on. Hopefully not just yet, though. For me, finding RB was a revelation and rekindled many things. It reunited me with my rusting bike which in turn improved my health for the better. It sparked many other beneficial things and interests too. For that, and the wealth of knowledge that lives on Retrobike, I'm truly thankful.
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It's funny... the road bike market is otherwise pretty much in decline elsewhere in the world.
I've sold a hell of a lot of MTBs this year compared to last but road bike sales are down. The business is also lamentning this...
It could be that I'm just better at pointing first time buyers to bikes that are more fit for purpose - like CX bikes and "day ride" tarmac/gravel grinder bikes than last year - but more people are coming into my shop asking about MTBs than ever. Or it could be that people are buying carbon road frames elsewhere - Planet X and their colleagues are exporting a lot into my market - but I don't think that explains it.
When I was over in Yorkshire for the tour there was indeed a major shift compared to what it used to be like....
For what it's worth - I think Retro MTB has "early peaked" and will be due for a revival in a few years. But there may be a shift in what is defined as retro again. Also so many retro-looking modern bikes are also a reflection that the punter does want a bike that looks more like a bike than a spaceship - but the new market is quite saturated so people don't need to scour ebay to build their own originals right now.
It's funny... the road bike market is otherwise pretty much in decline elsewhere in the world.
I've sold a hell of a lot of MTBs this year compared to last but road bike sales are down. The business is also lamentning this...
It could be that I'm just better at pointing first time buyers to bikes that are more fit for purpose - like CX bikes and "day ride" tarmac/gravel grinder bikes than last year - but more people are coming into my shop asking about MTBs than ever. Or it could be that people are buying carbon road frames elsewhere - Planet X and their colleagues are exporting a lot into my market - but I don't think that explains it.
When I was over in Yorkshire for the tour there was indeed a major shift compared to what it used to be like....
For what it's worth - I think Retro MTB has "early peaked" and will be due for a revival in a few years. But there may be a shift in what is defined as retro again. Also so many retro-looking modern bikes are also a reflection that the punter does want a bike that looks more like a bike than a spaceship - but the new market is quite saturated so people don't need to scour ebay to build their own originals right now.
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I fear this is the case. More people drifting away then coming in, most of the bikes in the back of garages have been found, most dream bikes have been done to a very high standard lots of times, people making buying/selling in to a business and spoiling the fun of hunting for bargains, etc.... It's rare for me to find something on here that makes me go 'Oooooooooo' these days as I've seen most of them done before.
Same happened in retro R/C buggies as I've mentioned before, almost in the same time frame and sequence. There's still a scene I believe but it's a fraction of what it was.
groovyblueshed":39x1qip2 said:
I fear this is the case. More people drifting away then coming in, most of the bikes in the back of garages have been found, most dream bikes have been done to a very high standard lots of times, people making buying/selling in to a business and spoiling the fun of hunting for bargains, etc.... It's rare for me to find something on here that makes me go 'Oooooooooo' these days as I've seen most of them done before.
Same happened in retro R/C buggies as I've mentioned before, almost in the same time frame and sequence. There's still a scene I believe but it's a fraction of what it was.
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I don't class modern MTB's in the same way though. You see loads of roadies about now but the trail centers are full every week.
I don't class modern MTB's in the same way though. You see loads of roadies about now but the trail centers are full every week.
Silvergoat
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Some of us vintage ones are ageing too, alas. Seeing the founders of mountain biking on the Repack and Hippy Daredevils threads on here makes one shiver at the thought of how long ago all that was. Fortunately, I'm still able to be very much up for it all. Be a shame to see the decline of RB, as it got me through some tricky moments. Use it or lose it
Some of us vintage ones are ageing too, alas. Seeing the founders of mountain biking on the Repack and Hippy Daredevils threads on here makes one shiver at the thought of how long ago all that was. Fortunately, I'm still able to be very much up for it all. Be a shame to see the decline of RB, as it got me through some tricky moments. Use it or lose it
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I'm still here! I'm happy!
Silvergoat
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Happy days. I'm staring out the window over my Mac from our marvellously air conditioned communal office – the Wimbledon Theatre is silhouetted against soft golden autumn sunshine – I think it's time to get the bike and the hit the trails. I think I've been watching too many Repack clips again.
Happy days. I'm staring out the window over my Mac from our marvellously air conditioned communal office – the Wimbledon Theatre is silhouetted against soft golden autumn sunshine – I think it's time to get the bike and the hit the trails. I think I've been watching too many Repack clips again.
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In homage to Repack, I got 46mph out of the Broom on Tuesday.
What do we really have to complain about?
What do we really have to complain about?
Silvergoat
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The History Man":29x9g4g5 said:In homage to Repack, I got 46mph out of the Broom on Tuesday.
What do we really have to complain about?
Top stuff – now that trumps my 33 on the Wimbledon Broadway and tis a far better view too.
