Old School Tech: The Original GT Zaskars

May 7, 2013
by Matt Wragg  
Some bikes just have a place in history. If you were there and riding at the time, chances are you either had one or you wanted one. The GT Zaskar is, without question, one of those bikes. While we stay fascinated by some bikes because they looked like the future yesterday, the appeal of the Zaskar is much simpler. They were clean, simple, fast, tough. Lord knows, all I wanted at 15 was a baby blue LE version with a bright orange Marzocchi Z1 Bomber poking out of the front...

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  This is so rare it makes my teeth hurt. Genesis for the Zaskar. The only surviving original prototype, these were the first bikes with their now-famous triple triangle layout. While it looks a lot like the bikes that went into production there are some crucial, structural differences that meant that all the other early prototypes were ridden hard and they cracked and failed. Look closely at the welding beneath the seatpost to see exactly why they had short lifespans. This one only survived because it was given to the wife of a former GT product guy. It lived unused in a garage for years and today it survives in the hands of a Swiss collector.

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  These tyres are almost worth an article on their own - the original Tioga Farmer Johns Counins.

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  Your controls, circa the mid-80s. It's pretty much accepted today that your stem needs four bolts to keep things nice and safe, but back then a single pinch bolt like this was an option. We have to say though, that Cook Brothers logo still looks fresh today. It's hard to say the same about the grips, while they look very cool, the practicalities of using a grip shaped like that isn't appealing any more.

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  Out at the back of the bike there were seven, state-of-the-art gears. Seven! Count em. Look at the sticker on the derailleur - there's even some carbon fibre in there! At this stage of the development, replaceable dropouts were just extra complication that could be worried about later...

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  Bear-trap pedals aren't something we've seen in a long time. Admittedly that is mostly for good reason, but still. Now we're all used to having reliable disc brakes, would you fancy having that U-brake trying to bring your rear wheel to a halt?

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  What makes this bike quite so unique is there on the toptube. This was Hans Rey's bike for 1991 and that's his signature there on the frame.

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  That there is RockShox's Mag 21, one of the first publicly available suspension forks. It had a fearsome 46mm travel (or 60mm with an optional "long travel" kit) of air-oil controlled travel.

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  In 1991 this was the peak of drivetrain innovation - an overdrive chainring and the Shimano Sharkfin. Without strong springs in the mech, clutches, chaindevices or even a DCD, this was the best way to stop the chain going into your wheel. As for the tiny, ridiculous overdrive chainring? They died out for good reason, nobody should need a gear that small, but maybe it offered some advantages for trials. Although an interesting note is that the tiny chainring was attached with a thread-on lockring to get around the confines of bolt circles.

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  For his bike, Hans searched out a riser bar to raise his riding position. If you look closely at the clamp, you can see where he had to shim it in to work with a mountain bike stem. SIS shifters were a big step as they introduced indexing to gearing, before you had to feel your way into the next gear. It's surprising how much we take for granted that with modern bikes that you can just hit the shifter and know the gear is going to be there for you. If you look at the top of the shifter, you can just make out a little switch to turn the indexing on or off, if it was a bit too much modern technology for you.

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  Braking had improved slightly from the prototype and, as you can see, Hans had a centre-pull brake at the front by this time. Early suspension forks weren't stiff enough to support the braking forces, so riders used brake boosters like this one to brace the fork and stop them flexing inwards as you braked.

Hans busting out the statue of liberty on his 1991 bike.
  Hans got a little nostalgic talking about his old bikes and decided to bust out his old signature move - the Statue of Liberty. He reckoned he hadn't pulled this one out of the bag for more than a decade...

www.gtbicycles.com

Author Info:
mattwragg avatar

Member since Oct 29, 2006
753 articles

191 Comments
  • 590 4
 More oldschool tech articles please! Beginning of DH stuff would be awesome. 1995-1999 stuff.
  • 42 8
 Everyone up vote this
  • 57 0
 Best idea proposed on Pinkbike in a long time
  • 95 0
 Weekly Retro. Make it happen.
  • 11 0
 had one of these way back when. sold it for a xizang. ah, the days of onza, cooks, graftons, and when syncros was still in bc! i'm all in for pressing the rewind button! there's a local with a koski fork and softride stem on his!
  • 6 0
 Such a tremendous design. I love the old school bikes because everyone was just trying new things to see what worked. Tons of innovation happened in such a short time.
  • 8 0
 "It's pretty much accepted today that your stem needs four bolts to keep things nice and safe, but back then a single pinch bolt like this was an option."

I wonder sometimes why I carry a multi-tool with me on rides sometimes. Stuff is so solid and secure that it never needs tightening or adjusting. Then I remember it was because of old stuff like this, where I had to tighten quill stems and bars and seats a few times a ride.

1991 Cannondale M700 with LX
1994 Kona Hot, flat black with Mag 21 SL, full Ringle blue ano parts, and XTR. Stolen from my living room in 1995, f***ers.
  • 4 0
 I'm a mechanic, and it seems like almost everyone in my neighborhood rides worst bicycles in the whole world! I have absolutely no good memories tied with old GT bikes, but all I know is that it is usually much easier to work on old GT, or Trek mountain bikes than on any old Schwinn, or ANY department store bike.
  • 9 0
 Weekly Retro? Hell yes. I love the retro feature in Dirt. Bring somethin' similar to Pinkbike. How's about everyone chime in some bikes they'd want to see? Like Palmer's Specialized FSR DH, the Froriders early bikes, Foes Monos, Missy's WC bikes, the Schwinn/Lawwill bikes, or the Karpiel Apocalypse. I know of a Pinkbike user out there with a period-correct Cannondale Super V DH that I bet he'd be willing to show off.
  • 4 0
 would love to see a dh retrospective here on pb! from tomac's yeti drop bar w/tioga disc to peaty's v-10 would be pretty cool.
  • 7 0
 A guy rode past my shop today on a Cannondale Super V DH 4000 with Pace RC150 Monster forks. No Spinergy wheels unfortunately, but if I see him again, I'llpay whatever he wants for it. I remember wanting one so bad I couldn't poo.
  • 3 2
 If we do retro, can everyone not get mad when they post a retro road bike or something that isn't DH related?
  • 3 0
 I still have a lot of these old parts in decent shape if anyone is looking to do a restoration. And yes, more of these throwbacks!!!
  • 2 0
 It`s so nice loooking back at the mtb legacy.. I owned a Puch once, I guess it was made around 1950-1960. That poor thing got broken in half.
  • 2 0
 More articles like this please. The guy who said 'more old school '95-99' made me feel as old as the hills, got my first mountain bike At 20 years old in 87.....
Other than Tom Ritchey and the Fairfax crew etc the real first game changer was Joe Murray and the sloping top tube design on the first Bicycle group bikes (which became Kona).
Always thought the GT triple triangle thing was more marketing than anything though.

Check my albums for a sweet 89 Kona Lava Dome Ltd, which still gets ridden every week.

If anyone wants a great movie that caputres the (imo) real spirit of mountain biking the watch Klunkerz
  • 1 0
 that's what i thought too. crap! in 98 i was already ten years in..haha. i have slingshot that's at my lbs museum!
  • 1 0
 I hear ya B777 'Klunkerz' tells it like it was. It was all about the DH! Yep... if it wern't for the oldschool there'd be no new school! :-)
  • 1 0
 Sweet bike, @B777. I have a gallery of the mountain bikes I've owned on my profile page. The first one I got was a Schwinn Mirada in '87 or '88.
  • 53 0
 Still have my Zaskar GT frame sitting in my room. Bought it when I was 18 and spent like 1 million bucks on it (at least it felt like it). Rode it with one of the very first Rock Shox Judys and Magury hydraulic brakes. Man that bike was hot. It was undestructible, very stiff. Wonder if my back problems come from this frame?! Wink
Those where the days... *takesalookathisbansheerune* na baby... it's all okay... I love you!
  • 8 0
 Wow, this article makes me feel old. My first Rock Shox, a Quadra 5, circa 95. I remember drooling over it, oh how the times have changed. The feeling never does though.
  • 8 0
 i still have my quadra 5 on my old steel diamondback in the basement. so much purple.
  • 1 0
 Hans is the man, hope I can pull out some tricks at his age. GT Zaskar started it all for me. 5" marz dropoff's, polished frame, xtr brakes, king everything, big pimping an making big moves, those were the days. Now only have pictures left of that period.
  • 1 0
 I still have my 1995 GT Timberline in Red with the brand new Judy 100 in red to match my bike , times have changed in technology but not on pricing , still expensive as hell. So glad GT came back from the dead!!!
  • 1 0
 i don't think we need to stick just to retro. why don't we take early 2000s into the account, too?
  • 1 0
 Yeah I agree early to mid 2000 dh bikes are pretty awesome
  • 2 0
 My first DH race (Mammoth Kamikaze) was in 1996 on a '97 Litespeed Owl Hollow.
Was the most amazing bike I'd slung a leg over.
Good times for sure Wink
  • 1 0
 Litespeed? ????? DH. ???? Sounds like some twisted metal nightmare lolol. I know a bunch of people rocking litespeeds back in the 90s. They wer always way out of my price range but wanted one. Specially the road litespeeds.
  • 18 0
 I remember having sis thumb shifters and my buddy didn't at the time..... I thought I was Barry big balls... Hilarious
  • 2 1
 Those early shifters were bulletproof.
  • 1 0
 Yeah no matter what you could always get'm into a gear even if the indexing went out. I remember when indexing was HUGE. While the Zaskar was something I saw alt of, I always wanted one of those mint green Bianchi's...
  • 16 0
 Brake boosters - stopped the pivots flexing outward, not inward.
  • 1 0
 yeap! u got it!
  • 1 0
 The brake boosters didn't do a great deal for me... the frame and forks still flexed out every time I grabbed a handful. They did look good though in anodized red!

My Zaskars still going strong... Rigid forks and some slick tyres, she's been given the less stressful task of commuting/run around bike duty.
  • 9 1
 While I'm now selling off most of my older bikes (there's a good demand for 1997 and older bikes and components), I do have a fair bit of old schoolness still. I've got several broken frames that were high demand at the time, hanging as art work about my house also. That's probably something done more by people who got into riding in the 80s and 90s than say the 2000s... when we ride something to the point of failure, it becomes art, not something that goes into a trash bin.

1984 Rocky Mountain Fat City Flyer (selling it, too small, never ridden it off-road once since I bought it).... yoda.densan.ca/kmr/bikes/fcf1.jpg

1988 Rocky Mountain Thunderbolt (selling it, too small and I haven't ridden it myself in 5 years)... yoda.densan.ca/kmr/bikes/thunderbolt1.jpg

1991 Rocky Mountain Stratos (my first "good" mtb, what got me started on doing custom builds and wrenching for a profit)... yoda.densan.ca/kmr/bikes/strat1.jpg

1997 Amp Research B-3 (also to be sold, lack of use in 26ers happening now with me)... yoda.densan.ca/kmr/bikes/b3f.jpg
  • 1 0
 I agree, the broken bits become art. I can't toss any old bike stuff away and my friends know I'll take almost anything.
  • 1 0
 Don't sell deeeight. Such a collection you have there.
  • 2 0
 Sweet collection, BTW it looks like you Rock Ring is not mounted right on this Stratos... this wheel lacing looks really trick on the same stratos
  • 1 0
 Its my originally purchased rockring, I had previously had to file it down a bit to clear some raceface turbine I-beam arms and then when I switched to the Cook Bros RSRs I had to rotate it 180 degrees around because they put the 5th mounting bolt behind the arm (like Sugino & Ritchey). I never bothered to change the rockring to one of the NOS ones I had because what's the point... bikes should be built to be ridden, not merely displayed, and a scratched up/filed away rockring has obviously seen a good life.
  • 1 0
 is that some kind of suspension seatpost on the thunderbolt...?
  • 3 0
 Nope, that's a Breeze & Angell Hite-Rite, the 1.5" travel version used by XC racers (back in the day). Its the original "dropper" seatpost adapter. You open your seatpost QR while seated, compress the spring, close the QR. To raise the post simply lift your ass off the saddle when you open the QR and the spring returns it to the original height, before you close the QR again. Thunderbolts came with the adapter mounting tab for Hite-Rites as standard.
  • 2 0
 Yes, I totally agree. I turned the broken back end of my first GT full susp. bike into a lamp. The appeal wore off eventually, and then I turned it into a wheel truing stand. Works like a charm!
  • 2 0
 I KNEW someone was going to see a Hite-Rite but not know what it was. Ha ha! So awesome. No hate, robin281.
  • 1 0
 Sweet Collection Deeight... I've got one of the "long travel" Hite-Rite's on a Schwin Mirada hanging in the barn right now... Come to thin of it I could open a museum with all the stuff in there from the old Ralliegh to the Original PitBull and Boa BMX brakes and my Dyno VFR. Hell the wife is still riding my 93 (???) Specialized Rockhopper Cromo. with the original Specialized Future Shock (it's a rebadged RS elastomer fork) with all off a 1/2" of travel.
  • 1 0
 huh, that's a pretty amazing idea! might even have a go at making one meself, since i cant afford a proper dropper :/
  • 6 0
 brillant.....the ammount of fettling i used to do with these brakes is unreal.....i remember having to adjust them as the pads worn...i still have a brake booster in the shed....lol...we have it so easy these days
  • 1 0
 I went through my old bike bits few weeks back and found a brake booster too ! Also got one of those sharks fins things , they were great little bits of kit
  • 1 0
 Yeah, dialing in brakes was a fine art/voodoo science back than. Soooo easy now.
  • 1 0
 My LBS talked me into Magura hydros in 1996 and it was the best brake decision I ever made. I haven't used cable actuated brakes since 1995 and went straight from HS33 brakes to disc brakes in 2001. I am actually surprised Hans wasn't running the hydrostops in 1991.
  • 1 0
 Hated how the "U"-brakes would end up cutting the sidewall of the rear tire (tyre) as the pads wore. Here in the Pacific Northwest, a wet ride could mean the demise of both a set of pads and a rear tire. I was happy to see those bastard go. Moved to Maguras early on, and still have a brake booster on my trials bike!

The lever to switch off the indexing was really helpful after a bash to the rear derailleur or cable, meant you could still put the bike in gear without all the chattering that came from a misaligned indexed shift.
  • 1 0
 Biggest problem with U-brakes and powercams is the power was too high for most frames, even with the booster plates (which on the shimano ones at least were steel) of the period, plus they were heavy, and they became mud traps. Not so bad on seatstays like the GTs and my RM Thunderbolt, but on MANY bikes, there came a fascination, which actually was Richard Cunningham's fault... with placing them UNDER the chainstays. Practically EVERY brand that used U-brakes copied RC's placement from one of his Mantis bikes, figuring since RC was such a hot designer of the period, he must know what's best. Except as I recall, on RC's bike, it was on an elevated chainstay model dubbed the mud bike, and so the brakes were well clear of the BB shell and where most mud ended up cluster-f&cking anyway. So the brakes worked on the Mantis (and other E-stay bikes) but ended up becoming a black hole for mud that then ruined your braking action and often jammed up the tire.
  • 5 0
 oh man just realized what I'll be saying: "when I was 15 all anybody ever wanted was a session 9.9, here you can see it with the original minions, saint brakes and fearsome 203mm travel 40s" I'm going to hang onto my commencal, going to be a sick bike in 10 years
  • 4 0
 My dad has a 17 years old Kona custom Hei Hei king kahuna titanium bike in full working condition and he still use it regulary. It has 17 years old Syncros hardcore components mad in canada, !!17!! Years old tires, deore xt brakes, carbon rear derailleur, etc etc. He swapped the original manitou fork for a rs sid this year. This bike is a truly legend, without a scratch.
  • 1 0
 Pics or it didn't happen! Smile
  • 1 0
 okay, will upload them on next week.
  • 3 0
 The one, the only, the classic. Hans Rey, Furtado, Grewal, Mike King, and even Voulliouz raced them.

It was a cool rigid bike at first but the Zaskar really emerged around the same time as front suspension did, and faded a little when full suspension emerged. A Zaskar with a Mag 20 (92-93?)represents the high point of this iconic models existence; that was such a lusted after bike. By the time the Mag 21 came around attention was turning towards full suspension and that's when I wanted a GT RTS, a cool looking but marginal suspension design.

The Triple Triangle is what makes the GT hardtail such a unique bike, and the Zaskar has always been one of the best looking hardtails out there. The design makes sense, the way in which everything in the rear of the bike is reinforced, and it helps minimize side to side flex. It's a nice blend of function and aesthetics, and sets the brand apart. I always liked the way the seatstays parallell each other.

I just wished they had experimented with detatching the seatstays from the seat tube and created a more shock absorbing ride the way Volagi did with road bikes, that would work for the dirt too.
  • 2 0
 i had a GT RTS! it was between that and a Zaskar but i found a good deal on an RTS with a mag 21. Had to mow a LOT of lawns to get that bad boy. 600 for frame and fork iirc. at 5-10 per yard that was a large amount of money. ah the good old days!
  • 5 0
 check this out, my DH race bike from 1994:

gp1.pinkbike.org/p4pb5488175/p4pb5488175.jpg

was very heavily involved in R&D, World Cup DH race and bike frame production during the exciting era of the 1990's, where the old 1980's mountain bikes were starting to turn into something much more exciting and specific to what rider were doing

really miss those days with MBUK magazine, Steve Peat, Rob Warner, JMC on the Hardisty's Team before his move to SBC USA, and the wide open potential of that future with lots of energetic entrepreneurs like myself heavily involved in the "scene"

gp1.pinkbike.org/p4pb9285933/p4pb9285933.jpg
  • 2 0
 That article made me laugh, "£1500 for the frame and forks or you could just pay £99 for an Apollo!!" Stupid reporters, clearly didn't get the point!
  • 2 0
 @hampsteadbandit - That's a helluva brake mount you have there on the leading edge of your left fork leg! Do you have more pics of that beast?
  • 1 0
 @sngltrkmnd

found this for you:

gp1.pinkbike.org/p4pb9286061/p4pb9286061.jpg

the mount was made before Rockshox released a disc brake compatible fork lower on their Judy DH forks

We machined an aluminium bar to accept the Sachs hydraulic caliper, and then used 2 x Sachs New Success front derailleur clamp bands in 34.9mm, which we found were the perfect diameter for the Judy's lower leg! We used epoxy adhesive to bond those clamps in place, and it all ran perfectly for months Smile

here's another shot from the Bombproof days of our 5" travel bike:

gp1.pinkbike.org/p4pb9285926/p4pb9285926.jpg
  • 3 0
 When I was 20 I financed my first "real" mountain bike. I remember not caring about the $1395 price tag on my silver GT Zaskar LE with all XT components and Rockshox Judy. I loved that bike. I eventually paid another grand in finance charges, but I don't regret it because it's what started my love for biking. Now I'm a year from turning 40, married, and have three daughters, but still biking, stronger than ever. Sadly, the GT Zaskar is gone, but I used the parts to build up a steel Voodoo Bizango that's still being used in my family. Thanks for stirring up memories. I love MTBing.
  • 3 0
 Pure time-travel, thanks, PB! I had a Karakoam Elite back in the day, I had to work my dad hard for weeks for him to even consider spending so much cash on a "bicycle". Rigid fork and Deore ( I remember the derailleur decal vividly) it was a teenager's dream come true. And yeah, the U-Brake was a pain to adjust, in retrospect I wonder why I never considered replacing that long stem, probably because there were no short stems around at the time? Anyway, this makes me feel really young again, and of course, Rey was my hero back then (and in many ways, he still is). Smile
  • 8 2
 We want more articles about vintage bikes! 650b... not so much....
  • 3 0
 How about vintage 650B? Tom Ritchey had one of his original mountain bikes he built in the late 70s at Interbike on display.
  • 1 1
 We? You mean you. Get over your hatred of a different wheel size and just enjoy your bike.
  • 3 0
 Great machine.
This is my GT Avalanche 1993, still in progress, project just started.
fbcdn-sphotos-c-a.akamaihd.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/485497_10200474231252309_224576584_n.jpg
  • 2 0
 I seem to recall this one from the recent EMTB competition Wink
  • 1 0
 It was idea to start on it in race but it was bad idea Wink
I will return on it to Świeradów just on singletracks Big Grin
  • 2 0
 I still have my Zaskar frame. It has no serial number, like we know them now, instead it has a date stamp and a number. I believe the date on it is 06/92, I will have to check it out. It still has the GT 3D fork on it. I have replaced every part on it onlt original stuff now is the frame, fork, headset, and the brake capipers. Its my runabout now. I will never part with this frame.
  • 2 0
 I remember my dad having one of these in his quiver. It was electric green, had one of the first, blue RS Sid Forks and the thing made such an impression I still remember it perfectly today, even though i was just a kid at the time. Impressive bike. Awesome article, very interesting.
  • 3 1
 Agh bike porn right here - back in the day my good friend had a blue zaskar with full xtr groupset, xtr v-brakes and those original blue rock shox SID air forks that weighed less than a gnats testicle, it was pure bike porn! I would still drop a grand on one right now! The zasker/triple triangle gt frame was so unbelievably stiff and fast to ride :-D
  • 2 0
 Yup, had a 1993 version of this bike. Man was I stoked. I remember paying CD$3200 and got a chromoly fork. The next year I put a Manitou 2 fork on it and it rode like a champ. The crazy part was, I sold it to my buddy in Fernie and then he rode it for another 5 years racing it every weekend and then it became his towny bike. A couple of years ago, someone stole it out of his yard...hope the thief realizes what a big piece of history he is riding. Probably the toughest hardtail frame evr made!
  • 2 1
 I wanted this bike so badly but couldn't afford it at the time. I still have the baby brother of this bike, the GT Avalanche from circa 92, with Marzocchi Bomber Z4s. Its still going strong despite some heavy abuse back then, but today the V-Brakes are not trusted for trail use! Its used for shuttling my kids about on a rear mounted child seat.
  • 1 0
 You should track down a guy named Bryant, lived in/ near Aldergrove BC on a farm he rented. Helped to design VPP and he might still have one of those bikes around. I know that I rode with him a couple of times and he rode one then.
  • 1 0
 The first mountain bike I bought with my own money was a '98 Avalanche LE, neon green, XT, Judy SL's. I loved that bike, wish I hadn't sold it, but I used the $ to get my first Chameleon which changed my riding style in a serious way.
  • 1 0
 I remember my friend bought a GT like this, especially with the tanned rock shox fork, and very narrow handlebar (I think about 40cm), and I was so jealous. This was the time he replaced a giant terrago, and then soon I had trek 930sx. I borrowed his terrago often and it started my giant approval. It was time when I thought downhill riders are mental to ride motorbikes without engines, and what could be so difficult about rolling down a hill. I saw a few univega downhill bikes and Karpiel made his first yellow armageddon, with 3.0x24 in the rear, 2.8x26 in front and a pornstar picture on the top tube. There wasn't even a full bike magazine in paper these days, and they put bike articles in ski and sport one.
  • 1 0
 I know this is geeky but there is a slight technical mistake: the pivots of the front brake flex outwards and not inwards as the article said.

Another way to circumvent the issue was to weld the pivots on the back side of the fork and make the pivots react the same way as on the seat stays. Or do both as on my 1994 custom ti fork with 'purple and blue' anodizing please!

www.pinkbike.com/photo/5967997
  • 2 0
 Note to self: read all comments before posting a comment already made Smile
  • 1 0
 Still have my 1995 Zaskar, still has most of the original part but had to upgrade the cockpit and tires over time. I'll post some photos here soon. In the past, whenever I took it into a bike shop to get it tuned the mechanics would tell me "get this thing out of here, we are tired of all the nuts trying to buy this thing from us". She's in pristine condition. Thanks GT.
  • 1 0
 89 Marin Pine Mountain, Deore, Skinny slick front, fat slick in the back. Super granny chainwheel. Did dh and all mountain duty all over Switzerland. That bike was a love affair. 90 Reflex Carbon and Onzatires. Scary, flexy thing. Smooth trails only. 92 Cannondale SM400 with Scott Sus-Fork. Still around, all original. Did Mt.Tam many many times. 97 Kinesis 4 link dh bike with dc fork - lasted 8 seasons - except the frame - everything broke thrice - or more.
  • 1 0
 One of the all time best duos (Hans "No Way" Rey & GT Zaskar), here I post three pictures of them in action:

www.pinkbike.com/photo/9550158

www.pinkbike.com/photo/9550155

www.pinkbike.com/photo/9550152
  • 1 0
 I still have my 1991 Rocky Mountain Blizzard welded by Paul Brodie. One of the first bikes with a sloping top tube. That bike sports a Bomber fork with 75mm of travel and vee brakes. Those where HUGE upgrades! It still gets ridden every day and was my commuter bike in 2010 crossing the Lions Gate 176 times. And thumb shifters till rock!!!! Old school is the New school!!!
  • 1 0
 So cool to see this again... more "historical/flashback" articles like this would get a thumbs up from me. I miss those days of riding everything on one bike that you never had to really adjust, or "set up"... just jump on and go. Simple times, but so much fun still. To think what we rode on those old bikes is pretty funny!
  • 1 0
 I haven't seen a bio pace chain ring for years. They were great for grinding up tech climbs. Although you can see the uneven wear in the big ring teeth. Everybody hated on them but the elliptical shape gave you extra power in the downstroke.
  • 1 0
 I have a 1994 Pantera, by then the Zaskar frame with STX. The Avalanche was a group up, the Zaskar was top of the line. Ordered the ball burnished with a cromo fork and put on a Manitou fork. The frames were all made in Taiwan by then, the handbuilt Zaskar were phased out. The quality control was stellar, it made the company.
Once you ripped the ugly stickers off, a mid Nineties thing to do, the gleaming silver bike was a Zaskar to the masses.
The bike is amazing! I still have it, with riser bars and a late 90’s set of upgraded parts. The fit is perfect. And it’s name is missbike.
That big hunk of metal in the seat stays was genius, the bike was completely stable hitting river sand or other hazards, and it climbs like an elevator. (Past tense cause no more off trail fun for me. Too many ugly neck injuries on bikes).
The Chris King headset, amazing! You gotta try one sometime.
  • 5 1
 Such a cool article! Moar of that anytime you guys have time! It's like watching a program about early F1 cars Smile
  • 1 0
 GT was always good to me. I had a early 90's Corrado that I cracked and they replaced it with a ti Lightning. That bike is still going. I then bought a 2001 Team I-Drive 1.0 that Hans Rey signed for me back on a hot summer's day back in 2007. It was over 100F and he put on two shows that day! Legend...

I scored a mint original purple Karakoram with the "Groove Tube" that I now use as my drinking bike, and a beater blue Agressor for locking on the street. Lastly, I have a sweet raw aluminum road bike that needs a little love.

Thanks GT for all the good times and thanks to Hans for being an inspiration to many so us " old guys."
  • 1 0
 I still have my 1988 karakoram and fairly minty shape. Except it had some upgrades/ changes from that time period.
Namely an odyssey areator seatpost pump which still works great, a huge 54 tooth spesh front chainring and scott AT4 off road bars.
I had some custom road wheels built for it 14mm sun mistra rims with xt hubs, triple butted spokes with 32rear and 28 front..
with those wheels and spesh turbo S 1 inc tires it is very fast....
  • 1 0
 I'd love to hear about:

early Rocky Mountain Blizzards and that alu frame with the raised seat stays

Any classic titanium hardtail

Manitou FS bikes (Riding friend has one that is mint!)

Amp research (he has one of these two!)

Old Concord MTBs

Anything Fat Chance
  • 1 0
 "It's hard to say the same about the grips, while they look very cool, the practicalities of using a grip shaped like that isn't appealing any more."
I have odi Longneck's on my stumpy, exact same pattern as those and they work excellently.
  • 1 0
 Still have mine. The Zaskar is still going strong. The fork on it sucks but everything else is awesome. Mix of old XT and XTR. The rear derailleur is a reverse pull XTR. It's my commuter bike now, but I still love it. There's a pic of it on my profile page. Just got some brand new decals on ebay that I'm putting on soon.
  • 4 0
 brilliant, takes me back to when i first started riding Smile
  • 1 0
 I had a Zasker , magura hydraulic brakes, bear traps , rock shox Judy forks, buffed the hell out of that frame it she looked like chrome for a week or two yeeewwww that was 18years back ... Am I getting old?
  • 4 0
 Does anyone remember the thermoplastic sts models
  • 1 0
 Remember? I have a '97 Thermoplastic STS-DH frameset in the shed!
  • 1 0
 I remeber being 15 and working in a local shop thinking my god ! What a machine / how can anyone afford this lol

hope she served you many happy years man !
  • 1 0
 Just rebuilt my -95 Zaskar LE frame last weekend with left over parts last weekend. Ended up with a sub 9.5kg rigid runabout bike. The chrome polished finish has really held up well!
  • 1 0
 [URL=http://s741.photobucket.com/user/MattBaker/media/image-6.jpg.html][IMG]http://i741.photobucket.com/albums/xx55/MattBaker/image-6.jpg[/IMG][/URL]

1992 Kona Explosif I just finished
  • 1 0
 Love the old school bikes, especially those Zaskars! There's one in my bike room, but doesn't belong to me...maybe I should ask the guy if he wants to sell it to me! I only have an old GT Tequesta and Palomar.
  • 1 1
 Most of you guys don't have a respect for what this bike was. It was truely one of those dream bicycles. When I first got into mountain biking I was in 2006 and I was 13. I was given a specialized Rockhopper for my birthday and my other friend was given his fathers old GT Zaskars LE from the early-mid 90s. That bike was amazing and the way it rode and felt was so ahead of its time. It rolled fast and left the rest of us stranded in its dust. It really was the ultimate bike and all of us wanted it. And the craftsmanship that was put into the frame was great. Every weld had a perfect hand made bead and the raw tubing looked second to none. I soon found myself on the GT bandwagon and got a new GT Avalanche after I cracked my Rockhopper. I was so disappointed, I should have known that it really wasn't a high end bike in the first place but I was really just hoping it would ride similar to the Zaskar my buddy had. Every time I see one on the trail today though, I get butterflies in my chest and just think back to that amazing thing.
  • 2 0
 You first got into mountain biking in 2006 and you are saying "most" don't have a respect for what this bike was? No hard feelings, but your comment made me laugh...

Seems to me a lot of the guys commenting on this article remember lusting after the Zaskar when it first came out. At that point you were probably just a baby. We respect this bike because we loved it "decades" ago...

I was never able to buy one back then, I only bought my first "real" bike in 1997 (a Specialized Ground Control A1)...
  • 1 0
 I still have an (I believe 1989) GT Tequesta, wich is even more old skool then this one. It has a steel frame. It's been rebuild, and is acually new. So I really like these kind of articles!
  • 1 0
 I'll ask again, are these frames worth anything?

There's one sitting with a pile of old bikes from the 80's-90's just up the road from me, I could get it for next to nothing.
  • 1 0
 yes they are super collectable get it now before someone else does and post some pics
  • 1 0
 Finally! Thank you for a reply. How much are we talking? I have no idea of the condition. I just recognized the frame design IMMEDIATELY. It had the same style logo (although weathered) and the same era components. I've got a hunch it's the same frame as shown here. I'll bike over and take a look tomorrow.
  • 1 0
 Well everebody remember the old days. Im a GT GUY and I started with the TEQUESTAS,KARACORAMS,ZASCARS and I had the first doble suspension a GT RTS 1 full XTR. Man that guy called HAN REY NEVER CALL ME FOR A RIDE!!!
  • 1 0
 My '91 GT Zaskar LE .... Lightly modernized, ... Still a great ride ...

www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10151271418305474&set=o.106840982723662&type=1&comment_id=10577731
  • 1 0
 My goodness! What a beautiful BIKE. The perfect one, icon and platonic love for everyone around the world. A mystic bike. You can't stop look at this frame and think about the innovation of this model when come to life.
  • 1 0
 I used to own 18" GT All Terra Tequesta chromely frame not sure the year probably 92 around the early nineties. I wanted Rock Shox forks but it had 1" steer tube so I ended up selling it.
  • 1 0
 it makes my stomach churn its so nice. Today in the shop we have an original 1992 clockwork orange running full shimano stx, including hubs all original and it even has some panaracer dart and smoke tyres on the mavic rims!
  • 1 1
 I remember these bikes, I also remember those original rock shox which were absolutely horrible! Is GT even around these days? I don't think I've ever seen one except for these old ones now and then. One of the great things we no longer have on todays bikes is those gum wall tires which get rather crusty rather quickly.
  • 1 0
 The Atherton racing team (among others) are on GT bikes... obviously the bikes look way different now but it's still GT and they still make the Zaskar with the triple triangle design.
  • 2 0
 They say GT on the frame but the original company went bankrupt maybe ten years ago. Pacific (low end bike company) bought the name. All GT bikes used to be made in the U.S. and their quality took a dive after the bankruptcy. Their reputation is on the up-swing because of the race teams but it's still not technically the same company.
  • 1 0
 Oh i didn't know that, I guess you learn something new every day Smile
  • 2 0
 So I think that bar is prob a Nitto with a built in shim that was stock on that bar. Wasnt Jeff Jones the creator of the triple triangle?
  • 2 0
 I really miss SIS shifters. They made it so you never had to adjust your derailleur, because all of the adjustment was in your fingers.
  • 1 0
 Still have my "Ferrari Red" '93 Richter 8.0 that I use as a crap-weather commuter. It's a beautiful steel frame; but I can't believe that I actually used to trail ride with it. The geometry and angles are nutz...
  • 1 0
 www.pinkbike.com/photo/7431644

my 91 Zaskar in 94/5, fkng loved that bike. held up to ANY abuse i threw at it! wheels, forks an seat posts... not so much
the original jump/free ride bike ???
  • 2 0
 Screw the Zaskar! the GT LTS DH was the real dream machine of it's day.

upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/66/LTS_DH3.JPG
  • 2 0
 I had a 1998 GT LTS 2000 DS until it was knicked :'( I loved that heavy old flexy beast!!!
  • 1 0
 the first carbon wheels...hed ???????????
  • 2 0
 GT Outpost was my first mountain bike in the early 90's. I loved that bike!!
  • 1 0
 LOL... I, at 13(1990), made the sharkfin my first-ever MTB upgrade on my shitty 18-speed huffy. It actually helped and now reminds me of how thankful of e13 I am now.
  • 1 0
 Are these frames worth much money? There is one just up the road from me that's sitting in a pile with a bunch of other vintage bikes from the late 80's into the 90's.
  • 1 0
 I still have my red Zaskar with a Judy fork on it. Bike's in great shape and been ridden in a number of different places-including a Bike Party event Wink
  • 1 0
 to this day no other stock bike has ever felt as fast, dialed in and ready to conquer the world than my '93 cannondale m800. oh sweet nostalgia.
  • 1 0
 Exactly. Had the M400 - same frame ins S. Sloping top tube, relaxed HA, short. Went up and down. For the time almost a big BMX. Quickrelease and soft material meant no hard landings.
  • 1 0
 love Hans. Met him at a bikeshow Trials-demo in 1992, and Again when i moved to Japan- He was signing autographs with Brian Lopes in 2005.
  • 1 0
 Still have my 96 zaskar. I've updated most parts. Had lots of good times, but i would be scared to try some of the stuff i did on that bike.
  • 1 0
 I'll upload pics of my '92 Klein Rascal. Shimano Xt group set with Cook Bros cranks. Not forgetting the Mission Control bars. I think this is before your time Matt!
  • 1 0
 I still have a GT i-drive that has been said to a one off build for Hans. Can anybody post pics of the original i-drive he had. I still have concerns that it is not his.
  • 1 0
 Pretty much My entire profile is vintage bikes from the 90's. Im building an early zaskar at the moment. Have a look or follow me if your interested

Sean Big Grin
  • 2 0
 those frames were tough. I have two friends that still have theirs. albeit well worked over
  • 2 0
 Nice! I had a bright yellow one in '95 or '96 followed by a cherry red anodized one. Loved 'em!
  • 2 0
 Always wanted a Zaskar... could only afford a crappy Backwoods though. Frown
Missed out that time.
  • 1 0
 GT Timberline....my first mtn bike....certainly did its time....same frame as the zaskar i believe....welcome back to 1992!!!!
  • 1 0
 I had the 99 le version but sold it in 2002 to a friend who is still riding it!
  • 1 0
 Great Article, love how the Prototype is shown in a 'used condition' rather than gleaming from a showroom wax. Smile
  • 1 0
 Awesome, still got my Zaskar LE in the shed been there so long forgot the year.
  • 2 0
 My 1992 Zaskar LE is in basement, rode it until 2 years ago....
  • 1 0
 Rode the hell out of the Avalanche in my younger days. It was a black on white zebra pattern.
  • 1 0
 Had a Rockhopper comp 1992 that I ride until 2008, it that was close to this.
  • 1 0
 More old school articles!

My Old Trek 9000.

www.pinkbike.com/photo/2615147
  • 1 0
 Have a number of them in almost every color made. Fun bikes to work on and an Icon as far as frames go. LiveLong Zaskars!
  • 3 0
 Hardtails rule!
  • 1 0
 mine is not so old but gold...it´s a 2007 GT zaskar Team. I love this bike!!!
  • 1 0
 If I rode that now I would go like a rocket after many years rideing fullsus
  • 1 0
 Can anyone find any info on the IRC Super 8 tires? Classic late 80's early 90's beefy mountain bike tire.
  • 1 0
 Had a 99 LE in BB, got a 99 LE in team white & a 2011 Zaskar Carbon expert nice bikes
  • 1 0
 Was really looking forward to Neg propping the guy that put "looks like a trek session" but no! I'm shocked.
  • 1 0
 What a classic bike. Just yesterday, I saw somebody rocking an original Girvin fork on their bike.
  • 1 0
 man am old ,all fun,,,, but am happy how things went do give us the great bikes we have today
  • 1 0
 The very first GT bike to arrive in Australia was stolen at a trade show.
  • 2 0
 i feel old now
  • 2 0
 Me to. My first mountain bikes were before suspension and 7 speed cassette. Try 5 speed and Shimano XT2 brakes on my first new bike in 1982, the Univega Alpina Pro. I worked at a shop when the first prototype specialized and rock shox came out about the same time around 1990. We sold the first cannondale rear suspension bike in 1990 and it was also very very bad. Suspension caused more harm then good at that time. About the same timeframe we went from the skurfer (skateboard with a rope on front) to plywood snowboards without shaping or metal edges. It's crazy that when I started mountain biking and boarding each were not even sports and now they are so huge. Imagine the future when the shit you're using now is ridiculous.
  • 1 0
 It's called the Snurfer(snow surfer, not the Skurfer.

Alot of the suspension was bad, the first reliable fork was the Mag 21, but then they made the horrible Judy.
  • 1 0
 The only problem with the Judy forks was they went from the machined aluminium cartridge damper in the racer-only model Diablo forks (they also had to change the name because Jamis held the US trademark for Diablo for bicycle usage) to a plastic cartridge for the production forks as a cost-saving change. The problem was the oil heated up in usage, bubbles formed, pressure increased and the seals popped (or the plastic cracked). When they recalled them and replaced them with Al cartridges, the problem went away but by then the forks had a reputation for failure and Marzocchi had just released the open-bath Bomber Z1s.
  • 1 0
 this is makin me feel really old. i have a pair of bradbury manitous. rode scott unis, amps, and action-tecs way back when. my original cro-mo yeti fro had my favorite..rigid accu-trax forks. would love to have an old c-26 from yeti and a tioga disc ala tomac days!
  • 1 0
 I had the original yellow Indi SL (76mm, I think) on my 96 Trek Y11 explode mid ride. I still don't really know what happened to it but I had a spring shaped grease mark on my jersey, a bruised chest and the contents of the fork leg were never seen again. Replaced it with a 2003 Judy SL (100mm) which was not only immensely less crap than the Indi but it eased the head angle enough to make its 'sharp' handling a little more user-friendly. Found the Azonic DH bar that was on it in a drawer recently and had to laugh at how ridiculous narrow it was particularly when combined with what must have been a 110mm stem. Still have the Y11 frame hanging on the wall above the work bench, electric blue with an enormous bright yellow, red and grey TREK sticker down the side. Still running it's original System 2 wheels on a single speed hardtail along with the Judy, they roll so fast it defies logic considering how old they are.
  • 1 0
 No, I had a really reliable mag 20 on my 92 khs that replaced my 91 rigid explosif. I remember hitting the dame trail on it waaay faster hahaha. Judys were the reagr because they were quite stiffer
  • 1 0
 Still rocking mine like a baws:
www.pinkbike.com/photo/7601430
  • 1 0
 I'm still using these.... for city.
www.pinkbike.com/photo/9548573
  • 1 0
 I have a old Zaskar in great shape
  • 1 0
 Me too! Bought it new, still ride it around. I’m told it’s now “vintage”? How did that happen, I just bought it.
  • 2 1
 STILL BETTER THEN MY BIKE, fml
  • 1 0
 This is sweet, let's have the Tuesday Old School Tech now.
  • 1 0
 Still have my 92 Zaskar, love that bike.
  • 1 0
 Those bear-trap pedals look like they would cut your leg off at the knee!
  • 1 0
 My fave article on this whole site!
  • 1 0
 My dads friend was telling me about his the other week...ace!
  • 1 0
 Bring back "Farmer John's cousin's!!
  • 1 0
 I dare somebody to do Rampage on that first bike!
  • 1 0
 How many people went to eBay after reading this article?
  • 1 0
 or to retrobike to list their zaskars for sale... Wink
  • 1 0
 I wanted this sooo bad at my first job in a bike shop, age 14.
  • 2 1
 sweeeet
  • 1 1
 Get that bike in a museum, immediately.
  • 1 1
 museum bin
  • 1 1
 old skool stumpy is better
  • 1 0
 OMG! I remember!
  • 2 2
 So awesome. More articles like this!
  • 2 2
 that's rad!
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