"We started riding off-road to get to different party spots in the woods,"explains longtime WTB employee Fred "Trail Boss" Falk, "It was just the way we ended up getting around and it has evolved into all this." It was a beautiful California day when we rolled up to the longtime home of WTB (Wilderness Trail Bikes), slightly offset from a busy four lane street in Mill Valley, just north of San Francisco. Smiles and friendly faces greeted us as we made our way into the modestly restored shop space. Concrete block walls were lined with old frames that hung above the partitioned cubicles while tires and product samples sat unassumingly throughout. The space dates back to WTBs early days in the mid-80s, where frame builders Steve Potts, Charlie Cunningham, and Mark Slate tinkered with early iterations of fat tired rigs. With the need for better quality bikes and components, the three began working to improve their experiences out on the trails by creating products that fit their specific needs.
Situated just north of Mt. Tam State Park, Mill Valley sits in the heart of Marin county, one of the birthplaces of mountain biking. Bike brands have situated themselves in this area for years and WTB has played a key role in the evolution of the sport. An early beginning, stemming from little more than a booze fueled necessity, WTB was an early component of the sport we all love. With an office staff that lives and breaths mountain biking and accessibility to some amazing trails, this is a brand that epitomizes mountain bike culture.
Early Tinkering
With their humble beginning wandering through the woods to parties, WTB was formed out of a love of tinkering and two-wheeled travel. While mountain biking was still in its infancy, pioneers were the life blood of the sport's evolution and WTB was a vital organ. Riders were the key visionaries of early componentry and frames and without them the sport would not have evolved into what we have today. Founded in 1982, Wilderness Trail Bikes began by creating components for the three owners revolutionary frames. These components included forks, brakes, hubs, stems, handlebars, seatposts and pedals. Because these pioneers were pushing the limits on klunkers designed for city riding, they quickly developed an understanding for what parts needed to be fabricated and what type of abuse they needed to withstand. As the sport grew, so did the demand for well engineered, use-specific components and WTB was there to fill the need.
In the late 80's, owners Charlie Cunningham and Steve Potts continued to fabricate off-road specific bikes as larger manufacturers like Trek and Specialized saw the rising demand and needed components for their sought after rigs. WTB's innovative products became the top component choices for small and large manufacturers alike and development continued to improve. Innovations like their Grease Guard bearings and roller cam brakes improved a bikes performance and durability allowing for a new level of riding. The company's component sales grew and Cunningham decided to take a step away from frame building and focus on growing the brand.
“All the design and production goals require riding bikes for inspiration for new ideas,” he says. “Designing components means: research, deciding whether an idea could be marketable, developing prototypes, testing, making the changes, engineering, patents, finding the materials that are best suited for the part, and all of this can take years.” - Steve Potts (quoted from Mountain Bike Hall of Fame)
The 90's brought continued growth as mountain bike sales soared and manufacturers began to produce more and more models. WTB also began marketing frames under its name with fabrication done by Steve Potts; these frames help complement the growing component collection and help with WTB's brand recognition. 1997 saw the introduction of WTB's first tires with the Velociraptor, Desert Raptor and Primal Raptor.
New Push, Same Strategy As the sport has continued to grow WTB has kept producing an array of products, everything from saddle and toe clips to hubs and tires. Though the brand has a deep history, they are are rather small outfit in terms of man power. The Mill Valley office is the company's home base and has only about 25 employees. With such limited resources the brand wants to focus on making the best products possible and is focusing its attention on key areas of development. "We feel it's really important to develop the best products we can and we can't do that if we are trying to do to much," explains Jason Moeschler, OE Sales Manager and Product Development. "We are based on rider development and it takes time and resources to develop the best products. We focus on working with key riders that have been a part of development for many years now. It gets to be a lot of work but this gives us more consistent feedback." Moeschler continues, "Like the old days, these product development sessions often take place around one of our kitchen tables after a full day of riding."
For the immediate future, WTB has focused development on two key areas, tires/rims and saddles. "Rim and tire development is a natural partnership. The interface between the two has become so important with tubeless tires and so many varying factors between manufacturers," Moeschler explains as he walks us through WTB's new tire lineup. "We want tires and rims to work seamlessly together from setup on to the trail. It is such a key component in the ride and we firmly believe in developing the two together. We are always testing out different products and combinations because we want our products to work really well in every situation."
As WTB has helped push mountain bike industry, it is the culture that has helped them evolve as a brand. Emerging new trends, riders and terrain has pushed the brand to develop new and more innovative products. Continuing with their original philosophy, Wilderness Trail Bikes strives to make your ride better, and employees like Jason Moeschler, Fred Falk, and many others are important components to making the brand what it is and will help them keep close to their roots as the sport of mountain biking evolves.
www.wtb.com
...because he's holding mugs. Get it?
It's funny...
vimeo.com/80191950
www.gizmag.com/nuseti-inner-drive-system-mountain-bike/32914