Seeing all the 10 Year Challenge memes flying around has us thinking that some of the biggest changes in our lives over the past decade have been the bikes we ride.
Back in 2009, 1x11 was a pipedream still three years away, skinnies were the connoisseur's trail feature of choice and you'd be laughed at if you were riding anything other than 26 inch wheels. In the world of downhill there were contrasting fortunes as Steve Peat finally claimed the rainbow jersey in Canberra, while Missy Giove was arrested for smuggling 400lbs of marijuana. In cross country, Nino Schurter won his first elite World Championship and he hasn't stopped since.
To celebrate ten years of mtb progress, here's a look back at the bikes the Pinkbike editors and certain pros were riding in 2009.
Mike Kazimer2009 - The Transition Gran Mal
2019 - The Specialized Stumpjumper EVO 29
I was deep into my freeride phase back in 2009, and a well-used Transition Gran Mal was my ride of choice. This bike lived a hard life, and when this photo was taken it had Shimano Saint cranks and brakes, an MRP dual ring chainguide, mis-matched rims (the front was originally on my Iron Horse Sunday), Marzocchi 66 fork with an extra 6 sticker thrown on for good measure, and a white camo saddle that I remember as being the opposite of comfortable.
It wasn't pretty, but it was tough, and that bike accompanied me on all sorts of adventures in Washington, British Columbia, and Colorado. I eventually sold it and replaced it with something lighter and more pedal friendly, but pictures of that white tank still bring back fond memories of skinnies, steeps, and big jumps.
Sarah MooreI was a full on XC racer in 2009 and had never ridden a bike with any more than 100mm of travel in my life. The salesperson at my local bike shop in Sainte-Adele, Quebec showed me an image of this Trek Top Fuel 9.8 WSD in the 2009 catalogue and I pre-ordered it without ever having ridden a Trek before. All I remember about the purchase is the glossy catalogue and the fact that Emily Batty was pictured with it. Brands might not do printed catalogues anymore, and fewer people are buying bikes without demoing them these days, but Emily Batty is still helping sell bikes for Trek! I raced it during the 2009 season and then sold it to a guy from the Yukon who didn’t mind the pink colour. I rode the same model bike the following year, but in the black and red version.
Daniel SappYeti's SB130 holding ever-changing test parts.
I was participating in my first senior year of college at Appalachian State in Boone, NC in 2009. I had become pretty talented at managing a class schedule that allowed bikes to be a priority. I didn't care what kind of bike it was, I just wanted to pedal and be deep in the forest as often as possible. I worked at a ski shop each winter and then went west each summer. The season before, I had based out of Bellingham, WA. Through good friends and good timing, I wound up with a job at Transition Bikes boxing and shipping bikes. I worked for a little money but mostly bike parts.
I bought a Transition Blindside and put a third-hand Boxxer World Cup on the front. I used it for everything from racing DH to day-long trail rides for the next two years. The Blindside made its rounds being sold amongst friends afterwards. I don't know where it is now but I hope it's still delivering as much fun as I had on it!
James SmurthwaiteAfter getting into mountain biking on a
Trek Y26, this was my first 'proper' mountain bike that looked just like the ones in the magazines. I bought it on the back of a 10/10 review in a Hardtail of the Year test but my first ride was a disaster. I didn't realise that bikes didn't come with decent pedals and spent an unsatisfying few hours slipping off a crappy plastic pair at Whinlatter trail centre.
We soon got to know each other better and enjoyed a good three years of riding, including a week in the Alps that nearly wrote it off. In the end I 'up'graded to an
Iron Horse Yakuza in my own personal bid to become Sam Hill. The Rockhopper stayed with me as a commuter until a couple of years ago, when it got nicked on an estate in London. I was devastated.
Matt WraggTen years ago I was skint. I didn't have money for a proper DH bike, so my choices were... limited. I found this frame for £400 from the UK Balfa distributor at the time. The Totem which I carried over from the Giant Faith it replaced wouldn't clear the downtube, so I had to source an extended lower cup to stop it making contact every time I went around a corner. The rear shock was a by-then outdated Fifth Element that I shipped off to TF Tuning for some love (I believe they used to strip out the pedal platform) and was a weird gem of a thing, outperforming many of the more mainstream options of the time.
This bike was one my friends would try and come away saying "it rides a lot better than it looks." Which is probably the best summary of this bike I can muster. The rear end is actually a VPP, based on the original Outland patent, from the days before Santa Cruz started adding a hefty licensing fee to use it. While it may have been ugly enough to make small children weep, I had many good days aboard it and even pointed it down the Vallnord WC track.
Paul AstonOK, so maybe it was 10.5 years ago but who's counting?
Back then I was on Solid A-Class Factory racing, yeah, I never managed to qualify at a World Cup again, but, whatevs. After the last five years of me moaning that bikes aren't big or slack enough, I think this proves to me that we are in a much better place than ten years ago. The team owner sent me a medium frame because he thought the 'huge' large frame option was way too big for my 6'1" height. I can't find the numbers, but I think this was around a 400mm reach, with a 66º headangle and 26" wheels. Obviously, I took a file to the frame to cut 5mm out of the top shock mount, lowering the BB by about an inch and taking a degree or so out of the HA.
A tiny bike, which sent me over the bars a few times (funny how that never happens to me on 'modern' bikes), and ultimately sent me OTB to a broken spleen in WC practice in Schladming. I was dropped from the team as I couldn't commit to the following season of racing as the doctor told me to have at least six months rest, luckily, this happened before I could do any more damage to myself. I'm not sure what was a bigger kick in the balls: two weeks in a hospital in Austria with no call from the boss to check if I was still alive, or being dropped after nearly dying racing for them. Anyway, no hard feelings, but thank god I am not riding those tiny bikes anymore!
Notable RidersBrandon SemenukWe grabbed this bike check with Brandon Semenuk as he was getting a stereo fitted into his new Subaru Impreza STi thanks to a sponsorship deal. He was rocking this Trek Remedy complete with a hydraulic gyro and you can see how beaten up it is from a few competitions. Brandon would take this bike to second place in the Crankworx Slopestyle a few months later.
Check out the full bike check here.
Fast forward ten years and while his Trek Ticket S slopestyle bike shares some similar lines and features, it's a totally different bike.
Steve Peat2009 was the year Steve Peat finally claimed the World Champs crown and he did it on a Santa Cruz V10 Mk3. This was a prototype for the race with the top tube extended to a virtual 657.8mm (roughly equivalent to the XL of the Mk6), earning it the nickname The Horse.
Set up for Canberra's pedal-fest, the rims were stripped of paint, all the bolts were replaced with Ti versions, smaller discs were used and cross country tyres and tubes were fitted to drop weight. On top of this, the grease in the hub was swapped for a light oil and all the seals and dust shields were left out to reduce rolling resistance.
Ten years later, the V10 is on version Mk7.
Honourable Mentions
www.pinkbike.com/photo/15556632
Damn I feel old.
Me in 2019 : shredding with my specialized pitch
(It's my secret weapon)
I still feel such a traitor for selling my Pitch (mine was called Pegasus). It was the first good and first-hand bike I ever had, and I always felt it punched above its weight.
I really wish Specialized made the 2019 geo version, instead of badging a hardtail with the name....
Me in 2009: falling in love with a Rocky Mountain Slayer SXC
Me in 2019: still in couple with my good old Rocky Mountain Slayer!!!
.... whereas I`ve lost all my girl-friends without any warranty support from the constructors. A shame!!!
Actually looking for a rocky mountain woman with firm dampers, fat rubbers and slack angles
Beside the aesthetic side that I don`t find glorious, their mono mammoth pivot has never been the most high rated system as far as I know... Are Orange bike owners kinds of fetichists?
You wanna understand why we ride those ugly bikes ? Try an Orange one of these day and make your own opinion (Love it or hate it hehehe)
2019: Stinky 2009
2029: Stinky 2009 ahahahaha !!
A few years after I upgraded to taking my brothers 3speed dragster bikes out for a bash. That migrated to a BMX later on and then in 90's a hardtail MTB. A few thefts later and a Summer of taking a hardtail XC mountain bike into the forests and finding out that moss isn't to bad to land in when you go OTB's, just try to avoid the rocks - I now upgraded to my 19 Slash. My first evva full squish.
Life is good. Not I do jump tracks, near vertical rollers, DH and more. I am having fun.
Thanks for your story, hope you love the new bike!
Now my part:
2007 Norco Team DH: www.pinkbike.com/photo/8947571
2002 Santacruz Heckler: www.pinkbike.com/photo/8947577
it may have been an old bike, but it was so far ahead of its time that it gave us a taste of how much fun it is to ride a stable and slack bike down those trails and there was no looking back.
now whenever I see crazy looking new bikes I wonder if the balfas looked crazy to people when they were released. its funny how looking back with this article, its the only bike that looks "normal"
m.pinkbike.com/photo/7556946
Thanks for the great flashback!
2009 I was riding my Liteville 301 Mk3 26” and I had a good time, never thinking I needed bigger wheels, more reach or slacker HTA etc., it was just plain fun being out on the trails.
I think what really started the trail bike geometry revolution was folks getting a size up and shortening the stem. 10+ years ago most trail bikes came with ~100mm stems if I am remembering correctly. Then manufacturers wise up and sized them with short stems but then they climbed like poo because there was no weight on the front and there you have it with the whack seat angles to compensate for that. Chainstay lengths have always been all over the place.
I did a fair amount of road riding and racing and you are right on about the knee-pedal placement being key, I've just never thought about bike fitting a MTB. I took a look at my road bike and my MTB (Cannondale CAAD 9 and 2005 Prophet). My seat to BB measurements are nearly identical (my MTB has a bit lower seat position). Like I said in my first post, I've no experience riding a modern bike other than someone else's around the parking lot but I don't think I could tolerate my knee forward of the pedal spindle. By the sounds of it you have your bikes fitted, but damned if it doesn't look odd to me.
I eventually replaced the gran mal with a banshee Rune that also had (has) many of the same adjusting possibilties. I did miss the 1.5 headtube though.
The 90's brought us suspension (mostly front), 2X compact drivetrains, Aheadset's, cartridge BB's, and spd's (debateable until the cows come home as a game changer or not).
The 2000's brought us standardised reliable disc brakes
The 2010's brought us dropper posts (hite-rite from the 90's doesn't count), tubeless multi compound tires, decent 1X systems (if that's your thing, I think it's like spd's; good if it's your thing), and modern geometry.
It's been a good decade....and it's not over yet! ( still 11 months + to perfect telepathic shifting)
RC will be 85 and probably still dropping into double blacks at Whistler.
The only thing that I CAN'T do on my new long wheelbase bike is make the corners on some of the old elevated wooden stunts because they were built around bikes with shorter wheelbases.
I have a 2005 Iron Horse Warrior comp, it goes to mention that adjustable travel forks were a pretty cool way to have slack geo on the way down and excellent traction on the way up back in the day. I still ride this bike 50% of the time but made it tubeless and put a dropper on it.
1X? Yeah nice, but not a game changer. Dropper posts? One of the top 5 improvements in the sport.
www.bike-magazin.de/mountainbikes/enduro/test-bmc-supertrail/a2723.html
If you give me a 2008 bike and point me to a tough trail by today's standards, I'll be fine. Maybe slower, but fine. If you give me a 1998 bike, I might not make it out the other side.
I think there's some thing to be said for keeping a bike for many years -especially if it can keep up with the way you ride (with some obvious tweaks) - because the muscle memory, etc. you build up from riding more or less the same rig for over a decade allows you to ride almost with your eyes closed.
Maybe the changes haven't been as large as you remember them, but you certainly can't discount them to "refinements."
The single biggest difference between the two bikes is probably the original weight and the seat tube angle. People bang on how great modern bikes are, but it depends on what you were riding ten years ago. If you were riding an XC bike with 100mm of travel, small wheels and a 71 degree head angle, then of course anything modern will feel great.
I don't think suspension has improved. Coil is still by and large superior, better damping, longer service intervals, and, well heavier. Just not as easy to hand a punter a shock pump and tell them to pump it up to their weight.
My main point is that discounting the massive changes the industry has seen to refinements is a little dishonest to how far we've come. DH bikes weigh what trail bikes use to. There's entirely new categories of riding. Ten years ago, square taper was seen on DH bikes. Ten years ago a V-10 had a new 70 degree head angle. Ten years ago carbon was pretty iffy and was not yet ready for the masses. Ten years ago you went to the bike shop to learn new things, not the internet. Ten years ago helmets were just foam blocks with some cutouts. Ten years ago, you'd drop a chain if you looked at a root too hard if you had no retention.
I'd maintain tooth and nail that this last ten years has been as significant to cycling as any other period. Y'all don't have to agree.
Square Taper? I think I put ISIS Husselfelt cranks on a hardtail around 2002. In 2006 a carbon gearbox bike won the Junior World Cup. Ten years ago I was running a chain-guide. Now I don't need one, which is great. Comparing a 150mm bike to 90s rigid is a bit of a leap.
New bikes feel different still fun .
Don't miss short top tubes( reach)
The old bikes are a bit more squishy and track gnar better.
New bikes pop small lips better and work much better on flow trails.
Peaty,s Santa Cruz looks sweet!
Fork Protection! I must have been awesome back in the day.
I still ride an '09 Demo8 and theres nothing you could tell me that would convince me that I'm missing out on any fun compared to the '19 Demo.
I feel old.
2019 = shred sled and too broke for PBR.
From Session to GT.
Damn.
The Specialized bike at the top of the page is just plastic... I doubt the person actually rides it as the fork flex more than it compress. I have heard specilized sales went down quite a lot?