scbullit36

@Doogster: ha! That will continue for a while. People who were/are new to the sport probably feel their bikes hold better value than they actually do. Wait till the bike companies start slashing prices off their previous model year stuff…people who bought during/ because of covid are going to eat it here in the coming years.

@moof123: I was reading all of the comments waiting for someone to touch on the really inconvenient truth. You nailed it. Reproducing creates another carbon footprint. Reproducing creates more energy demand. Satisfying that demand creates carbon waste. Even if you use wind, solar, hydro, etc. creating all of that tech generates carbon. Albeit less that burning coal but still…carbon is generated. I’m not saying don’t have kids, nor am I shaming anyone that does. Just stating the fact that, a human life requires energy (food, electricity, medicine, heat, etc). Producing that energy generates waste (battery waste, carbon emissions, nuclear waste, etc). There is no such thing as 0 waste energy production. Even hydro electric takes diesel fuel to build the dam. Now that said, if you have 3-5 kids, and I have 0, get off your high horse about my carbon bikes. I could have 10,000 carbon bikes (figuratively speaking) and still not do as much damage to the environment as having a child.

@TotalAmateur: Ahh...I hate to say this...but I KIND OF agree with you? But take that with a grain of sand because my background is Engineering not Econ. First...I don't think 7.25 is a livable wage...to be clear. As for what is...well...that depends on the individual I suppose...but in todays world 7.25 amounts to 14.5 K per year before tax. Wheew...no bueno. That said, we live in a country where, IF you can move about, you can find a job doing unskilled labor for more than minimum wage...for the most part. I know in my area you can pretty easily find an unskilled labor job starting around 12-15 per hour. The problem is, the contingent of people who can't move about (which admittedly is tricky on minimum wage without public transportation) or have some extenuating circumstance, and are literally stuck at the mercy of 7.25. Now, I don't know what that contingent is, how big, whereabouts geographically but...I am SURE it exists. To YOUR point, I don't know that we can make blanket policy changes for this contingent without really hurting small business. On the other hand...how long can small business retain workers when...in areas like mine...big companies are ALREADY PAYING a near or greater than 15 dollar minimum wage...WITHOUT a federal mandate. Eventually...if you let it play out naturally...the big fish are going to gobble up the small fish anyway. People can't survive on 7.25...period. If small business wants to keep paying that as to not "hurt" their business...they may find themselves without a workforce eventually. Wouldn't you agree? I think the bigger question is...how did we let big business get so big that small business can't compete with a 15 dollar minimum wage? What are we actually doing to ensure small business can stay competitive? Surely the answer can't be...drive said businesses employees into poverty.

This was a pretty cool article. It brought me back to 1998 when I rode my first Karpiel Armageddon with a Risse Big Foot Fork. I hit a 12 stair gap and I remember it feeling like landing on a smooth transfer. Don't get me wrong...I think bikes of today have come a long way and...I would rather ride a new V10 or a Capra than one of these old rides. BUT...the thing this article made me think/ realize, these bikes aren't necessarily worse than a V10 or a Capra...they are just different. Its almost as if, these bikes were engineered and built for a specific purpose/ riding discipline that is no longer main stream. These bikes were never intended to be downhill RACE bikes. And they DEFINITELY weren't made to pedal up a hill or take on an epic ride in ANY capacity. They were just made to ride gnarly, unmanicured, raw lines. Not fast lines, but lines that you wouldn't think a bike could make it through...at all. They were also made to huck, low speed drops to pretty much flat. Urban riding was also a big thing. These bikes were basically made to ride stuff that either A) doesn't exist anymore or B) even if it does exist, most people wouldn't really want to ride it. I mean, go back and watch some of these old Mountain Bike videos...the ones on VHS...Like Pedalfiles, Superheros, or any Cranked...these guys were riding stuff that, now a days, nobody would really care to ride. Trails just aren't built like that anymore. I guess what I am saying is...anyone who has ever ridden one of these bikes can appreciate...they were just different. The suspension was flatly different. These bikes were true dirt bikes without an engine. Their suspension was very much like a dirt bike. Open bath, huge oil volumes, etc. They came from a genre where, hitting a 100 foot gap wasn't on trend (because it wasn't possible with a 60+ lb bike) but dropping a 70' cliff was what made you the man. It's like comparing Loic Bruni to Josh Bender. Back in the day, Josh Bender was THE MAN...because that is what mountain biking was back then. Now, Loic Bruni is the man, because that is what mountain biking is now. Ha...with eBikes infiltrating the industry like a virus...who knows who the man will be 20 years from now...Hate to think that but...the industry is fickle like that.

This is what all shredits aspire to be.

If anyone has seen the movie, The Money Pit? When Tom Hanks laughs at the bathtub falling through the floor? Yeah, that kind of laughter for this bike/ price.