The birth of BTT was not an event that occurred overnight, nor in a specific place and time, but which was the result of a slow evolution that began, yes, in the United States, around the 70s.
Americans had been riding bikes on the roads since the 1930s, which is not surprising, because here in Spain, without going any further, the Bikes also circulated on the roads, mainly because there were no roads. But what meant an important change, and for that the Americans were responsible, was that someone thought of installing large ball wheels instead of the traditional thin tires. When 26x2.1 inch tires were mounted on bikes, which until then had been touring bikes, it was when the way of seeing the bike as a simple means of transportation began to change. of transportation.
At that time, it was already the 70s in sunny California, specifically in Marin County, a county north of San Francisco, which at that time was a hotbed of new ideas brought by the countercultural "hippie" movement of the 60s and the 70. The fashionable bikes were road bikes, and young people used them a lot as an "alternative" means of transportation. The restless young people of Marin County and San Francisco immediately began experimenting with their bikes, at a time when there was great enthusiasm for everything that had to do with new things, inventions. homemade and improvisation in the garages of houses. It is no coincidence that in San Francisco in those years some young people with beards and long hair began to invent machines that would eventually be called personal computers.
In 1971, some friends from the towns of Marin County began to meet to compete in races. The first races were organized in Mount Tamalpais, a place that those most daring to ride their bikes through the countryside already knew. The bikes that were used in these races were the same ones from the 30s and 40s, but with thick balloon tires. And what were these pioneers doing with their "crazy" new bicycles? Nothing less than descents. That's right, the first These guys' experiences with what can be called "the grandmothers of mountain bikes" were the descents. People like Marc Vendetti, John York, Tom Slifka, or Kim Kraft, spent the week modifying their gear and then jumped into the mountains to see if they would hold up. Those experiments were a fun novelty for all of them, who even took the opportunity to put aside the typical clothing they used with their road bikes, and replaced it with some Levi's and some mountain boots.
During 1974 and '76, Otis Guy, Marc Vendetti and a young Joe Breeze, went out into the bush with old Schwinn single speeds, and organized these races in Marin County. In one of them, in '74, some men came from the town of Cupertino, in Santa Clara County, about 90 km south of San Francisco. The same one where Apple was born. These guys amazed everyone else in the race, because they had mounted a gear change system on their bikes that was operated with the thumb from the handlebars, and drum brakes taken from a motorcycle. Among those amazed by those bikes were a certain Gary Fischer, Charly Kelly, Otis Guy and Joe Breeze.
The first artifacts and the Repack races.
With the first races underway, the first 18-speed fat-wheel bikes soon began to be manufactured in the garages of these handy guys. Joe Breeze's Breezers were one of the first mountain bikes, which were also called "klunkers" or "ballooners", due to the size of their covers.
At the end of the 70s, it could already be said that there was a movement of mountain bikers in Marin County, and also in some isolated points of the United States, and even in other places, such as England. In 1978 the first publication dedicated to MTB was founded: the Co-Evolution Quarterly. One of those who participated the most in this topic was Charly Kelly.
As Americans have a good nose for the business, at the same time that the first press publications about these bikes appeared, the bike shops in the area also began to sell them. get interested in the topic. They begin to place orders with people like Joe Breeze, Mert Lawwill or Don Koski, often modifying the geometry of the old Schwinn Varsaty and with the help of motorcycle frame welders.
With a few hundred bikes sold, in 1978 six Marin County fans decided to They are going on a trip to a place in the mountains of Colorado where an annual route had been held since 1976, and where there seemed to be another group of people who had started using mountain bikes. That place was neither more nor less than Crested Butte, and the route, the First Annual, that led from Crested Butte to Aspen. The people of this little town lost in the Rocky Mountains had been doing the same thing as their friends from California for two years. The Pearl Pass Tour route is still celebrated today.
In January of '79, Joe Breeze and Otis Guy go to visit a friend who lived around San Francisco. He made his living building custom road and tandem frames since he was 15 years old. He was also a good cyclist, so they went to him for advice. His name: Tom Ritchey.
Breeze showed Ritchey his frame to see what he could do to modify the rear chainstays, but as soon as Ritchey saw the gadget Breeze had made, his face lit up. The new concept of 26x2.1 wheels was fascinating for Ritchey, who until then the most he had seen were some "mastodontic" 26x1.3 inches, which were being used by an English club called Rough Stuff Fellowship.
Time was passing, and the singlespeed bikes were becoming others with gears and derailleurs. The first official mountain bike race took place on October 21, 1976 on Pine Mountain, and was a downhill race for a mountain of almost 4 km. These races began to be called Repack, since every time they made a descent, the drivers had to grease and change the brakes, since they "evaporated" on each descent .
From '76 to '84, 24 Repack races were held. Joe Breeze held the record for victories, with 10, and the fastest time on the downhill was Gary Fischer. The girls also signed up for downhill, and the pioneer in this was Wende Cragg. The Repack races brought together the entire community of bikers in the area, and greater interest began to be generated in these bikes . By then, and especially for the type of races and routes they did, the old bikes with modified frames were no longer useful because they broke frequently. It was time to make specific paintings.
Joe Breeze started selling paintings in October They are going on a trip to a place in the mountains of Colorado where an annual route had been held since 1976, and where there seemed to be another group of people who had started using mountain bikes. That place was neither more nor less than Crested Butte, and the route, the First Annual, that led from Crested Butte to Aspen. The people of this little town lost in the Rocky Mountains had been doing the same thing as their friends from California for two years. The Pearl Pass Tour route is still celebrated today.
In January of '79, Joe Breeze and Otis Guy go to visit a friend who lived around San Francisco. He made his living building custom road and tandem frames since he was 15 years old. He was also a good cyclist, so they went to him for advice. His name: Tom Ritchey.
Breeze showed Ritchey his frame to see what he could do to modify the rear chainstays, but as soon as Ritchey saw the gadget Breeze had made, his face lit up. The new concept of 26x2.1 wheels was fascinating for Ritchey, who until then the most he had seen were some "mastodontic" 26x1.3 inches, which were being used by an English club called Rough Stuff Fellowship.
Time was passing, and the singlespeed bikes were becoming others with gears and derailleurs. The first official mountain bike race took place on October 21, 1976 on Pine Mountain, and was a downhill race for a mountain of almost 4 km. These races began to be called Repack, since every time they made a descent, the drivers had to grease and change the brakes, since they "evaporated" on each descent .
From '76 to '84, 24 Repack races were held. Joe Breeze held the record for victories, with 10, and the fastest time on the downhill was Gary Fischer. The girls also signed up for downhill, and the pioneer in this was Wende Cragg. The Repack races brought together the entire community of bikers in the area, and greater interest began to be generated in these bikes . By then, and especially for the type of races and routes they did, the old bikes with modified frames were no longer useful because they broke frequently. It was time to make specific paintings.
Joe Breeze started selling paintings in October
