The History Man":2ffuwi1s said:
Chopper1192":2ffuwi1s said:
But seriously, how bad could they be? Or is this a bit of a cause célèbre ?
It does amuse me as to all the debate over the Activator, yes it was bad, but by todays BSO standards it was pretty good, and yes we all know there were many other bike around far better for same money.
BITD i knew very little about bikes, often standing looking through the LBS window, looking at the nice shiny frames, bright colours, and carrying names some of which i'd never heard before, like some weird but wonderful language. Parents (Who often were the financial providers of subsequent purchases) of said bikes also lacked the knowledge and it was only as time went by that we knew the difference between low budget and high end groupsets and frames.
Today, its a different story with a lot of opinions based on our knowledge of what we restore and ride today. We can be critical on the past, but c'mon back then if it had two wheels it was fair play, my early attempt at an off roader was an old Raleigh Arena racing Bike with Cow horn handle bars and Cobra Grips from my old BMX, knobbly tyres on the 27 1/4" rims and away i would go to the local gravel pits. I even put a crossbar pad onto the Top-tube just to protect the crown jewels, yes i did come a cropper on many occasion lol.
Anyway the continued discussion of the 'Activator' will further secure its place in MTB history and continue to cause a stir amongst the RB community, much in the way that 'Kleins' do, but thats another thread...........
