First ever GT Single Speed mountain bike

SeeingisBelievingGTMuseum

Old School Grand Master
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Long read on this one but many of the history lessons that have been posted on older bikes in Retrobike really tend to add lore of the bikes posted.

A couple months back I was chasing after a GT road bike that I'd seen posted for sale. I recognized the sellers name in his email address as a former GT employee. Todd was THE ad and catalog guru in GT's marketing department back in the glory days. He and a staff of very talented guys were responsible for the great catalogs and magazine ads that so many of us enjoyed from the early days...and not just GT ads. You see GT's in-house marketing department served as an advertisement agency for many companies like Shimano, Onza, Panaracer, Dia Compe, Cane Creek, Leader and others. Yes... many and most of those companies ads from 1992-97 were created in GT's marketing department offices. While at GT on business back in 1993 I remember Todd getting a phone call and once off the call he tore a huge sheet of paper off a roll, laid it on a table and then 4-5 heads were soon gathered over it scribbling notes and ideas on paper to create an ad and meet a deadline for a customer.....back to the bike story. I was to late to respond to Todd's ad for his road bike..bummer city... he'd already sold it to another former GT employee when I inquired. Todd and I traded emails for a few days sharing stories of the early GT glory days and after doing this for a few days he realized I was a GT "NUT" and told me about a very special bike that he had made at the GT Tech Shop. He went on to tell me that in late 96 he was having lunch with the editor of "BIKE" magazine and this editor was telling him that he believed the industry was going to soon shift to simple single speed bikes. As most of you know Todd thought this guy was Nuts with a capital N. In '96 GT was deep in full suspension...RTS, STS and LTS and Shimano was headed towards 9 speed rear ends. Sometime later in 1997 while Todd was talking with GT Tech Shop director Forrest Yelverton he asked Forrest if it would be possible to build a single speed Psyclone. Forrest committed to trying it but said they would need to source some things they didn't have on hand to do it. What you see in this thread are pictures of the first single speed mountain bike that GT ever produced. It is in fact a single speed slotted dropout GT Psyclone. The frame is fillet brazed True Temper OX Gold triple butted tubing, has slotted dropouts and cable braze-ons for rear v-brakes. Due to a bad back, Todd had sold this bike to a friend two years ago.... but he knew the guy hadn't been riding it much so he introduced me to the owner and the rest is history....it arrived on my door step last week. Todd originally built the bike up with XTR cranks, brakes, levers and seat post. With Paul's hubs, Mavic 217's and when it arrived to me it was wearing a SID. I changed a few things....GT CNC cranks, NOS Bologna Lite fork, flat bar and correct stem for my sizing and a NOS GT SDG saddle that just happens to match the frame and decals nicely. I've ridden it the last two nights and must say it is an amazingly light, sweet ride. This is the 5th non cataloged GT that I've managed to add to my collection a in the past three years... a few of them are one-offs and this one is surely unique. Todd Toth I THANK YOU GREATLY for giving me the opportunity and making it possible to add this fine bike to my collection.

GT didn't add a single speed to their catalog line up until the Ruckus SS in 2006 which has been followed by the Peace and Peace 9er. Enjoy!
 

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What a fastastic bike, thanks for sharing. :cool:

So what are the non-catalogue GT's you've got?
 
Loving that! :D

Needs a black Syncros pin though!! ;)

Al.I know,there's always one. And it's usually Al! :roll:
 
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