New Bike Chat -->1998 on section

woaaahhhh there! i'm lost
i'm all the way down here at the bottom of the forums page,
i've not been down here before? what's going on, is there a map?
where's the lightswitch? it's dark down here :shock:

not a fan really of the split, i like to browse the lot, i can generally work out from the title what is modern and what is older,
i like to read both from the comfort of my forum
doing it that way allows my own interpretation of retro to come across as i like it
i have a '97 frame with a mix of older and modern components, i dont read everything, but i do look at the stuff that interests me from the title, some of my best finds have come from browsing the for combined sale threads.
maybe it's just me?
:?

mountainloz":378kwnt7 said:

woaaahhhh there! i'm lost
i'm all the way down here at the bottom of the forums page,
i've not been down here before? what's going on, is there a map?
where's the lightswitch? it's dark down here :shock:

not a fan really of the split, i like to browse the lot, i can generally work out from the title what is modern and what is older,
i like to read both from the comfort of my forum
doing it that way allows my own interpretation of retro to come across as i like it
i have a '97 frame with a mix of older and modern components, i dont read everything, but i do look at the stuff that interests me from the title, some of my best finds have come from browsing the for combined sale threads.
maybe it's just me?
:?

Click to expand...

Use the "View posts since last visit" link on the top right of the forum page. You'll see all new posts in all sections, simply browse the titles as you did before. It's like everything is on section

I don't mind splitting the discussions although the split at 1998 really makes little sense to me.

I ride mountain bikes ranging from 1989 to 2010 and covering most of those years and to me splitting into decades would be so much simpler then at least the goal posts don't keep moving and it lessons the "is my bike retro?" conversations.

How about a split as follows:

80s (1980 - 1989)
90s (1990 - 1999)
00s (2000 - 2009)
10s (2010+)

Alternatively you could split at significant developments in parts/groupsets like.

For example you could use XTR as the benchmark.

pre 92 (ie pre XTR) - The XT era
92 - 96 (M900/910) - 8 Speed and Cantis
97 - 03 (M950/951/952) - V brakes and the start of 9 speed
04 - etc etc - Disc brakes the norm

Anyway those are just a suggestion. At the end of the day if its left alone or split at 98 I'll still come and visit the site just as much

Hmm, its a bit hard going having to keep fliting from one section to the other :?

l personally am interested in mtb's from about '92 - '99 and of the four bikes l own 3 are from '98 and only one falls into the actual retrobike category, a '96 Lavadome. So l'd rather see a layout where the cut off point was 2000. lt makes sense to me anyhoo being the end of a millenium and all.

Feeling slightly ostracized with my '98 Kona collection now, ( They feel very retro to me) l much preferred the original lay out but then l am a relative newbie to this site so lm sure l will get used to it.

I'm part of something new! Nice work guv

I don't see the point in the 1998> sub forum tbh. We all come here because we love bikes of a certain age but to try and define that age...

Will it still be 1998> 5 years from now or will it be 2003> by then? Would it not be easier to define retro as at least 10 or 15 years old and then create sub forums within the bike types based on that? If I want to talk about or buy/sell 1998> mtb's I now have to use the same sub forum as the guys who want to talk 1998> road or bmx. I think I prefered it as it was....

Fudd":2m0xzclj said:

I don't see the point in the 1998> sub forum tbh. We all come here because we love bikes of a certain age but to try and define that age...

Will it still be 1998> 5 years from now or will it be 2003> by then? Would it not be easier to define retro as at least 10 or 15 years old and then create sub forums within the bike types based on that? If I want to talk about or buy/sell 1998> mtb's I now have to use the same sub forum as the guys who want to talk 1998> road or bmx. I think I prefered it as it was....

Click to expand...

I think you're right mate. I kinda like the fact there's a modern bit, but we are all here because we like the same thing. 98 is probably to early to finish and ten year gap is more easy to understand. That said my bike 2003/04 Litespeed has retro touches that keeps me happy as these parts have been with me for the years I've been riding. Confusing?! Yup. I like the idea of retro, non retro for sale section. This should be down to the user to decide though, and or the moderators? Hmmm tough call. Tweeks are need perhaps?! 10 pence worth done... Almost... The overriding reason the site is successful is because 99% of the time it's enthusiasts who are super friendly and helpful. As long as this doesn't change Retrobike will be part of my browsing routine!

I thought that 1997/1998 split was pretty well understood, hence the readers bike section which has been split for a while, so to split the chat sections on the same lines in quite understandable and makes sense. Any other date will just confuse matter.

Some useful and interesting comments thus far, appreciate those who have taken the time to post feedback. a few comments in no order at all.

Please be aware this isn't a perment change - if things don't work out we'll simply revert to the way they were.

I'd agree the '98 date split is arbitary, however if someone has a better way of differentaiting I'd be happy to hear it. Think few would disagree the thread on the '2011 Ragley' range has no place in retro mtb chat. However there are of course huge gray areas around the date we've chosen.

A date was chosen because it can be moderated. anything else would be opinion based - good luck on that. We of course won't be moderating this with a fist of iron. Threads will be moved sensibly.

The focus of the site has always leant towards the mid nineties and before - this is borne out in BoTM wins, what I see out on the rides and what I see posted up in retro mtb chat (as well as my own preference).

Guess I felt the pressure for this came from two sides. The pressure to keep 'Retro MTB chat' focussed - that is focussed on the older stuff which I believe a large precentage of our membership are interested in. Also wanted a bike chat forum for those whose definition of retro differed from that of the moderators and myself as well as somewhere modern stuff could be discussed without trawling through threads about 'what my dogs having for his tea'.

Glad others have picked up on the community aspect of it too. Yes, perhaps modern stuff doesn't have a place here in one sense but given many of us do run newer (or even modern stuff) it is good to have an outlet here - I know I don't use other forums. If I wanted a crtique on my lawn I'd get Alan Titschmarsh round.

When we move to a new forum software (as we surely will) there will be opportunities for better organising the site forum page.

Anyhow my thoughts are rambling and a little unordered. However I do think this is a good move as do the other moderators (at least they told me they did ). Let's see how it goes.

I like it, gives the site more focus and helps posts develop and not be lost, no more "this is retro bike so bugger off" responses- but for me modern is post '93 :twisted: