highlandsflyer
Retro Wizard
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We can all agree with that.
However pure physics tells you two athletes of the same fitness and everything else will perform differently given two pieces of equipment varying in suitability to the task in hand.
My experience is mainly in XC, and I feel a comfortable bike is much more important than a tricked out bike, but only to a point.
The lightest bike you can ride that gives you the comfort you need will be faster over distance, every time.
XC and endurance are definitely arenas where 'retro' bikes can win the day. Thirty year old steel frames ride just as well as new ones of similar design.
I wouldn't want to ride anything lengthy XC wise on a 'rigid' unless it had lots of flex in it to take some of the hits, I am getting old!
For something like a two hour XC I would happily hammer it on a rigid, but anything longer I would be suffering and wanting my mommy, or at least and inch or two at the front to give me a break.
Even short sections of downhill where you can let the forks soak up the punishment and let your muscles recover can make a hardtail with short front suspension the ideal tool for a relatively challenging XC.
A softail lets you have the best of both worlds for XC, there is little weight penalty but most of the advantage of full rear suss.
The great thing for Retro riders is that many of the great advances in MTBs happened in that 90s era that is still considered Retro, so you can pick your weapon and be assured of being 100% competitive.
A modern £2000 bike will generally be competitive and probably XT equipped if we are talking XC orientated.
£2000 will buy you a mid to late 90s fully professional racing rig, a flying machine.
I know which I would want to take home at the end of the day.
However pure physics tells you two athletes of the same fitness and everything else will perform differently given two pieces of equipment varying in suitability to the task in hand.
My experience is mainly in XC, and I feel a comfortable bike is much more important than a tricked out bike, but only to a point.
The lightest bike you can ride that gives you the comfort you need will be faster over distance, every time.
XC and endurance are definitely arenas where 'retro' bikes can win the day. Thirty year old steel frames ride just as well as new ones of similar design.
I wouldn't want to ride anything lengthy XC wise on a 'rigid' unless it had lots of flex in it to take some of the hits, I am getting old!
For something like a two hour XC I would happily hammer it on a rigid, but anything longer I would be suffering and wanting my mommy, or at least and inch or two at the front to give me a break.
Even short sections of downhill where you can let the forks soak up the punishment and let your muscles recover can make a hardtail with short front suspension the ideal tool for a relatively challenging XC.
A softail lets you have the best of both worlds for XC, there is little weight penalty but most of the advantage of full rear suss.
The great thing for Retro riders is that many of the great advances in MTBs happened in that 90s era that is still considered Retro, so you can pick your weapon and be assured of being 100% competitive.
A modern £2000 bike will generally be competitive and probably XT equipped if we are talking XC orientated.
£2000 will buy you a mid to late 90s fully professional racing rig, a flying machine.
I know which I would want to take home at the end of the day.
