UK MTB hall of fame

[GrahamJohnWallace]

The success or failure of a UK MTB Hall of fame will depend on how people are induced into it.

Who votes?
Are they well informed?
Will organised interest groups be allowed to have undue influence?

And what of obscure but important pioneers who are almost forgotten versus current big names with their own public relations staff?

I hope that the organisers have thought this through thoroughly. If not
it could just be a forum for uninformed people with loud voices.

The US MTB HoF has avoided many pitfalls by growing slowly and being set up by the pioneers themselves. The large number of voting inductees also ensure that there is a sizable knowledge base. Whilst casual voters will be put off by the $20.00 pa voting membership fee. Even so the US MTB HoF has a very America centred view of mountain biking. Only one British person has ever been inducted and he was famous for winning races in Ammerica.

 

[REKIBorter]

From the Mountain Mayhem website http://www.wigglemountainmayhem.com/

TIMETABLE OF EVENTS
FRIDAY 22ND JUNE

12.00 – 20.30 signing on in the catering tent
16.00 – 18.00 course open for inspection
20.30 Hall of Fame presentation ceremony
21.30 kids pyjama party on start/finish straight

 

[cce]

Chas Roberts was the man they called.....and after much conversation and coercion, it was agreed That Roberts would build the Uk a race winning Elevated chainstay Mountain bike.

I say Coercion, because i feel that Roberts felt the elevated chainstay design was fundamentally flawed in many ways, and i think he felt as a frame builder there were other ways to face the chainsuck/mudclearance/chainstay length issues without having to resort to using this design. And potentially trade one set of problems for another.....ie The weight penalites steel estays had. The Yeti was and is No lightweight.

knocking off a design he didnt like for "fashion" reasons.

Maybe if he'd gone about producing his own ideas as to how to solve the mud clearance etc issues, then you'd have a point

Chas Roberts is a fine framebuilder, whom i have nothing against (in fact i have a lot of time for his frames), but a true MTB pioneer?

Also, i am Very Intrigued.

Can you share with me who YOU do feel is an English Pioneer, Other than the Obvious...... "APPS" of course.

Who is the man that Pioneered the Mountain bike here in the UK for you....?

The only place i can really see where the british have properly pushed the mountain bike forward are disk brakes. Hope were a long way ahead of the pack in the early days, and continue to be among the best to this day

 

[doctor-bond]

The success or failure of a UK MTB Hall of fame will depend on how people are induced into it.

Who votes?
Are they well informed?
Will organised interest groups be allowed to have undue influence?

And what of obscure but important pioneers who are almost forgotten versus current big names with their own public relations staff?

I hope that the organisers have thought this through thoroughly. If not
it could just be a forum for uninformed people with loud voices.

I'd agree with most of that, and I'd also add that the whole concept of halls of fame seems a bit under-thought and, er pointless.

What is the real purpose? As the the tenor of this thread has shown so far, there is no real understanding of why you would want or need a H.O.F.

Is it to celebrate the underdog, or trumpet the work of pioneers? If pioneers, pioneers of what? The sport? The machines? The enjoyment of everyday folk pursuing a mass-marketed pastime? The brands that made most cash? Who was coolest? Who BITD showed most promise?

Let's say we agree that the rationale is to celebrate all of the above and more; then you get to the vexed question of how to discriminate between many apparently well qualified nominees.

Should there be a hard core of illuminati who must decide? Or is the decision based on a cash vote qualification that winnows the MTB bumpkins from the truly committed?

And even if you've managed to read down this far, there is still the problem of regional differences: first a US H.O.F; then a U.K. H.O.F.; then a Welsh version; then the People's MTB H.O.F (PMHOF) that seeks to promote diversity in a changing world; then the M.T.B. Hall of Fame for those West Cornwallians who are Devonian by descent but don't mind a bit of singletrack in the woods ....

 

[cce]

And even if you've managed to read down this far, there is still the problem of regional differences: first a US H.O.F; then a U.K. H.O.F.; then a Welsh version; then the People's MTB H.O.F (PMHOF) that seeks to promote diversity in a changing world; then the M.T.B. Hall of Fame for those West Cornwallians who are Devonian by descent but don't mind a bit of singletrack in the woods ....

is there perhaps an element of creating a UK hall of fame for people who maybe are not significant enough for the global HOF?

 

[GrahamJohnWallace]

From the Mountain Mayhem website http://www.wigglemountainmayhem.com/

TIMETABLE OF EVENTS
FRIDAY 22ND JUNE

12.00 – 20.30 signing on in the catering tent
16.00 – 18.00 course open for inspection
20.30 Hall of Fame presentation ceremony
21.30 kids pyjama party on start/finish straight

Geoff Apps has not mentioned to me that he will be heading south for this weekend.

As the "father of the British mountain bike".
Founder of the first European specialist off-road cycling manufacturer. Inventor of 650b off-road bikes in 1979 and the first true 29er off-road in 1981.
The only non American who collaborated with the NorCal pioneers and so contributed to the early development of US style mountain bikes.
Inventor of grip shift gear changers and numerous other mountain bike features and components...

Surely not inviting Geoff Apps must shed serious doubt on the credibility of this particular "Hall of Fame"

 

[doctor-bond]

is there perhaps an element of creating a UK hall of fame for people who maybe are not significant enough for the global HOF?

Yup. I can see why people would want to, and I guess it's unlucky that the US bagged the whole MTB HOF idea first. But the effect of regional HOF counterparts will be to create an almost-ran muddle.

 

[sinnerman]

The success or failure of a UK MTB Hall of fame will depend on how people are induced into it.

Who votes?
Are they well informed?
Will organised interest groups be allowed to have undue influence?

And what of obscure but important pioneers who are almost forgotten versus current big names with their own public relations staff?

I hope that the organisers have thought this through thoroughly. If not
it could just be a forum for uninformed people with loud voices.

I'd agree with most of that, and I'd also add that the whole concept of halls of fame seems a bit under-thought and, er pointless.

What is the real purpose? As the the tenor of this thread has shown so far, there is no real understanding of why you would want or need a H.O.F.

Is it to celebrate the underdog, or trumpet the work of pioneers? If pioneers, pioneers of what? The sport? The machines? The enjoyment of everyday folk pursuing a mass-marketed pastime? The brands that made most cash? Who was coolest? Who BITD showed most promise?

Let's say we agree that the rationale is to celebrate all of the above and more; then you get to the vexed question of how to discriminate between many apparently well qualified nominees.

Should there be a hard core of illuminati who must decide? Or is the decision based on a cash vote qualification that winnows the MTB bumpkins from the truly committed?

And even if you've managed to read down this far, there is still the problem of regional differences: first a US H.O.F; then a U.K. H.O.F.; then a Welsh version; then the People's MTB H.O.F (PMHOF) that seeks to promote diversity in a changing world; then the M.T.B. Hall of Fame for those West Cornwallians who are Devonian by descent but don't mind a bit of singletrack in the woods ....

Can you please elaborate on this part for me.....?

then the M.T.B. Hall of Fame for those West Cornwallians who are Devonian by descent but don't mind a bit of singletrack in the woods ....

what is the Point you are trying to get at....?

 

[doctor-bond]

Can you please elaborate on this part for me.....?

then the M.T.B. Hall of Fame for those West Cornwallians who are Devonian by descent but don't mind a bit of singletrack in the woods ....

what is the Point you are trying to get at....?

My point is that, although a UK version of a US idea seems like a good idea, it will inevitably leave out some people who think their regional heros should be represented. So before long, there will be a multiplicity of competing halls of fame for ever-decreasing groups. First the UK, then England then the North, the South, the South West until you get to a point where ridiculously small groupings like 'West Cornwallians' or 'Devonians' are competing to have their local heroes' achievements properly recognised.

And anyway, wasn't the development of mountain biking surprisingly global? One only has to think of the likes of Geoff Apps and Charlie Kelly corresponding; or the global nature of the race scene during the 1980's.

 

[GrahamJohnWallace]

Perhaps Wikipedia is the best place for documenting historic events and people of importance as you have to cite the sources of your information so that it can be vetted by others?

Unfortunately without checks and balances of some people will try to rewrite history in order to show events in a more favorable light. Also mistakes and myths can be recorded as fact.

The US Mtb Hall of fame is very US centric. Someone who competed a few times at the Repack races is more likely to be inducted than a serous British contender like Geoff Apps.