The first time I saw one, I had to hold in my lunch. Just now, I had a sudden flashback, and actually wondered if they performed any particular function, or if they were just a passing experiment.
Anyway, if you are suffering indigestion, and want to cleanse, here you go:
Matt Carr, Shaggy & Travis Brown competed on them iirc. Small wheel to accelerate up to speed & turn quickly with a large front to roll over things nicely.
There’s a 19in one of the original Rootbeer ones for sale round the corner from me (not mine), full bike but not original spec, has an Alfine on the back and not got the Maverick any more…
If the rear could take 650 I’d have one now. I’m told putting a 650 rear in my current 29er makes it lots of fun but no one is willing to lend me a wheel to try.
I’ve run 69ers for years. mostly with different guises of Ragley Mmmbop 26in frames, and for various uses. Have a Genesis Grapil which runs a treat as 69er for xc, and 27.5 Maxxis Shorty front 26 rear for muddy conditions. Bloody brilliant.
Finally….a thread i can actually add some value to,
Matt alongside St Mary’s Loch on his (and shaggys) way to win TransScotland 2007
Matt leading the charge on the final day
I thought they were brilliant to ride, ended up turning my Soulcraft ss into a 69’r and finally got under 2 hrs for a lap of Kirroughtree and made long days out in the hills less exhausting so i thought it was a great idea at the time
I had one for a while. Got it to try singlespeeding at the 8hr Oktoberfst thing at Ashton Park
Really light bikes. I’m not strong enough for singlespeeding. The Maverick fork had way too much travel for that bike, but being able to lock it out/change the geometry was cool.
I loved the look of them. Trek made some cool bikes around that time. I’m after a Sawyer currently
loved my Trek 69er, but I got through rear wheels like they were going out of fashion. Yob front end and dainty rear needing some riding finesse did not really get along with my smash and grab style.
I’ve had an ss version with Duc forks for about 5 years.
The fast moving rear, tank rolling front is total Bol lacks, but I love it to bits.
Despite all the clever stuff I now own it’s still my favourite bike to ride. Sometimes things work and you just don’t know why. This does