which bike company do you think has bought the most to mountain biking/road biking over the years and why?
I’m going to treat “Brought the most” in terms of having a big impact and IMO SRAM over the last 15 – 20 years have changed road and MTBing massively, not because I think they are the “best”, in many instances I think they turn out some utter toss.
But I feel they are important because they have precipitated development and competition in the cycle industry, without SRAM Shimano and Campagnolo would have retired to their respective corners And largely just left each other alone, SRAM as the third big player have tended to push all the market segments and technical changes while the other two deliver quality but seldom move with the same pace, SRAM apply the sort of pressure needed to keep the competition moving.
SRAM have acquired their way into making just about everything you would need to build a bike except the frame. Yes they are a global evil mega-corp now but probably the most innovative and diverse one in the cycling world, and of course they are a cycle company not properly evil like Gasprom, Starbucks or Nestle…
All that from making twisty gear changers that half the world disliked twenty five odd years ago, Shimano are coming up on 93 years old campag are over 80, both unquestionably important to cycling but SRAM have done more to change cycling equipment in the last two decades than either of the old boys…