Looking through a recent bike guide book, I can't help but notice how many of the bikes now look quite comically out of date, and how some just look like bikes we'd buy now.
So which are the timeless designs that will always look good?
my first suggestion is a rockhopper frame circa 94/95. don't look vastly different to many of the current crop really...
early Konas take some beating IMO
I reckon the Mountain Cycle San Andreas from the early 90s was well ahead of its time and looks perfectly passable as a big bike today.
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far too soon to tell imo
I'm relatively new to MTBs - and all the pictures of "Classic" bikes look incredibly dated in what 10/15/ 20 years?
Road bikes have been around far longer - and age much better
My touchstone is with classic guitars - the Fender Stratocaster was designed in the 50s - but it was the late 70s/ early 80s before Fender realised they had got it right first time and gave up on the oversized headstocks.
I think you need at least 30 years to be sure if something is a classic design or not
Yep, the San An was waaaay ahead of the design curve.
Ultimately, the hardtail frame is a design classic already. The triple triangle design is, with the odd variation, largely perfected across all areas of cycling. It is a classic, so a Kona, a Cotic, a Cannondale will look relatively timeless.
I give you the [s]Cannondale Prophet[/s] 1997 Marin B-17
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And the real one:
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I'm sure daylight photos are available too.
how is that kona lava dome standng up?