Totally agree with that observation. But I wasn't biking in 1994, so am unable to speak from experience there. Wonder how much the 29er concept also influenced the bikes?
As to the QBP brands, I'm not sure. From what I have read, they are pretty indepdent of each other. As in they don't all sit around and decide who is going to develop what type of bike. Not even sure they communicate that much while working. From photos I've seen they all have different office areas. Definitely run by distinct groups of people. With individual marketing concepts. For the record, I like most of the Surly marketing, even though I don't have a beard, tattoos or drink adult beverages under bridges or next to barrel fires. Mainly because it is different. And that is something I can identify with. Different. Eric Platt St. Paul, MN On Sat, Oct 18, 2014 at 9:44 PM, cyclotourist <[email protected]> wrote: > I think the growth and acceptance of large tire sizes definitely happened > on Grant's/Rivendell's watch and he can humbly take the majority of credit > for it. He obviously didn't invent the concept of a demi-ballon tire, and > others were working in tandem (Jan, Surly, etc), but in modern mainstream > cycling, the concept was lost. > Think about it: Prior to 1994, what was considered a large road bike (not > touring) tire was 28mm. That grew to 33.3mm, and now it's a full 42mm! > There are plenty of MCRBs that still barely fit a 28, but people don't > question larger tires. One of my local buddies who is fully into the local > carbon & crit scene was complaining how the fenders on his commuter > couldn't fit his new 35mm Kojaks. The times they have a' changed! > > > Alt topic: Did not know that about All City being a QBP brand. Anybody > know how distinct and the level of independence the various QBP marques > have? > > > > On Sat, Oct 18, 2014 at 5:16 PM, Eric Platt <[email protected]> > wrote: > >> A couple of days ago, someone asked what type of Dutch bike my Sam >> Hillborne was. He was quite serious and shocked when I informed him the >> bike was modern and designed in California. >> >> This was actually the first time I'd been on a trip up to Grand Marais, >> MN with a Rivendell. Previous trips had been with either a Surly or Salsa. >> >> Oh, and don't forget that All City bikes is also a QBP product. Sort of >> their own niche. And in seeing the numbers of them around here, replacing >> the Surly Cross Check as the "standard" bike of the Twin Cities. >> >> Eric Platt >> St. Paul, MN >> >> On Sat, Oct 18, 2014 at 11:24 AM, Cyclofiend Jim < >> [email protected]> wrote: >> >>> You can always remove decals... >>> >>> "What kind of bike is that?" >>> >>> "Steel" >>> >>> "?" >>> >>> Just in case some folks didn't know, Surly is a brand (like Salsa now, >>> among others) owned by QBP (Quality Bicycle Products) which is the largest >>> wholesaler of bike parts & accessories within the US. That means that if >>> you are a QBP dealer (which most shops are), you can stock Surly bikes. >>> For a smaller dealer, this means that you can offer models without having >>> the necessarily pre-order a container load. This a good thing for >>> independent dealers and good thing for folks who have wanted options from >>> what the brand-intensive shops stock. They focused on an underserved >>> (heck, at the time _UN_served) part of the market and have executed well >>> for a while now. >>> >>> - Jim / cyclofiend.com >>> >>> -- >>> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google >>> Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. >>> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send >>> an email to [email protected]. >>> To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. >>> Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. >>> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. >>> >> >> -- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "RBW Owners Bunch" group. >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >> email to [email protected]. >> To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. >> Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. >> For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. >> > > > > -- > Cheers, > David > > Member, Supreme Council of Cyberspace > > "it isn't a contest. Just enjoy the ride." - Seth Vidal > > > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "RBW Owners Bunch" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. > Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. > -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "RBW Owners Bunch" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. Visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/rbw-owners-bunch. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
