Cleland Cross Country bicycles were invented in England before anyone there knew about mountain bikes. In 1979 the first 650b x 54mm Cleland bicycles were created and by 1981 the first 700c x 47mm Cleland had been designed based on Nokia (now Nokian) snow tires from Finland.
In 1980, Cleland inventor Geoff Apps told Gary Fisher and Charlie Kelly about his bikes and their big diameter tires and they were intrigued. So Geoff sent them as many of these tires as he could get hold of and many US mountain bikes were made to fit them. But because they were highly taxed as adult tires and the erratic nature of the supplies from Finland, the mountain bikes developed with 26" tires. A size originally intended for use on children's bikes.
However the big wheels were by no means the only alternative aspect of Geoff Apps' Cleland off-road bicycles. The Cleland bicycles remain uninfluenced by mainstream mountain bike design and ethos. The fact that they not only work, but work very well, will almost certainly challenge your preconceptions regarding good mountain bike design. But these bikes are designed to push the boundaries of where and when you can ride not only off-road, but off-trail.
This alternative lineage of mountain bike design lives on with Geoff and other Cleland enthusiasts like myself making and riding bikes inspired by his unique way of thinking.
So to start the thread here is a link to the Cleland website and a camera phone video of Geoff Apps' favorite off-road ride,
Philosophy | Cleland Cycles
Puffing up Mill Burn on Vimeo
In 1980, Cleland inventor Geoff Apps told Gary Fisher and Charlie Kelly about his bikes and their big diameter tires and they were intrigued. So Geoff sent them as many of these tires as he could get hold of and many US mountain bikes were made to fit them. But because they were highly taxed as adult tires and the erratic nature of the supplies from Finland, the mountain bikes developed with 26" tires. A size originally intended for use on children's bikes.
However the big wheels were by no means the only alternative aspect of Geoff Apps' Cleland off-road bicycles. The Cleland bicycles remain uninfluenced by mainstream mountain bike design and ethos. The fact that they not only work, but work very well, will almost certainly challenge your preconceptions regarding good mountain bike design. But these bikes are designed to push the boundaries of where and when you can ride not only off-road, but off-trail.
This alternative lineage of mountain bike design lives on with Geoff and other Cleland enthusiasts like myself making and riding bikes inspired by his unique way of thinking.
So to start the thread here is a link to the Cleland website and a camera phone video of Geoff Apps' favorite off-road ride,
Philosophy | Cleland Cycles
Puffing up Mill Burn on Vimeo