personally I kind like to try to point out that...
in large, due to all the awesome parts that are now available, and of course 29ers...
that... uhh... HELLO!
a kick ass custom double top tubed retro style cruiser can be stupid fast
not only in the dirt but on the road.
uhhh...
29x2.0" with 48x11t = about 127 gear inch.
today I rolled out a 45mph descent thru Pebble Beach, in the rain.
hell-a-freaking-cool.
fast enough to be driving the bike... no doubt
fast enough to have to actually think about how you brake and counter steer
but with enough gear inch to actually drive the wheels with some drift
hell-a-fun
and of course, it goes in the dirt
aka: Tour Divide
racks, panniers, fenders, frame bags, blah blah blah...
IMHO: the design begs to be utilized.
I've ran into GF a handful of times, and honestly, I tell him this updated high tech retro approach, has a market. i.e. Ducati and any of the other "modern Cafe" bikes...
I love my Hunter, its totally 100% custom from the exact swoops in the tubes, right down to where and what type of bosses I wanted. All the cables are full length housing, and all point downward from above the bike. The top tube is smooth, nothing to snag on, etc...
the bars, the positioning, the whole thing was thought out. I was riding a Salsa Moto Rapido, screwing around with the fit, and the way to ride it, when after about 2 years, I finally hit Rick Hunter up to build the exact bike I wanted.
the new Sawyer, I think is a rockin bike.
but.. there are some funky aspects to it, it looks cool.
hopefully it will sell
hopefully there will be more of mainstream following
klunkers? well... I'd hope that the genre of the retro cafe/board track bike, would go thru a R&D process, yielding performance bikes. Bikes that can do everything, all you have to do is change the bars to your liking.
when I see Niner producing a 17lbs hardtail... holy crap! I can remember riding a 20lb Concord with Record, and to top it off, it didn't even come close to how well The Hunter rides.
pathetic... i know.
maybe I'm getting old
I'm not into hucking
I'm not even into agro XC stuff, much...
instead I'd rather roll out a bunch of miles.
ya... its about "mixed terrain" <---- funny how everything gets a label