The early days of mountain biking were hit-and-miss when it came to tech innovation. Everything was new, and there was no rulebook or standard to follow when it came to bike and component design. Naturally, this led to a whole heap of leftfield developments, some of which were simply bonkers, while others had an impact on how we ride to this day. Here are eight retro products that made waves when they were launched – some of which proved to be long-lasting wins for mountain biking, while others were swiftly ditched.
TIOGA DISC WHEEL
Aero looks, scare-o performance
early 1990s there was a rumble in the jungle (or rather, the woods), and that was the unmistakable drumroll-like echo of the ultimate mountain bike component of the era – the Tioga Disc Drive rear wheel. Introduced in 1992, this wasn’t simply a standard spoked wheel with an ‘aero’ cover, like modern road disc wheels. Instead, the disc was structural, made from an aluminium mesh with Kevlar tensioning cords. For around £400 (at the time) you could get yourself the innards of the wheel, on top of which you had to buy
