Mountain bike technology advances - Presentation

mattham

Hi All

I'm doing a management course on Monday and Tuesday next week, our homework for the module is to bring a half finished presentation on anything we want to work on during the course.

Was thinking I could do one on technology advances on our bikes, I think there is enough material for 15 to 20 mins - any ideas or input on content like suggesting the advances or any content links or thoughts on the benefits, including some technical details from everyone would no doubt be very interesting!

What do you think is the most important development over the years?

My very quick initial thoughts this evening are.....

1. Gear indexing
2. Suspension
a. Front suspension
b. Rear suspension
c. Coil and oil springs changing to air springs
3. Brakes
a. Cantilever to V brakes to hydraulic disc brakes
4. Geometric development
a. Longer wheelbase
b. Slacker angles
c. Longer top tubes and shorter stems
d. Wider handlebars
5. Different wheel sizes for different situations and preferences
6. Tyre design
a. Tread design
b. Material compounds
7. Dropper seat posts
8. Single ring gears

Thanks in advance if you have an opinion on this!
Matt

nicklouse

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19715141#p19715141]MattHam[/url] wrote:

Hi All

I'm doing a management course on Monday and Tuesday next week, our homework for the module is to bring a half finished presentation on anything we want to work on during the course.

Was thinking I could do one on technology advances on our bikes, I think there is enough material for 15 to 20 mins - any ideas or input on content like suggesting the advances or any content links or thoughts on the benefits, including some technical details from everyone would no doubt be very interesting!

What do you think is the most important development over the years?

My very quick initial thoughts this evening are.....

1. Gear indexing
2. Suspension
a. Front suspension
b. Rear suspension
c. Coil and oil springs changing to air springs
3. Brakes
a. Cantilever to V brakes to hydraulic disc brakes
4. Geometric development
a. Longer wheelbase
b. Slacker angles
c. Longer top tubes and shorter stems
d. Wider handlebars
5. Different wheel sizes for different situations and preferences
6. Tyre design
a. Tread design
b. Material compounds
7. Dropper seat posts
8. Single ring gears

Thanks in advance if you have an opinion on this!
Matt

First define your time line.

2c incorrect. Oil is not a spring. It is used for dampening. Don't forget elastomers.

Disc brakes have been around for a lot longer than people think. They were there before V brakes.
4 c and d are not paired correctly. Find out about the relation between bar width and stem length. Nothing to do with top tube length.

That will give some things to google.

cooldad

I hardly think single rings are a technological advance. More like a regression.

BigAl

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19715152#p19715152]cooldad[/url] wrote:

I hardly think single rings are a technological advance. More like a regression.

Whilst that's, in a sense, true it's also undeniably a direction bikes have gone. Perhaps mention clutch mechs, NW rings and the availability of larger rear sprockets.

Tubeless tyres also surely merit a mention as perhaps does frame technology

paul.skibum

QR to bolt through/maxle type systems - frame/fork stiffness

But what's this got to do with a management course?

FishFish

Don't forget to include electric bikes and as it is a management course the effect of the internet on sales and marketing channels.

The Rookie

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19715152#p19715152]cooldad[/url] wrote:

I hardly think single rings are a technological advance. More like a regression.

The increasing number of speeds on the freehub and the ability of mechs to cope with a wider range has been the technological advance that has enabled 1x to be practical though. I would add narrow-wide and clutch mechs as enablers also as it maximises the 'benefit' of it as a whole package.

HenryTheHoover

Hydroforming has got to be up there. It has made all sorts of stuff possible

The Rookie

Not really unique to MTBing though, and really rather an old technology as it's been in commercial use since the 1950's.

Chunkers1980

It's about presentation skills, the accuracy of the content is meaningless it's getting any content across correctly for an audience

cooldad

I just take my shirt off, flex a bit and no one worries about my skills.

mattham

Chunkers1980 wrote:

It's about presentation skills, the accuracy of the content is meaningless it's getting any content across correctly for an audience

Yes, this is absolutely right of course, the content is irrelevant, the module is about this skill of delivery to the audience.

This is great fun for me, of course I'd really like to make the presentation as accurate as possible in terms of its content, but in the end it doesn't really matter, but I like this thread now!

nicklouse wrote:

First define your time line.

2c incorrect. Oil is not a spring. It is used for dampening. Don't forget elastomers.

I've been riding since I was a kid in the late 80's, so I reckon since then - How can I forget elastomers, DOH! Especially as the once proud owner of a Girvin Flexstem and later some rather lovely looking Pace RC35 suspension forks!

The Rookie wrote:

[url=<span class= wrote:

cooldad[/url]"]I hardly think single rings are a technological advance. More like a regression.

The increasing number of speeds on the freehub and the ability of mechs to cope with a wider range has been the technological advance that has enabled 1x to be practical though. I would add narrow-wide and clutch mechs as enablers also as it maximises the 'benefit' of it as a whole package.

That's a great way to look at it - the ability to make cogs and chainrings has existed for years of course, but the N/W chainrings and the clutch mech have really released the design constraints, this is the sort of thing I'll probably put in there!

FishFish wrote:

Don't forget to include electric bikes

Hmmm......!!

Thanks all, this is great stuff, if there are more views, that's be great....what is single biggest advance since the late 80's in the design or technology of mountain bikes in your opinion?

Ta
Matt

rockmonkeysc

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19715451#p19715451]Chunkers1980[/url] wrote:

It's about presentation skills, the accuracy of the content is meaningless it's getting any content across correctly for an audience

Any idiot can do a presentation. Keep it short, don't go in to technical details unless you are presenting to technical people, keep to bullet points only for text. Most importantly, remember that most of the people you are presenting to couldn't give a rats ass what you have to say and just want the important bits. Make sure pictures and diagrams are clear and obvious.
I have to do a lot of technical presentations to non technical people which is a complete waste of time, salesmen have no idea what I'm talking about when I'm explaining that a new material has a more appropriate elastic modulus to improve the anti vibration qualities of the product. Its depressing for me and boring for them.

FishFish

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19715692#p19715692]MattHam[/url] wrote:

Chunkers1980 wrote:

Thanks all, this is great stuff, if there are more views, that's be great....what is single biggest advance since the late 80's in the design or technology of mountain bikes in your opinion?

Ta
Matt

Well my answer would include the commercial success of carbon and has been said nw and clutch mech to allow single speed. (and because it is me - electric bikes!) Good luck with it. Well unless you are an Arsenal supporter in which case hope it crashes!

rockmonkeysc

By far the most important advance in mountain biking since its beginning has been suspension.
Electric bikes aren't mountain bikes.

bradallen226

Disk braking system have been around for a lot more time than individuals think. They were there before V braking system. 4 c and d are not combined correctly

cooldad

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19718059#p19718059]bradallen226[/url] wrote:

Disk braking system have been around for a lot more time than individuals think. They were there before V braking system. 4 c and d are not combined correctly

Seriously?

[url=http://www.bikeradar.com/forums/viewtopic.php?p=19715147#p19715147]nicklouse[/url] wrote:

Disc brakes have been around for a lot longer than people think. They were there before V brakes.
4 c and d are not paired correctly.

mattham

Well, I have now done this. Was a very interesting course actually, lots of stuff about body position, media of delivery, structure, story telling, flair, keeping the audience interested, pace and volume of delivery etc.

Anyway, I thought I'd do a presentation on something that I thought no one would know anything about or be able to question.....turns out one of the course leaders husband and son are Steve and Tom Dowie who run the Chicksands bike park and Tom is pro 4X racer so I couldn't blag it because she knew what I was talking about! :oops:

Thanks for your input all, it was very useful!
Matt