Essence Bicycles closing – & I can relate
Times are tough that’s for sure & many businesses are closing. But Essence Bicycles are closing for a different reason and can be summed up in a post by Paul on Vorb.
“The bike has become more than the tool, it is actually defining the type of riding. I think that is all upside down. The bike industry creates riding niches to create more bikes to convince us that we must ride a particular bike on a type of trail. It is getting silly. Five inch travel fullys with slightly different builds are meant for totally different riding? Sure. I also find a good proportion of MTB riders can be quite superficial and get totally hung up on parts and bikes. This is nothing new and I was one of those riders a decade or so ago, but the fragmentation of the industry is driving this to ridiculous levels. Being in the industry and dealing with this, when I am drifting further and further from it is difficult. I am weary of spending evenings talking to someone about which stem is better when all I want to do is scream “it makes no difference, you’ll still ride the same trails in the same way with the same enjoyment with either of them, stop making it such a big thing”.”
Wow. I was so moved by these words that I just had to email Paul (great name :)) to wish him the best of luck.
“Hey mate,
I’ve never purchased from you- but after reading your post on Vorb- I want to wish you all the best!
You have pretty much summed up what I feel (and more i’m sure) about what mountainbiking has become. I really dig your insight and view of how it is going pear shaped with more focus on what we ride rather than getting out there and just riding it.
I’ve been guilty in the past of playing more attention to my bikes and what is hanging off them- but since landing in NZ a few years ago via Australia and originally the UK- i’m now a one bike man and ride it everywhere. There is something special in just riding and forgetting about the latest craze that we are being told is what mountain bikers do. Indeed it is “simpler”.
Friends, trails, fitness and adventure cannot be purchased.
Happy trails & thanks for an inspirational views.
Cheers,
Paul”
As you can see from my email, I’ve experienced alot of personal growth and “maturity” when it comes to my bike riding and attitude towards what I now see as “riding my bike”. Over the past few years I’ve struggled to put it into words how my riding and attitude towards the bike industry in general have changed- but Paul has nailed it. I did get a reply to my email and I’ll not post it up here- but I will leave you with Paul’s last sentence….
“Have fun, and I might catch you out on the trails sometime. I’ll be the guy on the inappropriate bike with a big grin!”
AMEN.
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i can understand where he/you are coming from. but i do kinda disagree with you both.
is there really something wrong with having the wet white 90mm ritchey WSC 4 axis stem on my bike? i love it. yes i could run a no name black stem or even a white one for that matter at a 90mm in length, but is it really wrong of me to want something that makes me feel good?
there are probably 100 stems i could choose from and i reckon 101 of those would work exactly the same as the wet white 90mm ritchey WSC 4 axis stem. but for me, i work my bloody arse off and feel i deserve the wet white 90mm ritchey WSC 4 axis stem. it makes my bike look better – i look at my bike with it on there and i actually feel really proud of it.
i am proud because i think my bike looks F#*kn’ unreal.
i am proud of it because i customised my bike to look F#*kn’ unreal. [IMHO]
i can be found just going downstairs to our spare room and having a quick look at my bike. i love it.
why…
not because it has parts that i feel i NEED to get
not because the parts on it are the best
because it is a pure extension of me.
it actually is me, but as a bike.
hell. i have a CRC order coming in with … wait for it … white “blank” bar end plugs.
again. won’t make my bike go any faster. but it will make my bike more an extension of myself.
without knowing Paul [the other Paul] i really think it sounds more like he needs some quality time with family with the addition of more riding. he sounds like me, a happier man once home from a ride
^IMHO ;)
Hey :) I’ve had my morning coffee so I can now read & write :)
I get what you are saying- and I’m the same. I love a bit of gear here and there- and these days the “gear” generally consists of the things that wear out and have a limited life when you take the bike out week after week and hammer it. Is there anything wrong with replacing broken and worn gear? Hell no. To be honest, there is nothing wrong with constantly upgrading stuff, owning 6 bikes for every possible trail/ weather pattern and spending more money on it than a crack habit. But that’s not what I see mountain biking as these days.
I think that you are taking this the wrong way- if you want to buy matching parts for your bike- great. If you want to buy stuff that you feel is an extension of you through your bike- then great. But this is the whole point…..that’s not what mountain biking and outdoor sports is for other folk. No matter how much we spend on our bikes…..there is no substitute for sunny days with mates out in the hills with a grin from ear to ear. This is Paul’s point- and I agree….a bike is a bike. It takes us “out there” where the adventure is- where the trails are- and where nature greets us. No matter how good the bike looks or how much it costs- if you don’t have it in you- the magic won’t happen. Personally, I see the bike industry cutting corners and selling “dreams” of magic that we all have to work for- in the form of shiny new “stuff”. It’s all hype and sales……while the real riding is out there waiting. I think that along the way of buying and consuming and colour coordinating alot of cyclists have forgotten the reasons why they first got on the bike. And the bike/ component makers are loving this! $$$$$$$$ I mean- how many 100mm stems do we need…seriously!
Do I dislike the “new breed” of mountain biker or cyclists because of their $10,000 carbon 7″ XC bikes, or because they are head to foot in skin tight lycra with some company’s logos that are just that- a money making company…..hell no as they are my brothers and sisters. They are cyclists and what ever floats their boat is there own business- and many are my friends too. I’m not saying I’m RIGHT & everyone else are wrong- it’s just about how I feel about my riding NOW. And I’m allowed to be proud that I now feel like I did 15yrs ago when I first started to ride my bike! I love having dings, marks and battle scars on my bike and every ride is an adventure and I use one bike for all of my riding. Yes it has the technology we could only dream of when we first rode our mountain bikes, and I do have a bit of an obsession with clashing colours at present, but it is JUST A BIKE (a damn fine one at that!) A bike that I also look at daily and feel warm and fuzzy about….but that’s because we have seen stuff together…and ridden places that just give me goose bumps…..it has changed the way I ride- the places- and even the friends I have….& not exclusively because it has the best gear on it.
I’ve also got an order form CRC coming that has some new wheels- that I’ve saved for and planned for a few years now to stop the constant pinch flats I get riding in the Port Hills. So I’m not saying that I’m above the law when it come to “consuming” stuff we don’t need. But hey, wait a minute, I really do need these to stop me flatting every time i nail a rocky downhill track as it is starting to ruin my rides. If I could avoid spending money on wheels I would- and trust me I’ve tried other options- but a set of UST wheels is the “way”.
There lies the difference. Need vs want. And over the years I’ve hit a good balance where I ride my bike/s hard and replace stuff that needs replacing. Yes, economics have helped this somewhat with “life” costing more- but the fact is that a 100mm stem is exactly that. And because it comes in 6 colours and has “just been released” does not make it better- WE are what makes it better by getting out there and riding. These days I’ll buy a stem that will last many years and “dirt antics” over how it looks. Thankfully, Thomson and King still make stuff to last many many years, rather than to “look nice”. If the new gear makes the ride better- faster- and more fun- I’m in. If others choose to waste their money on pointless and constant upgrades then that’s cool. I’m not here to judge- but that ain’t what mountain biking is for me anymore.
As for Paul’s reasons, I can see and relate to how running a business can wear you down (having done it for 6+ years myself)- but I can also see how an industry more concerned with profit and selling stuff we don’t need can also wear you down.
ps. when are you out here?
The original plan was in a few weeks- but things have changed :( I have a few Aussie mates (one being Richard) coming in for Xmas/ New year and we are planning to trip around the North Island and then back South. I can’t afford to do both so I’m hanging back for these fellas.
Congratulations Paul !!! I agree with you , i love a good bike and happilly i have a good one (Cannondale F4), but nowadays many mountain bikers are so worried about what they ride , that they forgot the most important : enjoying and having fun. That´s too bad , because bicycle means simplicity. Bye bye Jorge Luis Nogueira , Resende ,Brazil, by the way “canelasdeaço” means shins of steel.
Hi Jorge. What really makes me smile from ear to ear is that there are still mountain bikers out there that have stories to tell and scars to show. Have fun out there! & I love your blog ;)
yeah i guess that is the thing. need vs want.
i think in some ways though, the bike manufacturers aren’t as bad as we think they are. in the real world creating a 4′, 5′, 6′, 7′, carbon, alloy, carbon composite, etc., matrix and of combination’s is really inefficient cost wise to them.
lets face it. make 3 bikes only in one compound and the cost would be sooooo much cheaper.
i think it is the demand that drives the sales. you can make anything you want as a manufacturer but if people don’t want it … you will fail.
now do they make us think we want it? – of course – there in lies advertising. – but that comes down to quality as well. make something everyone buys, if it is shit word will spread and you will die a painful death.
i find giant a great example. they sell cheap arse bikes almost un-beatable on price. so really we should all just be riding giants. price is right and honestly i am still to hear of one bad word about a giant bike. place the ratio of units sold to defaults and whoooo..
step back from the machine…
any / every manufacturer would be proud of their numbers
another example of consumer based trends is the fixie phenomenon [sticking my head out here... fixie's ARE here to stay - everyone thought MTB were a fad didn't they?]
again looking at the big wig companies, it wasn’t them who were smart enough to start marketing them toward the consumer, the consumer demand became so great they had to jump on and supply, supply, supply.
we could go on for hours but…
i do understand more now about where you both are coming from.
reading back over it all it seems more than anything the biggest issue is the loss of whom seemed to be a bloody nice guy selling bikes for the right reasons.
good luck to Paul
ride safe!
I suppose at the end of the day- if it makes you happy and you are out riding- it’s all good right? Well…..sort of :) as the hype and advertising owns most of that “happiness” in the form of constant cash for the same thing. Just recently I had what many would see as a disagreement (hehe) with a shop owner who was trying to convince me that the latest Crank Brother wheelset was the shizza and that the increased stiffness would make the ride “better”. I stated that a wheel is a wheel- it goes around and you go forward. Yes, the lighter the faster- but regardless you go forward and that’s all “I need”. Having a reliable wheel that goes forward is even better! He just could not get into his head that I was actually content with my wheelset because there is a “better one” available. This kind of shit is where is has gone wrong- new does not mean that it is better- it won’t make me a better rider or a fitter more skilled rider….that’s all up to me.
Anyway, for shits n’ giggles I lent down and grabbed the front wheel on the carbon Blur (of course!) and surprise surprise the bearings were fucking loose…..Crank Brothers…..lol! Funny though as my wheelset has great bearings ;)
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