7 Innovations That Changed Mountain Bikes FOREVER!

The world of mountain bike technology is ever-changing, with new standards, flashy tech and groundbreaking innovations popping up all the time.

Not every new piece of tech is worth writing home about, but today we’re looking at the innovations that truly changed mountain biking forever. We’re talking real game-changers!

The products here could tell us where mountain biking is going in the future, so strap in for some psychic surprises from the MBUK crystal ball! 🔮

Which is your favourite? Let us know in the comments 👇

#MBUKmagazine #MTB #mbuk #mountainbike #mbuktech

Photo Credit:
Chris Longbone
Dave Caudrey, Future Publishing
Getty Images Brian Bahr/ALLSPORT
Getty Images Doug Pensinger
Getty Images Mike Powell /Allsport
Getty Images Gary Newkirk /Allsport
Dan Milner

Chapters:
00:00 Intro
00:30 Suspension
02:28 Dropper Posts
03:35 Disc Brakes
04:29 Wheel Size
06:50 Tubeless
08:26 Electronics
10:03 Ebikes
10:44 Conclusion
11:17 Outro

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The world of mountain bike technology is Ever Changing with new standards flashy Tech and groundbreaking Innovations popping up all the time we’ll admit not every piece of new tech is worth writing home about but today we’re looking at the innovations that truly revolutionized mountain biking forever we’re talking real game changers here so

Let’s Dive Right In more traction equals more action so one of the biggest Innovations fitted to mountain bikes has got to be the invention of suspension but just how have we gone from this wooo to this that sick in 1985 American Horse litner changed mountain bike history drawing on his background in motorcycle

Engineering litner designed a rear suspension linkage system that reduced the effects of braking on the suspension sensitivity the first hor link frame was born lner’s horse link design also known as a fourar link became one of the most widely used linkage designs on the market and is

Still used today by the likes of specialized Norco and transition and even more after specialized FSR pattern expired in 2013 with rapid advancements in the world of rear suspension designs the front forks had some catching up to do in 1991 Rock shocks released its first ever suspension Fork developed during

1989 and raced by Ned overend to World Champs victory in Durango in 1990 the rs1 proved itself instantly offering just 50 mm of travel the rs1 was very flexy compared to today’s super taught long travel forks and lacked any adjustability in the damping but bear in

Mind this was an airs sprung Fork which offered hydraulic damping and weighed only about 1500 G it also cost just $350 which was leagues ahead of the competition it changed the game and its telescopic design is still mirrored by the best suspension forks on the market today however even though suspension

Advances year after year some Riders still believe they’re better off with less of it hardcore hard taals are a popular choice on Trails all over the world proving that more suspension doesn’t always equal more fun I can talk for hours about suspension but senior video manager Felix has banned me but if

You want to hear about how to set up your suspension sag click the link here After 1980 Mountain Bike Innovation had truly taken off and full suspension frames and telescopic Forks open the door to A Whole New World of trail riding however one problem remained you had to stop every time you wanted to lower your seat until in 1983 a couple of American riders came up with a

Solution which they called the height right the height right relied on a simple spring mechanism which was attached to the seat tube and the seat post with two collars it offered up to 114 mil of drop an excellent example of an early dropper post is the gravity dropper agricultural though it was it

Was very effective and not too expensive KS moved dropper design forward with an airs sprung dropper but it wasn’t until 2010 and the introduction of the rock shocks Reverb the infinitely adjustable travel and handlebar mounted remotes became the norm dropper posts certainly changed the game for cross country trail

And Enduro Riders of course there’s a weight penalty to factor in as well as added complex and cost however we’d still class them as one of the most game-changing upgrades out there as riding speeds kept increasing brake technology had a hard time keeping up by the 1990s mechanical disc brakes

Were taking over from Rim breakes prized for their increased power and improved performance especially in the wet but it wasn’t until the mid 1990s that UK’s hope technology went Global with the launch of their hope C2 Disc break Rob Warner won his only World Cup using these brakes in caun in

1986 the c2s had a thumb wheel adjuster allowing for on the-fly tuneability and compensating for the expansion of hydraulic fluid in the closed system the industry never looked back and hydraulic dis braks continue to offer the Pinnacle of performance across the sport of cycling on and off-road thankfully Now

Using open systems like cars and motorbikes though what does the future hold perhaps Wireless electronic disc brakes are the answer let us know what you think in the comments Until the early 2000s the mountain biking World rolled on one wheel size only it was 26 in or nothing this all changed when Wilderness Trail bikes released the first purpose-made 29in mountain bike tire back in 1999 mountain bike Pioneers Gary fiser and Charlie Kelly were experimenting with 29ers and

Fiser went on to produce one of the first mass-produced 29in wheel bikes the benefits of 29in Wheels were hard to deny offering vastly improved grip and rollover however at the time frame geometry and suspension Fork design limited the use of big wheels and they were reserved for CrossCountry riding in

2013 a compromise was found in the form of the 27 1/2 in wheel size also known as 650b offering increased grip rollover and stability over 26-in Wheels without the handling downsides found on early 29ers however 29er development continued in the shadows and by 2016 the intermediate wheel size looked to have a

Fight on its hands the beginning of the end for 650 being downhill came just a year later when the Santa Cruz Syndicate announced they would be starting the 2017 downhill World Cup season aboard a 29er V10 prototype but there was yet another standard emerging so-called mullet bikes use a large 29in front

Wheel paired with a smaller 27 1/2 in rear wheel and quickly gained popularity on the downhill and in Juro race circuit the mixed wheel siiz setup was was especially popular amongst smaller Riders combining the stability grip and rollover of a large front wheel compared with the responsive handling and

Increased bum to rear wheel clearance of the smaller 27 1/2 in wheel we haven’t seen any convincing evidence that there’s a new wheel size about to take over but internet forums have sparked debates on 36 as being the next step in the evolution of the mountain bike wheel

While these Wagon Wheels do look totally wild many said the same about 29ers at the start of the Millennium if you’re curious about bigger Wheels but think that 36 in might be too big you could consider the latest ineter size a 32 or if you think P 36ers are too small then

Fear not you could Lobby ridiculous bikes to build you a 39er right that’s enough internet for one day I do love the mountain bike Industry despite offering improvements in grip speed and control bigger Wheels still didn’t eliminate the most deflating of Mechanicals there’s nothing more Soul destroying than hearing the dreaded as your tire rapidly loses pressure luckily for us with the Advent of tubeless technology ride ending punctures have just about become a thing

Of the past the tubless concept was born in 1999 with the universal standard for tubless tires dubbed us however despite proving successful in reducing punctures on the trail the uptake of us technology was slow the system was heavy and very expensive and it also wasn’t truly Universal requiring specific tires and

Rims for a successful tubless seal in the year 2000 a man by the name of Stan kch sorry about the pronunciation shocked the industry with his homemade solution to the tubless problem using a standard tire and rim combination Stan taped the rim bed and added a home brw sealant solution before mounting the

Tire his system was effective cheap and truly Universal the reliability of tub systems was boosted further with the invention of Tire inserts using closed cell foam they help by adding stability to the side wall of the tire and acting as a cushion between the Rubber and the

Bead to prevent pinch Flats while it’s clear that no one is going back to tubes except maybe slop star Riders punctures are still stopping Riders and Racers all over the world admittedly this is far less of a problem than it used to be but it begs the question can we do more to

Truly make flaps a thing of the Past while suspension brakes and droppers were all evolving the basic principle of cable operated mountain bike gears have remained relatively unchanged over the years after all aside from an extra Cog here or there was there room for an improvement on the one by Drive Trin shimano’s answer to that

Question came in 2014 with a mountain bike specific iteration of their electronic di2 road gear shifting system it still used wires but it was the first true electronic shifting solution in 2019 swam up the anti with the introduction of its gamechanging 12-speed Eagle axis drivetrain offering entirely Wireless Shifting the rest of

The industry was still catching up in the world of suspension computers have offered tantalizing hints of how they could be used to adjust the suspension automatically to suit the terrain Fox were the first to take the plunge with their live valve system on sale from 2018 it’s not wireless but still going

First is never easy rock sharks were playing catchup but leap frogged Fox by expanding the axis ecosystem to bring Wireless suspension control to mountain biking with the rock shock’s flight attendant it automatically adjusts Rider suspension damping to the terrain they’re riding using sensors in the forks shock and cranks it’s an exciting

Time to be a mountain biker as more companies are jumping on the wireless bandwagon offering droppers and gearing and it feels like we’re nowhere near the limit of the electronics yet so far we’ve seen measurable improvements in performance and usability in Gears droppers and suspension thanks to electronic Innovation and we’re excited

To see what the future holds it would be impossible to list game-changing MTB Innovations without mentioning electric mountain bikes they might not always be popular in the comments sections but they’re quickly becoming the fastest growing sector in the industry and it’s easy to see why emtbs give their non-electric

Counterparts a run for their money on even the most gnarly descents on the climbs of course they outperform even the lightest cross country bike and provide bucket loads of smiles whatever the gradient one thing is certain ebikes are only going to get better as batteries and Motors reduce in size and

Weight we’re going to see ebikes that are lighter more powerful and less obtrusive the future is electric mountain biking has come a long way in just 20 years we’ve had new wheel sizes ditched tubes for good invented dropper post and disc brakes and revolutionized suspension more recently

It’s all been El electric with ebikes and wireless components leading the charge and showing no signs of slowing down while we probably won’t be Reinventing the wheel any time soon it’s this constant progression and refinement that we think will shape mountain biking in years to come it’s safe to say the

Days of gamechanging Innovations aren’t over yet if you enjoyed this video please drop us a like and make sure to subscribe we’ve got plenty of videos coming every Wednesday so keep an eye out if you want to continue your Deep dive into the progress of mountain

Biking we’ve got just the video for you right Here