1993 Bruce Gordon Rock 'n Road
For many years, Bruce Gordon Cycles had been well known for making very capable touring bikes. These bikes often featured his sturdy tubular steel racks outfitted with Needleworks bags. Beginning in 1988, Bruce began offering his own, large volume 700c tire, the Rock 'n Road, to make these bike even more capable on all surfaces. That tire was a 43 mm width and based on the Nokian Hakkapeliitta studded snow tire, which had appeared on off-road bikes in Europe and the US in the late 70s. Bruce approached Rock Shox about making a suspension fork to fit his large road tire but Paul Turner didn't see the need, so he went about making his own fork crowns and brake arches to clear his tire with standard Rock Shox legs. With Wes Williams of Ibis Cycles, Bruce would make two titanium Rock 'n Road bikes outfitted with these 700c suspension forks. With the taller axle to crown of the forks, the bikes had the typical head angle of an early 90s mountain bike: 70.5 degrees. The bike shown here is a cherished part of the Workshop collection and the bike that Wes Williams owned. Wes would go on to take the bike to Crested Butte, CO and found Willits Brand bicycles and become a dedicated promoter of large diameter off-road wheels. With the first true "29er" tire becoming available as the WTB Nanoraptor 2.1, Wes would go about trying to fit tires even larger than the original Rock 'n Road tire into his frame. For a larger tire to better clear the front derailleur, it was switched from a bottom pull to a top pull, as evidenced by the modified cable routing with a pulley added to the back of the seat tube. The inside of the chainstays also appear to have been dimpled for additional clearance. The original build of the bike reflects its Northern California roots, with hubs and crankset from White Industries and skewers from Salsa Cycles. The Mavic T138 rims were intended for tandem use and selected for durability, and Wes appears to have had a preference for Brooks B17 titanium saddles. The bike represents an important transition from 26 inch wheeled bikes to the modern 29ers of today.
The Build
Year: 1993
S/N: BGW0193 Frame: Bruce Gordon Rock 'n Road Titanium Fork: Rock Shox Mag 21 Bruce Gordon Crown Stem: Willits Titanium Headset: WTB / King Grease Guard Bottom Bracket: White Industries Titanium Handlebar: SR Sakae Modolo Anatomic Bend Shifters: Shimano Dura Barcon SIS 8 speed Front Derailleur: Shimano XTR M900 Rear Derailleur: Shimano XTR M900 Brake Levers: Shimano Dura Ace 7402 Front Brake: Shimano XTR M900 Rear Brake: Shimano XTR M900 Crankset: White Industries USA Chainrings: Shimano XTR M900 26-36-46 Pedals: Shimano Deore XT 747 Hubs: White Industries Rims: Mavic T138 Tires: Bruce Gordon Rock 'n Rock 700 x 43c Wheel QR: Salsa Flip Off Seatpost: Dean Titanium Saddle: Brooks B17 Titanium Bar Tape: Cinelli Cork Cogs: Shimano XTR M900 12 - 32 Chain: Shimano Hyperglide Bottle Cage: King Stainless Steel |
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