Ritchey Z Max Evolution Pro skin wall tires

We finally just received our Ritchey skinwall tires! These are the Evolution Pro with a Kevlar bead. Weight is in the 475 +/- gram range which is about 80 g lighter than our Timbuk II tires. If you want some nice high performance tires for your vintage ride, these are a great choice. They also would set apart your more current bike if you want to stand out from the crowd. To purchase them hit the MOMBAT web site.

1983 Mantis Sherpa

Mantis was the original bike company what was owned by Richard Cunningham from the early 1980's through the mid 1990's. RC went on to become the long-time editor of Mountain Bike Action and just recently stepped down from the position. The first Mantis bikes were fairly conventional frames but Mantis quickly became know more for their wilder designs including the multi-tubed Valkyries, monocoque framed Screaming Vs and full suspension Pro Floaters. It seems like we see quite a few of the later bikes but don't run across the early bikes too frequently.

This bike was obviously used quite a bit but was used for its intended purpose. Components are fairly straight forward Shimano Deore XT (deer head) parts with Phil Wood hubs and Specialized crank. The Mantis stem is interesting with the 3 bolt removable face plate that also has the front brake cable running through it.

More details @ the 1983 Mantis Page