mtb-timeline

Moots Overview

Kent Eriksen started Moots¹⁾ Bicycles in 1980 out of Steamboat Springs, Colorado ²⁾. Moots continues today to make beautiful, mostly titanium, mountain bikes: https://moots.com/

Moots’ niche in the bike industry is well established. They make gorgeous, shockingly expensive bikes for people who want refined, grown-up rides. pinkbike

In 1984, Kent invented what we now call bar-ends; those nifty, multi-position gadgets found on so many mountain biker’s handlebars today. ³⁾

Kent left Moots in 2005, and continues to produce custom bikes part time in collaboration with Brad Bingham from Kent Eriksen Cycles and Bingham Built Bikes.

Kent Eriksen, ca. 1981 kenteriksen.com

1981 Moots Mountaineer

At the very beginning all Moots bicycles were polished and perfect. Kent states he built a mountain bike for himself in 1980, but no pictures exist and hence the Moots timeline starts at 1981.

1981 Moots Mountaineer retrobike

1983 Moots Mountaineer

Four water bottle cages? All Moots were custom, and every detail was taken care of.

1983 Moots Mountaineer mombat

1985 Moots Mountaineer

Outfitted for mountain trekking. Those wooden knobbies sticking out front are the first “road levers,” aka bar ends.

1985 Moots Mountaineer mtbr

Extra

Moots/Eriksen bikes had a few pioneering features which should not be forgotten. For example, the Moots Mounts to the right allowed for adjusting wheel sizes by simply moving the brake mount clamps up or down. Thus, you can switch from 26“ to 650b/27.5” with a screw driver, rather that having to throw out your frame⁴⁾. All early Moots frames had clamp on brake mounts.

Or, as mentioned previously, Moots invented “bar ends,” which were actually wooden meditation balls which acted as a precursor to aero bars than bar ends. In any case, they're cool and someone should make them again.

Moots Mounts facebook

Moots meditation balls facebook