Welcome to the Bandwagon...GT
First off don't start calling me a hater and dogging me for me being negative. I feel I have a complete right to call bullshit what it is...bullshit. That being said: It sickens me to see such a crap looking product (as the one below) coming out with such a great name as GT on it. I remember a day when you simply weren't considered cool if you didn't ride a GT. Those days are long gone. This attempt at a DJ/Urban bike is a sad reflection of GT's current status. This bike is horrible. Sure its got all the fashionable bits and pieces on it. As well as too big of a fork. But apparently the designers at GT can only steal ideas from that last few seasons of BLK MRKT (and others) product. No one would ride this bike the way it comes. Companies who actually care about riding are proud of having shreddable product right out of the box. If you want to go to a (lack of) Performance "bike shop" and get one of these beasts please feel free. Buying a bike is always a good thing. However your money would be much better spent on a bike that is designed by the same people who actually ride the things. PLEASE first check out the myriad of products from rider owned companies such as: BLK MRKT, Severed Alliance, Deity, Corsair, DMR, Dobermann, Dartmoor, NS Bikes, Atomlab and all the others. Your money will be much better spent!!! How does everyone else feel about this? Please add your comments. Thanks...
a so called DJ mtb from GT
Thursday, August 5
Reader Comments (16)
dnt forget NS bikes in your list of good companies :P
OOPS. I did not omit NS on purpose! (I added them into the post for people who never read this far) My list was by no means every good company out there. Many more exist. I just want people to seek out companies that actually care about riding instead of buying from companies just out for a buck. And don't get me started about companies jumping on the fixie band wagon...lol
I'm not really sure what model this is, or who designed it, etc. However the GT Ruckus is a sick ass ride! Very dialed geometry, Granted the complete doesn't come with an air fork, but that's just a cap you can put on it for an upgrade. It is 80mm, everything is sealed, weighs in at 28lbs, and for $800.00 It's a hell of a great intermediate bike that's perfect for entry level to mid level riders. It's absolutely designed by riders.
On the downside, GT does look at $$ signs before anything else. As a result, corners are cut, and the little things that make all the difference in the world are usually what's left out. That makes the bikes less worthy of the shred.
One of my first DJ-urban rides was a Mongoose Ritual. It served it's purpose for my level of riding at the time, and let's face it....... When faced with buying a frame at $500.00 plus, or a complete ride for $800.00 Sometimes the budget wins. In the end you're happy because your riding. Just take it home, strip the stickers off of it, repaint it and just tell people it's something else! :D
Personally, I wouldn't buy a GT, Haro, or Mongoose for the life of me anymore. They are built by riders, they've just lost sight of keeping the rider in mind.
Chris what you said dude has more than got my vote 100% man! Tat like that makes my blood boil and what makes it worse is people buy that shit as well fella!
Its refreshing to hear that some one is telling it as it is !!
ouch...
I don't think there's much wrong with this bike at all. GT were always the coolest company when I was a kid too, but over the past few years their reputation has dropped a lot. Their top end bikes are still sick, and they clearly have some big names riding for them, and a lot of knowledgable people working for them, and to be honest, I can't see what's so wrong with this bike?! It's a off the peg, low budget DJ bike, but it has anodised parts (cool) and a chrome plated frame (also looks sweet) so I think it could be a big seller for those that haven't got thousands to spend on a new bike. I like it!
I don't know why this 2011 GT finally made me snap. It is a good bike for the money. My problem is with the major corporate bike manufacturers (Dorel: GT-Schwinn- Mongoose- Cannondale, Giant, Trek, Specialized) who produce product that is completely derivative of the core rider owned brands. These manufacturers do have a place in the world. They can provide decent bikes at decent price points to get more people on bikes. Which is ALWAYS a good thing. I just want the riding public to know that they have the option of dealing with companies that are far more interesting and worthy of there hard earned cash. I climb on the anti mega corporation soapbox pretty quick. Cycling and BMX in general were built on small rider owned companies. This is were it should stay. When I am at Interbike and anyone in a shirt and tie comes up to tell me about there new line of BMX or MTB goodies I simply laugh and excuse myself politely. They simply do not get it. Thanks Tim, Darren and Gary for voicing your opinion. I appreciate hearing from everyone. Let the debate continue....
You're right Chris, they don't get it. They did at one point, but have simply lost sight. It's just like calling Dave Mirra a sellout. Well we need sellouts. That's what brings the new generation in. If it weren't for these large companies, a lot of new riders wouldn't happen. We need them, and they need the little guys. Symbiotic relationship. When I was a new rider, I saw all the glitz and glitter, and was drawn in. It was all about Hutch, GT, Mongoose, Diamondback, etc. As time went on, I got to know the real scene better. I took my intermediate bike, and started slowly replacing parts with quality rider owned components. Eventually, I had the sickest S&M Holmes on the block!
Nowadays, I'm right here with your opinion, but I have to keep in mind that these large companies are bringing new groms in every day.
I like turtles, cuz they SUCKIN ON MY TITTIES LIKE YOU WANTED ME, CALLIN ME!
You know it Lobes!!!
Everybody is jumping on the DJ/4x bandwagon, not just GT. Its not as bad as NSbikes making fixies really, to me anyway. Maybe if Brian Lopes won a race on it then everybody would be like....wooooooooooooo. Oh wait, he got dropped by them.
The band wagon I am referring to is the total lack of creativity in "designing" a bike line. GT is definitely not the only culprit. R&D used to stand for research and development. To many companies it now just means ripoff & duplicate. It is a sad state of the industry as it is today.
How bout a review of the bike and explaining why this bike is crap.I would like to hear your opinion supported by facts,like the component spec and geo.I am not going to write off a bike because a large company seems to be following a trend.I wish I can afford a top of the line Black Market,I cant so maybe this is an affordable alternative.
haha i was just messing with my first comment i knew wot yu meant, and yerh i agree my first dj bike was a gt chucker xs 2 09 and it was so shit it put me off the street/dj mtb scene tbh but now i have my NS Traffic build i love it i do agree the fixie trend does annoy me specially wen yu get some trendy scene twat approaching ya asking why your NS isnt a fixie like his
To Oldguy: The Ruckus 1.0 pictured here will retail somewhere around $1300. The base version Ruckus 2.0 will retail around $929. You can buy a DMR Reptoid for less then $900 or a BLK MRKT Soldier complete for less then a grand. So price point is not an issue.
To Gary: You are so right about this stuff attracting new riders. Anyone getting a bike and using it is ALWAYS a good thing. I am sure some kid will be wandering the aisles of a Performance "bike shop" see this little GT and convince mom and dad to hook him up. It will then be our jobs to welcome him to the fold when we see him at the park or trails. Riding is all that truly matters.
To Rockin' MTB: LIke I said don't get me started on the whole Fixie thing...lol
I do consider GT, Haro or even Mongoose the reason why there is this sport today. Our street/park/dj sport evolved from BMX freestyle, and these brands practically invented it. So what's so original with the current trendy cool brands anyway?
As for the comment that these companies are more focused on making money rather than passion for bikes, they do have a wider range of products as compared with the more focussed & specialized bike builders. But they do still make high quality R&D products & are still competitive in the sport aren't they? I do remember Greg Watts (Haro) & Chris Akrigg (Mongoose) winning some contest lately with their bikes.