From the Cluttered Bench: Why Does Cycling Keep It Retro While Other Sports Move On?
Have you ever noticed that cycling seems to have a special place for retro aesthetics? We started thinking about it the other day, and it led us to question: is cycling the only outdoor sport that still makes room for vintage gear and style? When we mentally surveyed other sports, few seemed to embrace older technology.
Take tennis, for example—does anyone still use a wooden racket? Or golf—who’s still swinging a wooden-shafted club? The closest comparisons we found were in the surf world with longboards—those traditional, 8-foot-plus boards that contrast with modern shortboards designed for sharp, radical turns—and the skateboarding scene, where retro 80s-style decks are making a comeback, at least according to our resident expert.
So why cycling and board sports? My best guess is that these "soul sports"—surfing, skateboarding, and non-competitive cycling—allow people to do their own thing. There are no strict rules, no judges, and no specific uniforms to adhere to. You can ride a bike with silver fenders and a rack, surf a classic longboard, or skate a retro deck, all while staying true to your personal style.
Once competition enters the mix, though, it’s a different story. The need to win drives technological advancements, which explains why racing-focused cycling is so tech-heavy—what I like to call the "1%." It’s the same reason no one gets extra points for playing tennis with a wooden racket. But in the non-competitive cycling world, riding a steel frame decked out with classic parts is almost like a statement. You see someone cruising with vintage flair, and it just makes you smile.
This vintage appeal seems to pop up in all sorts of ways today, even beyond cycling. Fashion and style are always cycling back—though I'm still waiting for the Roaring 20s to make a return! Right now, the 80s and 90s are making waves in clothing, décor, and even bike culture, as people look for ways to stand out from the sleek, performance-driven products that dominate the big brands.
Functionality is another reason retro gear holds appeal in cycling. Modern tech has made huge leaps—electronic shifting and hydraulic braking are prime examples—but they can feel over-engineered. Mechanical disc brakes give me reliable stopping power without the hassle of bleeding lines, and traditional cable shifting lasts forever with minimal upkeep. Plus, I never have to worry about charging my derailleur!
While big companies focus on racing performance at any cost—like a $4,300 wireless Campagnolo 13-speed drivetrain—I think the non-racing side of cycling will keep chugging along at a more relaxed pace, free from the need to adopt every new high-cost innovation.
So why do you think retro aesthetics thrive in cycling but not in other sports? I’d love to hear your thoughts, so drop a comment below!
The Cluttered Bench is a series of opinion pieces from VO staffers and guests on various topics that may be tangentially cycling related.
Intressant läsning dessa kommentarer.
Jag var ute och cyklade med en kompis, en gammal svensk landslags cyklist. Han har ju hållit sig uppdaterad av det senaste på cykel fronten. Med en modern Bianchi gravel har han upptäckt grusvägar.
Jag har en svensk tillverkad Monark i flygstål från 1950 med Simplex växlar. Den fungerar fortfarande perfekt och det roliga är ju att på den tiden fanns det bara gravel vägar i Sverige så min gamla “Blå Blixten” rullar lika bra som den moderna Bianchi cykeln.
I don’t recall bicycles ever being so wildly divergent… and I kinda dig this. But… I never thought “touring bikes” would fade from the cycling industry nomenclature (except in the vintage/retro/custom realm). I never thought I’d worry about finding replacement componenents? I’ve got a 1979 TREK 412 that I’ve had since new and it’s a perfect example of a “life-time” purchase. Kids (and adults!) ask me all the time what my down-tube shifters are for. It’s crazy! I would love to see silver components being manufactured again, especially long-cage rear derailleurs! But I’ll never own/buy a bike with hydraulic disc brakes, carbon fiber frame, or anything with electronic shifting. So much of this new tech goes against the very nature of bicycles as a machine. As so many have said before, the simplicity of steel frames with rim brakes and friction shifting cannot be beaten.
Sometimes older stuff is more functional than its modern equivalent. With mountain bikes, classic/retro equipment has more reasonable gearing for all-around use. You can’t buy a modern mountain bike with a decent gear range anymore; they’re all 1x and max out at 510% (shimano) or 520% (sram), while the classic MTB triple has 590%. The 42 or 44 big ring on the triple, along with the 11 tooth cog, results in 80+% of the high gear range of a road bike. Unfortunately, the typical combo on a modern MTB is only about 65-69% of the road bike, making it a lot more likely to leave riders spun out on flat roads. Thus old MTBs are much better than new ones for general use as commuters or around-town.
There are many reasons why “retro” bicycles are appealing — ease of maintenance, aesthetics, comfort, and simplicity. Quill stems, lugged steel, rim brakes, friction shifting, and threaded bottom brackets are a welcome alternative to the modern bike with internal routing, disc brakes, plastic frames, electronic shifting, and who knows what BB specification.
But why is the retro-bike appealing, almost comforting in a way? I would suggest that it is a sense connectedness and self-agency. The ability to adjust, replace, and repair (almost) everything on a bike is empowering and deeply satisfying. It’s akin to wood carving with axe and blade, film photography, scratch cooking, and relishing the pleasure of a “real” book.
While I’m no Luddite and appreciate many technological advances, I’m also quite skeptical. Not all that is new is good, nor is all that is old is better. Rather it’s process of looking for the best from both worlds and finding an ideal blend that enhances our lives and brings us joy.
I feel like everything runs the risk of tech creep, then an inevitable backlash. I saw a news story on CBS this morning talking about a resurgence of dumb phones – flip phones, or touchscreen phones that are glorified Kindles with the ability to make phone calls – because people are realizing that phones are eating time and costing too much in productivity and creativity over just having a way to be contacted.
Same thing with bikes. There’s E bikes, electronic shifting, hydraulic discs, etc. But there seems to be a growing trend of retrogrouch – old (or old style) bike frames, cable shifting and braking, friction shifted, downtube shifters, thumbies, leather saddles, etc. You don’t need a 5 lb plastic fantastic race bike that costs as much as a car to pootle down to the coffee shop, or to take in the leaves on a fall afternoon, and honestly, you lose something with the advances in technology. Maybe it’s the romantic in me, but I feel like you lose connection with the machine when everything is done for you.
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