RITCHEY P 21

Tom Ritchey has been involved in making ‘mountain bikes’ since the phrase was coined by Gary Fisher to describe the frames Tom built for him. The glory days for the brand were when the super-light red, white and blue P-series steel bikes were being raced by legends such as Thomas Frischknecht. In 1990, the TIG-welded P-23 was introduced, with a fillet-brazed Team version made by Tom himself at the top of the range. That was followed by the P-22 and P-21, which used a lighter-weight Ritchey Logic tubeset that set the standard for steel cross-country speed. They were still winning World Cup races long after most brands had switched to alloy, titanium or carbon for their XC weaponry.