In 1990, after 3 years riding and racing on my Diamondback Ascent EX, I was ready for an upgrade. I rode to a bike shop that was a couple suburbs over from my house, because they had Fisher and Marin bikes. After laying out what I was looking for in a race / ride everyday bike, they suggested either the Marin Team, or this new model they had just received; the Fisher CR7.
Remember that feeling you got when you first laid eyes on your new (next) bike? As I swung my leg over the top tube and pumped the brake levers a couple times, I knew this Fisher was the one.
My salesman just happened to be the younger of two brothers, only 19 and 22 yrs of age, that had purchased the business a little over a year previous and moved it to a new expanded location up the street. It was Rice Street in Little Canada, MN. Hence the name, Rice Street Bicycle.
As the conversation moved towards the 'close', I revealed that there was just one hitch. I didn't have the $1000 + that it would take to buy this bike. But, I did have a lot of free time in the summer from my regular job, two years of sporting goods sales experience during college, and I was heavily addicted to the mountain bike scene, racing and riding. Were they looking for some seasonal help?
The stars aligned, and they agreed to try me on the sales floor for two nights and that upcoming Saturday, and then we would go from there. That next Saturday night, after a strong week of bike sales and relationship building, we raised our beers to a new deal! I spent that whole summer without a paycheck from the shop, but I rode my new Fisher CR7 home that night and began my 25 yr bike shop sales / mechanic / manager career.
Around two years ago I had an idea to do a vintage mtb resto / mod. It was then that I first had a conversation with member Stephen Kintzley on The Vintage Mountain Bike group on facebook. Steve had a CR7, same year and size as the one I owned. He had it set up as a super cool cross / drop bar bike, but was willing to part with just the frame and a few components.
Earlier in April, we closed the deal. He sent me the frame set, the front and rear derailleur, stem, seat post, and crank set.
I know my stories are long, but had to share the background of this build. It likely won't be a 'true to the original' build, but that's what we did back in the early '90s when custom parts and new component makers were first arriving on the scene. We made the bikes our 'own'. Hey, come to think of it, that's what we do here on RRB; we make it our own. RaT oN !
The first picture at the top of this thread is my actual Fisher CR7, taken probably a couple of weeks after I purchased the bike. These are a few pics of the starting parts and frame set. I have been collecting parts the past couple of weeks, and will post pics as they get assembled into this vintage mtb resto-mod.