Yikes!!
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Nice bike but not that nice. What's really amazing is that is not just the asking price, someone ACTUALLY bid that much! :shock:
This is yet another example of a bike that has SIGNIFICANT value because of its history. There are a mere handful of bikes that represent the genesis of the entire mountain bike movement/culture/market segment and this is one of them.
For folks that are interested in the history of, and importance of this bike just go rent "Klunkerz" on DVD, everything will become clear.
I don't like to pay a lot for bikes, but if I were a collector a Breeze bike would be one that I'd be looking to acquire.
I'm not saying this bike is "worth it", but it is worth a lot of money.
For folks that are interested in the history of, and importance of this bike just go rent "Klunkerz" on DVD, everything will become clear.
I don't like to pay a lot for bikes, but if I were a collector a Breeze bike would be one that I'd be looking to acquire.
I'm not saying this bike is "worth it", but it is worth a lot of money.
I wouldnt have a problem at all spending that much for that bike,,,,,,,,,,,, if I had the money 
Think about it,,,,,,,,,, from that bike and maybe a handful of others, billions of other bikes sprang.
Think about it,,,,,,,,,, from that bike and maybe a handful of others, billions of other bikes sprang.
Back in '77 I bought a Schwinn Spitfire, and set it up with a larger rear sprocket, tire liners, thorn proof tubes, and a front brake. I did this specifically so I could use it for slamming down the dirt roads out in the hills near where I live. I discovered this little rush all on my own. Truth of it is- when I started doing this I was having so much fun that I tried to get anyone who would give me five minutes of time to come out and ride the hills. All I got was rolled eyes, and "yeah, sure" comments. Didn't stop me from having fun, and all the places I used to ride alone are now jammed with spandex boys on $1500. superbikes. Does that make me a "pioneer mountain biker?", or my old Schwinn an "early" mountain bike, or klunker?"
That there is a "vintage" market for bikes like this is just one click beyond my comprehension. So it's an old mountain bike. So what? To my eye there is just no unique beauty, no unique style, and nothing particularly desirable in 99.99% of any diamond frame bikes. I could make an exception for a hand crafted racer, or something built back in the days when all bikes were hand crafted, but aesthetically, there is nothing that separates this bike from any $50. two wheeler bought at your local discount store. Classic bikes are classic because they are works of industrial art as much as they are vehicles.
Sorry if I sound a little curmudgeonly, but I think the whole concept of "classic" bikes has been stretched way past the bounds.
JWM
That there is a "vintage" market for bikes like this is just one click beyond my comprehension. So it's an old mountain bike. So what? To my eye there is just no unique beauty, no unique style, and nothing particularly desirable in 99.99% of any diamond frame bikes. I could make an exception for a hand crafted racer, or something built back in the days when all bikes were hand crafted, but aesthetically, there is nothing that separates this bike from any $50. two wheeler bought at your local discount store. Classic bikes are classic because they are works of industrial art as much as they are vehicles.
Sorry if I sound a little curmudgeonly, but I think the whole concept of "classic" bikes has been stretched way past the bounds.
JWM
$50?/ I'd say $250.oo-$350.oo as a good condition used adult sized journeyman level bike. You'd be hard pressed to find anything in quality lugged construction or in that frame size floating around in a dime store. It would cost you more than a grand for anything close to that new-in-store. The over 8 grand listed as winning bid is nuts. :|
Good points, Deorman. You are absolutely right.
And for the sake of clarity, I would value this particular machine on the basis of fine construction, high grade materials, and good workmanship. I'm not knocking the bike itself at all. (the price is a different matter) It's the designation of "classic" and/or "historical" that I think has been stretched a little too far.
Besides- I wanna be a pioneer reeely reeeely reely bad, and no one will let me. :roll:
JWM
And for the sake of clarity, I would value this particular machine on the basis of fine construction, high grade materials, and good workmanship. I'm not knocking the bike itself at all. (the price is a different matter) It's the designation of "classic" and/or "historical" that I think has been stretched a little too far.
Besides- I wanna be a pioneer reeely reeeely reely bad, and no one will let me. :roll:
JWM
It's actually a pretty good deal. The last Breezer Type II I know of sold for 10K to a collector is Sweden. The original price of those bikes was around $1,500.00, I think. Less than 7X the price over 32 years for a piece of functional art with a HUGE history. The Swedish bike was an extra small, so that made it an even tougher sell. For off-road bikes, there were really only the Breezers (Series I & II), the Koski Trailmasters/ProCruisers, and the earliest MountainBikes (Fisher/Kelly) by 1980. By the end of 1980 there were probably still under 1500 purpose built off-road bikes in total. Now there are over 500,000,000. That makes this bike pretty damn collectable, collectable being the operative word. To put this in another prospective, there were about 1600 Les Pauls made between 1958-1960. The price back then was 260.00-280.00. They now go for $200,000.00-$750,000.00 depending on condition and provenance. :shock: That's, at least, 750X the original price. Those guitars were really just hunks of wood and a bit of metal and wire. They had hardly the amount of craftsmanship that the Breezers took to build. For a well-heeled enthusiast, I'd think this type of acquisition is a bargain. :wink:
