Originally Posted by
TiHabanero
The 911 will always be a collectors item because it has a unique signature; Its shape. No question about what brand or model when you see one as there is no other vehicle that looks like it...
... Singlehandedly he steered the bicycle manufacturers toward taller front ends, longer stays and more comfortable riding positions. He did this through persuading the riding public that common sense was indeed fashionable....
Can't fault him for any of it.
I agree that the 911 has a distinctive shape, but that alone does not ensure its status as a collector's item; consider the Pontiac Aztec.... I think it's the shape, coupled with the performance, the cache, the history....
As for GP, there are things that I can fault him for, but most are a bit off-topic. No question he's a brilliant marketeer; he has ppl convinced that he "singlehandedly" steered manufacturers back towards (more) sensible bikes. Nevermind that many
continents had never given up on long-quilled threaded stems, decent-sized rubber, comfortable riding positions, and fenders. Nevermind that many ppl were holding onto their slightly vintage (at the time) practical bikes, and looking cross-eyed at the compact-geo road frames of the time...There were many adherents to the so-called Riv philosophy long before Riv became incorporated....
And how about the fact that GP is now guilty of the same stuff, ie, using a sloping TT to allow for fewer sizes on offer? Does anyone really think a Hunq is going to be collectible? For whatever good he's done, and for whatever good he's still doing, much of the Riv catalog(sic) has jumped the proverbial shark....