Sixty Fiver

Surly makes decent bicycles that are well regarded by most in many cases they have not originated an idea but done very well to popularize it... fat bikes are good example of this.

When touring started to regain popularity they were right there when other choices were a Trek 520 or a Trek 520.

The LHT is a fairly classic touring design and it is a tough as nails bicycle.

I prefer vintage bicycles because they do everything modern bicycles do and there really aren't that many new things in the cycling work save for carbon fibre and many of the advances in mountain bicycles.

You turn the cranks and the wheels spin, move the lever and gears change... bicycles are at their essence very simple things.

Sixty Fiver

Fixed gear road bicycles were common up until the 1950's and used as everyday transportation.

Sixty Fiver

Many companies built steel touring bikes in good quantities until the 1980's when the popularity of touring slowed to a crawl... and touring has always been a very small segment of the riding population.

Almost every company had a few models in their line up.

Again, Surly just responded to a changing trend and offered a classic steel touring bike that was priced right.

balindamood

Agreed. However, if I happened to want to buy one in 1997, what would I have done? Short of finding a bike specifically designed for track use, all I could do is find a pre-late-80's road bike and convert it or go to antique stores looking for bikes pushing 40 years old. WE at C&V would do that, but your average 20-something would not. Soma, Surly, and a few others saw a trend coming and filled it. The big guys never seemed to recover from the hybrids from the early 90's, and didn't try to cash in until the fad hit the MTV level of publicity.

The situation was similar for the touring bikes. Cannondale still offered a decent one. Trek's 520 seemed to be a shadow of what it was in the 80's. Surly recognized that a large number of bike tourers are college-aged people who were being missed. They offered the LHT in a much different form than the others, providing both a full build, or a customizable frame, generally at a better price than everyone but Novara. I do not think they expected it to catch on with middle-aged folks, but it did. They then followed up with a coupler version which has been well received. Trek does not even seem to care.

kaliayev

With this statement you make Surly out to be an innovator and they are not. They have done nicely by jumping into niches that others have created in the distant past or recently. Good on them for that as it is always nice to have choices. But innovators no.

balindamood

Innovators, they are not; and I did not intend to suggest they are/were. My point is that they have been willing to bring to market things that the big companies would not, and make them available to a larger number of people through both market reach and price. The big companies watched and have followed suit in some cases. I think it refreshing to look at a 32 page bike catalog with at least 16 ledgitematly different bikes verus the same three carbon or aluminum frames with different paint and components.

kaliayev

I'm not sure Trek would agree they have a handful of race bikes with options. To play your paint/component card I would suggest Surly has but six frames with options. I give credit for Surly jumping in on Fat bikes and Utility bikes early. The rest, while maybe not under one headbadge, had been around.

calamarichris

I'm serious and stop calling me Surly.

Velognome 

The proof to the effectiveness of Surly's media presence are these 84 posts, about a company, which would have never taken place without their clever marketing.

Hat's off to you clever marketing guys...hat's off to you!

rootboy 

Maybe. But I'll bet they haven't sold one bike to any of the posters here since this thread began.

cobrabyte

When you spend your money with a company, you've bought a product, not the right to treat the poeple that work there with disrespect. One thing that seems to be of loss to a lot of people...

I do plan to own a Surly LHT one day. This thread has not swayed my decision one way or the other.

Velognome 

You're right...got out bid on a blue 2011 LHT

Amesja

I was kicking around the idea of maybe buying a Cross Check frame. I even had one on my Amazon Wishy List.

Yesterday I just deleted it from the list. If this is how they do things I really don't want to pay full retail new price for one or "waste" a gift from someone else (not that anyone would buy me a $600 gift any time soon).) If I can find a used one at half price or so on CL maybe, but I don't expect to ever have to contact a company on a used bike so I don't care if they have a total disdain for the folks who are buying their dreck and supplying the cash that powers their business model.

It won't be me because I'm not spending my hard-earned money on that BS. I saw a used Soma the other day I should have jumped on it as I could have stripped it and sold the parts back on CL and got the frame for under $100 in the deal. I kick myself for not jumping on that. I'll keep my eyes out and eventually something in my size will pop up in that general category. I want something I can CX, and gravel tour on that will take Cantis. Something to replace my too-small old Trek 720 Multi Track.

Seriously, this blog post really changed the way I felt about every buying anything new from Surly. If it doesn't bother the rest of you that's fine. But not me, I won't take bullschnizz like that from folks I'm spending good money with.

Just say no to BS.

fiataccompli

so, the marketing concept is to assume a personality that matches the name? OK...so, I should seek out a bike company called "helpful" or "friendly" ? Ironic that it would be (assuming) such a super dorky concept.....the bikes are fine, imho

lostarchitect 

I think it's funny mostly because it seems to get the OP's knickers in a twist.

lostarchitect 

So, I suppose you cut people out of your life if they make a dumb joke in your presence?

cs1

Possibley, but the Cross Check has an almost cult following. Basically because it does everything OK. But it can't do anything well. I always thought Surly catered to the parts bin rider. Which is why they offer thing they make as a frame/fork. Just my opinion.

rootboy 

Is that screed merely a dumb joke? I thought it was offensive, nasty and stupid.

inkandsilver

I'm going to have to agree. Dear OP: it is certainly your right to buy or not buy whatever you want. But if I boycotted every product/company that had an annoying commercial on tv, in print, or online, I wouldn't be buying much of anything.

That "blog post" has a few chuckles for those who have worked in customer service.

Like balindamood posted earlier, Surly has been part of bringing a diversity of bikes to the market. And they have helped bring steel bikes back a bit more into the mainstream. Whether or not they were first, they certainly have been part of it. I don't think I will ever own a Surly, but I am glad they exist.

Amesja

Nope, but I wouldn't do BUSINESS with them if I didn't trust them or felt they were unprofessional.

Friends are one thing, but when it comes to money I pick my partners carefully. Maybe you have a lot more of it to waste than I do? $500+ dollars is a lot of money to invest in a frame. I don't want to have to deal with some irreverent jackask if I have an issue or a question with a brand new item I just dropped a buttload of money on.

Sorry, no.

lostarchitect 

Well aren't you a funny, delicate little flower.

Sidney Porter

I don't know what this humpr technique is called but Stone Brewing does it better with their arrogant bastard. They are insulting / challenging beer drinks at the same time. They pull it of with more humor where surly came arcross as insulting.
From the back of the bottle

Amesja

I'd pay a couple of bucks to drink a beer from a company than insults me.

A $500+ frame, not so much.

Your Mileage May Vary

lostarchitect 

Let's be honest, you weren't going to buy one anyway.

Amesja

Let's be honest, you really don't have a clue what you are talking about.