10-27-06 Video Release The Beginning of an Era - Klunkerz chronicles our roots

Without this group of pioneers, we could all be riding ten speeds

These days it seems people associate our sport’s beginnings with riders clad in neon Lycra aboard hardtails outfitted with bar-ends. Even younger generations look to Brett Tippie and Ritchey Schley as off-road riding’s founding fathers.

Billy Savage is out to set the record straight with the release of his film Klunkerz. The cast of the documentary is a veritable who’s who of the original crew that paved the way for today’s knobby-tire bikes, including Gary Fisher, Tom Ritchey, Joe Breeze, Steve Potts and Charlie Cunningham. The feature-length film features extensive interviews with these pioneers telling the story from their own points of view. Klunkerz also is peppered with grainy footage from those first races down Mt. Tam’s Repack back in the seventies.

Klunkerz’ world premier, held at the Mill Valley Film Festival on October 8, 2006, sold out three theaters, including the biggest room in Marin, the Rafael Film Center.

To complete the weekend of nostalgia, Savage organized an informal race down Repack. The outing included most of the sport’s pioneers, all riding vintage, “Old-Iron” bikes. To little surprise, Joe Breeze sailed away from the field with the fastest time of the day. “I tried to keep up with him for the first minute of the run, but it was pointless,” Savage said. “He was flying. In a puff of Repack dust he was gone....”

If you’ve ever wondered about mountain biking’s roots, Klunkerz is worth a look. Check out www.klunkerz.com to read about the film, order a copy or watch the trailer.