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History
“History is full of
occasions when two parties with radically diverse backgrounds have gotten
together to create something that actually represents the best interests
of both of them… the Yeti Bicycle Company and corporate giant Easton
Composites is [one]. The union is one that not only represents the
interests of both parties involved, but also every mountain bike
enthusiast around the world who is yearning for What could possibly be one
of the greatest performing mountain bikes ever made.”
-MBA June 1989
Possibly the greatest cause for the mystery behind the C-26 is the lack of
consistent, accurate information available about the creation of the
frames. Even the key players involved cannot agree on certain pieces of
information, like exactly how many frames where built, and to whom they
were given/sold. One verifiable fact is unchallenged: Around 1987, Easton
Composites began development of a new tubeset using carbon fiber and
aluminum. The technology had been utilized for some time in Easton’s line
of archery and hockey equipment, and it wasn’t long before it saw
potential for application in the burgeoning and lucrative world of
off-road cycling. As Easton Engineer Chuck Texiera more aptly put, said,
“we should make a bike out of this stuff.” After some R&D work, the
result was Alucarb, also known as the Easton C9 Tubeset. The
“carbon” tubes that composed the main front triangle were actually
aluminum sleeves wrapped in a Kevlar/carbon weave. They were advertised
as extremely light and forgiving, yet stiff enough for a NORBA race
machine. Raleigh Cycles utilized the design in its 1988 Vision bike, and
sales proved the design was a hit. Eventually, the success of the Raleigh
line pushed Easton Sports to market the design for its in-house brand,
Reflex. Easton marketed Reflex for a short while before selling it to
French manufacturer Puegot.
By 1989, California’s Yeti Cycles had established itself
as a major player within the exploding mountain bike race scene. The
company was renowned for supporting racers, using rider input, and
stressing the limits of technology to make faster, stronger race bikes.
Their ungraceful approach, combined with their willingness to take a
chance on just about anything earned them a niche fan base, and made them
the media darlings of the 1990s. Yeti boss John Parker made no apologies
about the weight of his bikes as he designed them to be “bombproof,” but
Yeti partner Chris Herting struggled with the realization his team raced
on inferior equipment. Herting saw no reason the Yeti race team
should be forced to compete against riders on bikes three to five pounds
lighter. After the 1988 race season, Herting realized parts could be drilled out only so much before
risk of failure was too great, and he began seeking alternate ways to
lighten the Yeti “For Racing Only” team frame.
Easton came to Herting with the idea to use C9
carbon tubes on Yeti race bikes, and Herting proposed the idea to Yeti
boss John Parker. Famously stubborn Parker hated the idea at first and
vowed to stick with Chromoly steel. However, once Easton engineer Chuck
Teixeira suggested the carbon frames could be easier to
manufacture, Parker gave Herting the green light to produce a prototype.
They called it the Yeti C-26 as for Chris’ initial and his age at the
time. The design was complicated, but not revolutionary: The Easton C9
carbon-tubes would be mated to hand-machined steel lugs using a special 3M
compound (Permabond 310), which would then be then cured in an oven (275
degrees at one hour to be exact). The classic steel BMX-style one-piece
Yeti rear end would then be welded to the new formed, ultra lightweight
front triangle. With the Yeti’s marketing machine at full throttle, and
some help from Mountain Bike Action, the prototype C-26 was dubbed
“the future of mountain bikes.”
From the moment Easton delivered the initial
C9 tubes, it took three weeks to complete the first frame, as successfully
joining the tubes and lugs proved to be a disaster. Permabond compound
(glue) was applied to a lug, and before the mixture could harden, the tube
slid over the lug end. However, the ultra-high tolerances between the
lugs and tubes caused most of the glue to squeeze out upon application,
making everyone nervous about the strength of the bond. The problems
continued as each bond needed to be tweaked to meet the Yeti geometry.
After a few minutes, the compound would begin to harden, making minor
adjustments impossible. Mating the later joints would break the bonds set
earlier, and so on. 20 years later, Herting considers building the
first prototype one of the most challenging times in his career.
The first frame was finished in the Spring of
1989 and was given to Mountain Bike Action for test. It would be unfair to
call the review anything but biased, as MBA and Yeti had an ongoing
business relationship with the Yeti Ultimate project. They called it “one
of the most awe-inspiring mountain bikes we’ve ever ridden.” The bike was
given to team rider Russ Worley (who performed the MBA test in a Yeti
jersey). The prototype C-26 appeared in Yeti’s first brochure in 1989,
touting “half the weight and twice the strength” of steel. In the fall
Interbike show, Yeti arrived with the prototype C-26 adorned with team
decals.
Herting’s most prominent memory and quote when asked about the C-26
is, “they all broke.” This is obviously untrue, as many are in good
shape to this day. This flawed memory can only come from years of
negative stigma surrounding the frame. Herting recalls the customer
who bought the C-26 from Yeti was “Mike,” and to this day, he cannot
understand why Mike did not return the C-26, as he is certain it
failed.
In the Spring of 1990, Yeti team rider Joey
Erwin rode a C-26, and Juli Furtado was given one midway through the year. Tomac had been a successful mountain bike racer
with Mongoose, earning six figures, but was dabbling in road racing on the
powerful 7-Eleven team. After living in Belgium in 1989, Tomac was
without a dirt contract for the 1990 season. He called Parker looking for
a bike to ride, and a handshake deal with John Parker had Tomac competing
in US Mountain Bike events on the Yeti team. The early part of the season
was spent on a custom steel FRO, with dual 73/73 head a tube angles to
match his road bike. In the summer of 1990 he was given a custom C-26 for
cross country. Later, he received another for the downhill, with the
drive side chainstay milled out to accept the large chainring Tomac used
in DH races. These frames were the only C-26s with 1” headtubes, as his
Tioga sponsorship required his use of their stems (which did not come in
1.25”). Tomac’s featured road-style drop bars with bar-end shifters so
his position would mimic that of his road bike. It is believed Tomac later
said this was at the suggestion of his coach, and it probably wasn’t a
good idea.
At the 1990 World Championships, the sun began
to set for the C-26. Furtado won on hers, and Tomac took 6th
and 4th in the XC and DH on his. Furtado is visibly and
verbally upset after the race that her seatpost slipped 2”. Herting thinks
this may be from either (1) the last-minute shift from Campagnolo to
Shimano components, and an 26.8 XT post might have been used by accident
(the C-26 takes a 27.2 post) or (2) the drilling out of the BMX style
seatclamp from 26.8 to 27.2 made it very weak, and mechanics could not
have tightened it sufficiently in fear it would break.
The C-26s returned to California, never to be
ridden again. Parker is quoted as thanking God the entire drive home that
Juli’s bike didn’t fail during the race. Parker never trusted the glue
bond. Easton designers had quoted a certain amount of glue was needed for
a successful bond, but with so much being squeezed out on application, no
one could accurately tell whether the frames were strong enough to last.
He never received positive feedback from any of the designers that made
him comfortable enough to trust the frame under his racers. Parker
shelved the project when a suitable replacement glue could not be found,
and rumors circulated he had already invested in another material designed
to cut weight.
When all was said and done, less than ten
actual bikes were ever made by the hands of the Yeti employees that
designed them. The number of actual bikes made at Yeti is disputed, and
neither Chris Herting nor Frank the Welder can identify an exact number
and to whom they were given. Numbers range from three to twenty. Over
the years, the team frames were sold in online auctions and collector
deals, and some of their locations are known. I’ve done my best to try and
learn each location and its story:
-
The
Prototype. Appeared in the 89 Brochure. Given to team rider Russ
Worley for the 89 race season. Re-decaled and sent to Interbike in
Anaheim in the fall of 1989. Later deemed unsafe and sawed up. Remaining
tubes live in a box in Chris Herting’s workshop..
-
Joey Erwin’s
bike. The first Yeti rider to receive one. Belongs to a collector in
California.
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Juli Furtado
custom 16” Frame. Only one ever built in that size. World Championship
winning frame. Sold in John Parker eBay sale in 2002. Now belongs to an
unknown German collector.
-
John Tomac Cross
Country frame. Given to JT shortly before 90 worlds in Durango. Raced
to sixth place. Sold in Parker ebay auction to Cycleshark in Zurich.
Rebuilt and on display.
-
John Tomac
Downhill bike. Raced to 4th in Worlds DH. Sent to Europe on
tour after worlds, tested in MBUK, later given to Zapata Espinoza as a
wedding gift. Still with all original spec. Truly a time-capsule piece.
-
Mystery bike
built for customer Mike and sold from Agoura factory. Never heard from
again.
-
Team frame
hanging from ceiling at Yeti in Golden. Belongs to Chris Herting. It
was a team frame, and he thinks it may have been Joey Erwin’s DH bike.
After the 1990 Worlds, Yeti packed up shop in
Agoura Hills, California, and moved to Durango, Colorado. Unopened boxes
of C-26 tubes made the trip, but none were ever assembled outside of the
California shop. Easton had delivered enough tubing for an initial run of
50 bikes, but with the project on hiatus, the remaining tubes sat in boxes
in the rafters. Yeti embarked on other ambitious journeys in frame design
over the years, with project involving various alloys and thermoplastics.
By 1992, Yeti achieved its weight-loss goal by again joining forces with
Easton to develop the aluminum ARC (Alloy Racing Composite), and a
production carbon bike was never thought of again. Chris Herting left
that year to start 3D Racing, which he owns to this day.
Over the next seven years, the face of Yeti changed drastically, with the
sale to Schwinn in 1995 and the firing of Parker in 1997. In the Spring
of 1999, Schwinn and Yeti’s parent company Scott Sports closed the Durango
factory. In the mass exodus, the bikes not grabbed by the employees were
tossed in dumpsters, along with complete Ultimate, FRO, and Zephyr
framesets. These dumpsters are said to be the fate of over half the C-26
tubesets (except those grabbed by Fritz.. see 'Rebirth').
In the ten years since Yeti closed in Durango, mountain bikes have grown
old enough for some of them to earn the terms “vintage” and “classic.”
Along with several other bikes built by Yeti, the C-26 has taken a
“cult-like” status among collectors, and some consider it to be most
highly desired vintage mountain bike frame in existence. Fewer than ten
actual frames have confirmed locations and owners. At least 20 frames,
assembled from stolen tubes and lugsets, are rumored to be scattered
throughout the world.
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Links
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