Listers,
E-Richie got it right. Moutainbikes killed the lugged steel frame, in the Tour and the marketplace.
Lugged steel died in July, 1996, as Super Mario leans into the lens of the motorcycle camera and states: "Cannondale, it's the best bike"
Giant's sponsorship of Once was another major blow. so was: Gt (Lotto) Litespeed (Festina and Lotto) Specialized ( Festina, now Aqua Sapone) Trek and Lance was just the icing on the doughnut!! Colnago and Look can only sponsor so many teams with their carbon bikes, usually about 6 teams between them
Here's another interesting observation.
Steel bikes were heavy and really stiff in the mid nineties. Columbus max and other oversize tubes were common in peleton. In the '94 Paris-Roubaix, over 80 riders where using rock shox suspension forks, after Gilbert D. La Salle won using the fork in '93. Andre Tchmil won again in '94 (Riding a Max tubed Eddy Merckx with a rockshox). From the moment Mapai dominated Paris Roubaix on their carbon c40's the forks disappeared from use again!
Two conculsions. 1) Everyone wants what the winners use. (pros and paying customers) 2) Badly designed steel bikes (both road and Mtn) with really overbuilt forks let aluminum bikes and suspension get a hold on the market.
Grant McLean
Toronto.ca