VIDEO + PRESS RELEASE
Wade Simmons' Pipedream
Sorry folks, that gorgeous purple and gold throwback you see is a one-off. A special project dreamed up by the designers and the Godfather himself for the upcoming film The Moment. That being said it's still 100% drool worthy, and a fantastic homage to the history of both Wade and Rocky Mountain.
Wade Simmons has been in the freeride game since the beginning. He’s left his mark on our sport through an extensive catalogue of images and video segments, showcasing his creative ability to conquer any line with unmistakable style. Simply put, Wade’s career has been driven by his desire to do something different. While watching the old footage of himself riding in The Moment, he couldn’t help but get nostalgic about the bikes that helped shape his career.
Bikes like the Pipeline, Switch, RMX, RM7, and RM9 were the tools of Wade’s trade. To him, these were the bikes that had soul. The “Thrust Link”, “NE 3”, and “3D Link” were some of the iconic technologies that made these bikes special.
Wade is what we call an “ideas man.” Fueled by Wade’s creativity, Rocky Mountain Bicycles decided to build a very special bike, founded on nostalgia and designed to modern day standards.”Tapping into some of his old favourite lines, this is a story of Wade Simmons’ Pipedream.
Gussets and linkage plates were an iconic look of the early 2000's. Riders like Wade were beginning to push mountain biking in a new direction, and the frame designs were changing to meet their demands. From 49mm straight head tubes to adding extra gussets for flair, the Pipedream embodies the classic spirit of freeride.
Many of the early Rocky Mountain freeride bikes had a feature that allowed you to mount the rear shock in three different locations. This was known as "NE 3," and required plates on either side of the shock with a cross-brace to stiffen everything torsionally. While having a bit of fun with cross-bracing designs, the NE 3 Man was born.
The 3D Link was a CNC milled feature on our full suspension bikes of the late 90's and early 2000's. Platforms like the Element, Edge, and Slayer all had versions of the 3D Link, which made it a natural addition to Wade's Pipedream.
The Rocky Mountain Bicycles Development Centre is located at the foot of Vancouver's North Shore mountains and is home base for all of our product development. It's here that we weld our prototype frames, test new ideas, and fine tune the details. Long-time Rocky Mountain Bicycles welder Al Kowalchuk worked on this custom project, delivering an incredible finished product.
Rocky Mountain Bicycles is proud to have been involved with the feature film, The Moment. We would also like to say a huge Thank You to Wade Simmons for his continued inspiration and dedication to freeride mountain biking.
Presented by Rocky Mountain Bicycles
Featuring Wade Simmons' Pipedream
PIPEDREAM
Frame Development & Design by Tom Ferenc, Lyle Vallie, Joe Kerekes, and James Mallion
Welding by Al Kowalchuk
Frame Preparation by Billy Chang
Paint by Harald Strasser at Toxik Design Laboratory
MUSIC
Magic Unfolding by Big Score Audio & Voytek by The Heavy Eyes
All rights reserved. Used with permission.
FILM
A Film by Scott Secco
Featuring Wade Simmons
Guest Appearances by Darcy Turenne and Rocky Mountain Bicycles staff
Sound Design by Keith White Audio
Typography by Mike Taylor
Produced by Stephen Matthews
Archived footage by Todd Fiander, Christian Begin, Bjorn Enga, Darcy Wittenburg, and Jorli Ricker
Photography by Margus Riga
Special Thanks to Fox Suspension, Race Face, and Shimano
Comments
Perry Schebel
6 years, 4 months ago
amazing. #makestairgapsgreatagain
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Dave Tolnai
6 years, 4 months ago
Simmons acting skills are really improving!
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Perry Schebel
6 years, 4 months ago
love seeing the in house build process. and the sweet gusset plates! would love to see aluminum make a comeback. also makes me nostalgic for the thriving local high end mtn bike manufacturing cottage industry we once had.
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tashi
6 years, 4 months ago
Just needs a Roach nard guard and top tube pad!
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Dave Smith
6 years, 4 months ago
It's all about those Roach pants.
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Peter Leeds
6 years, 4 months ago
I have a pair DH pants, worn only once, handmade by Ingrid in my bike drawer. I bring them out every so often, and they still look edgy. Nothing today is like this set of Roach DH pant. Back when Roach was the shit. I'll never forgive Race Face for what they did to Roach after acquiring it. The Roach armour offered and clothing line is still, in my mind, the best ever made and the most comfortable. Core Rat is a close second.
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Pete Roggeman
6 years, 4 months ago
Little known fact: someone in Germany registered the Roach trademark, preventing Race Face from being able to sell it there (and they didn't play ball when RF negotiated to get it back - it was a cash grab by an opportunist that never worked out). So, faced with not being able to sell Roach in the world's second-largest bike market, RF was forced to phase it out.
So, yes, someone was asleep at the switch regarding trademarks and IP, but it wasn't something RF wanted to do to Roach. It was sort of done to them.
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mrbrett
6 years, 4 months ago
I have a Roach jacket - the kind with zip off sleeves, so it turns into a vest if you want it to. It's very highly used and well worn, and it once in a while comes out to make an appearance. It's part of my new-bike ritual where I have to be wearing that jacket for the first ride on any new bike.
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Cr4w
6 years, 4 months ago
That was awesome. He is hilarious. His new bike is like a cross between a DH Race with a Pipeline paint job but but no URT lol?
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Tim Coleman
6 years, 4 months ago
That was awesome! Well played! That Wade is best in class. I also makes me miss those old school bikes.
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Mic
6 years, 4 months ago
That was really sick! Sick rider, sick bike, sick trailriding, sick picnic table manual, wall ride, roof drop, stairgaps. Awesome. True style never gets old.
And that T-shirt. Sweet.
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Heathen
6 years, 4 months ago
I wish the new Alum Rockys had these lines. The Alum Altitude would look so much better with straight lines and top tube seat tube gusset. The current Alum Altitude is forgettable in a sea of Taiwanese cookie cutter bikes.
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mike
6 years, 4 months ago
CONGRATS Wade!!! .
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Thingy
6 years, 4 months ago
"This deserves old school." Nice.
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Poz
6 years, 4 months ago
Yes! Stairgaps and roof drop.
I'm feeling very nostalgic now.
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Cr4w
6 years, 4 months ago
There's hope yet that the rest of us can also improve with age.
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Ken Leggatt
6 years, 4 months ago
It would be a great bike to actually be able to buy.
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Merwinn
6 years, 4 months ago
I'd expect it has too much overlap with the Slayer.
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