Hetchins frames have curly stays. Mercian Vincitore and other custom frames have curly lugs. On the other side of the coin, early Cannondales had oversized tubes that somehow seemed even bigger and some of the ugliest joints and paint jobs ever seen on a bike shop-quality frame.
Those are a few of the bikes that, if you don’t know enough to tell them apart from others from a mile away, you can see are different from others.
GT bicycles also fit into that category. Even if the decals were removed, “in the know” cyclists would know they were looking at a GT because of its “triple triangle” frame design—and everyone else could see that the bike is different. Not all GTs had that feature, but if you were to see a frame that has it, you could be all but certain it’s a GT.
When I was an active mountain biker during the 1990s, GT was one of the most respected names. It’s also one of the first names associated with BMX, one of the few cycling disciplines I haven’t tried and where Gary Turner, the brand’s founder, got his start. Their road bikes have also been well-received.
I have never owned a GT but have had opportunities to try them and can say that I understand why it had more “brand loyalty” than most other names: As I recall, the ones I tried were responsive and offered good traction even with slick tires in dirt. I might’ve bought one had a too-good-to-pass up deal on a Bontrager Race Lite in my size hadn’t presented itself.
In spite of their bikes’ virtues, GT, like other iconic bike names, hasn’t been immune to the “crash” that followed the bike industry’s “sugar high” during the first year or two of the COVID-19 pandemic. This week, Jason Schiers, the company’s managing director, announced that there will be layoffs by the end of this year. The company also said it’s not releasing new products and plans to sell off its existing inventory through 2025.
Not being an industry analyst, I can only guess at what, specifically, benighted GT. So here goes: I think they are most closely associated with two disciplines—mountain biking and BMX—whose popularity has fallen off in recent years, as participants in the latter have aged out and the kids are opting for video games. In the meantime, the sorts of riders who might’ve gotten involved with mountain biking 30 years ago are opting for gravel riding or are riding eBikes.
Anyway, even though I’ve never owned a GT, I would be sorry to see the brand’s extinction.
