“Strong. Light. Cheap. Pick Two” (mountain bike adage)
Entry in progress—B.P.
Wikipedia: Keith Bontrager
Keith Bontrager (/bɒnˈtreɪɡər/; born December 18, 1954) is a motorcycle racer who became a pioneer in the development of the modern mountain bike. Between 1980 and 1995 he was president of Bontrager. Bontrager continues to develop components for Trek, which bought his company.
Bontrager
A Brief History of Bontrager
For those who’d rather spend their time riding instead of reading (and we don’t blame you), here’s the CliffsNotes version of “The History of Bontrager.”
The Bontrager story is the stuff of legends. Keith Bontrager, an engineer, designer, physicist, mechanic, rider, and natural-born do-it-yourselfer, emerged on the nascent mountain bike scene in the late 70s with a scientific approach to frame design, materials understanding, and craftsmanship. Spending a good part of the 1980s “dumpster diving” for broken bike parts, Keith analyzed why they failed and then dedicated himself to coming up with better, more durable designs. All this reverse engineering led Keith to his famous aphorism: “Strong. Light. Cheap. Pick Two.” Bontrager unabashedly opted for the first two, building a reputation on offering some of the strongest and lightest components available. Never faddish, openly skeptical about “conventional wisdom,” and always grounded in the often harsh scientific realities of the universe, Keith demanded parts that are strong first, as light as possible second, and often not cheap. It’s a no-compromise approach that rests on the proposition that discerning customers understand value is much more than price alone.
Twitter
Keith Bontrager
@Keith_Bontrager
strong, light, cheap… pick two
Santa Cruz, California
bontrager.com
Google Books
The Quotable Cyclist:
Great Moments of Bicycling Wisdom, Inspiration and Humor
By Bill Strickland
New York, NY: Breakaway Books
1997
Pg. 281:
“Light. Strong. Cheap. Pick two.” — Keith Bontrager
Google Groups: rec.bicycles.off-road
looking for upgrade advice…
JMEdgar
6/4/99
(...)
Since you’ve invoked Keith’s (somewhat misspelled) name, it’s a good place to mention one of his quotes:
“Strong, Light, Cheap—pick any two.”
Spokey Dokey Blog
January 26, 2014
“STRONG, LIGHT, CHEAP, PICK TWO”
Keith Bontrager’s well-known quote, “strong, light, cheap, pick two”, still rings true when it comes to bike components. It’s a very simple but incredibly effective description of any bike parts, or engineered components in general. If something is strong & light it’s not going to be cheap, i.e. a top end carbon frame. If it’s light & cheap it’s not going to be strong, we’ve all probably broken something that seemed a bargain at the time, whether it was a lightweight seatpin, superlight bottle cage, or minimalist chainring. If it’s strong & cheap, it’s not going to be light, such as that first ‘racer’ frame you had as a kid with the ‘gaspipe’ tubing.
Pinkbike
Pinkbike Poll: Weighty Issues
Jul 10, 2015
by Paul Aston
There’s an old adage - “light, cheap and strong - pick two.” What do you prefer? Personally I’m always biased towards strength and/or performance, followed by price and then weight.