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| My old 2007 El Mariachi |
Recently I was reminded of the old Salsa El Mariachi model hard tail 29"er bike. For anyone that doesn't remember, (I have to keep reminding myself that many of you don't catalog memories, or are not old enough to know things that I have stuffed into my brain closet), the Salsa El Mariachi was Salsa Cycles take on a 29" wheeled mountain bike. Not the first model that Salsa ever made with big wheels. That would be the Dos Niner in 2005. No, the El Mar, as we lovingly called it, was the steel hardtail, "do it all" 29"er hard tail bike meant to be tweaked into whatever it was you thought a 29"er should be. Suspension fork? Get one and throw it on. Single speed? The El Mar, well the original one, anyway, had an eccentric bottom bracket, so you could do that. Bike pack? Yes! Gravel bike? Yes! It was a super-versatile, really nice riding steel hard tail.
Times changed. The El Mariachi spawned the Fargo, (Yes, in part it did), and then full suspension, slacker this, steeper that, and whatnot came into vogue. Salsa Cycles trimmed out the El Mariachi to be a single speed that could be geared, and sales plummeted. The geometry stayed stale, and finally it was time to upgrade the model. Only they didn't. They introduced the Timberjack. That's an okay bike, but what about a modernized El Mar? Many, well......maybe just me, thought that there was a place for a versatile, steel, 29"er MTB that could do anything. Why did the El Mariachi idea go away?
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| The Panorama Taiga. (Image courtesy of Panorama) |
So, I saw a review for a bicycle recently called the Panorama Taiga which sparked my memories concerning my old El Mariachi. This bicycle was lauded as a great 'all-around' MTB by a reviewer, and so I'll take his word for that. But after looking at the geometry table and at the feature set this bike has, well, it's hard for me to not think about what could have been.
I always thought Salsa should have just updated the El Mariachi. Keep it steel. but allow a tapered steer tube fork. Modernize the geometry, but don't go overboard with that. Add on some Three-Pack bosses on a rigid fork option, or sell it with suspension. Keep the single speed option, but use the Alternator Drop Outs. Allow for big, fat 29"er tires on wider rims. If they only would have done that....
And since they haven't, we get bikes like Tumbleweed Prospectors and this Panorama Taiga. Remember when I mentioned that the El Mar spawned the Fargo? Well, even Panorama has a Taiga EXT which is a drop bar version of this idea. Take away something that was popular, modernize it, and sell it from another company. It could have been Salsa Cycles, but........maybe only if I had the controls! Maybe no one else would have bought this idea and if you look at this Panorama Taiga, check out that price. Oof! Yeah...... You're not going to sell many of those whether or not it is a Salsa.
But if I had a hankering for a mountain bike, this is probably what I would get, or something very similar to it.
8 comments:
Greets GT, I’m still riding a 2007 Gary Fisher Ferrous 29 (eccentric bb, rigid fork). Mucho similar to El Mar. (?)
It's crazy what good condition El Mariachi's are going for in the secondary market. Yes, some of that is the supply situation with current new bikes. But if you want something that isn't slack, there are almost no options anymore. Some of the 2014-15 El Mar's are going for more than what you could have paid for one in 2014 or 2015.
I have also wondered, and I believe many others have too, about the deal with the El Mariachi. You would think with the resurgence and interest in steel hardtails with more modern geometry, Salsa could maybe capitalize on that name and history. Especially now that the industry seems to be finding and settling on a good middle ground for geo numbers and what really works for most of us. I have been eyeing a Pipedream Sirius since the latest version was introduced and just found out the other day that a local rider has one that I am hoping to check out first hand. If it rides anything like it looks....
https://www.pipedreamcycles.com/shop/sirius/
@Skidmark - Yeah, similar for sure. Hang on to that rig and treat it right. Many of those broke and I don't think many are around anymore. It's a very cool bike!
@murraygd13 - I've seen several later model ones that seem kinda high priced on Facebook Marketplace. I'd have to agree with you on that.
@OkieBrian - Interesting bike. If you do get to ride the one in your area, it'd be great if you could pop back in this comment thread with a word or two. Thanks!
I still have my 2007 Salsa El Mariachi. I enjoyed riding this bike in New York City in the Transportation Alternatives group rides and NYC century. I eventually added a fox fork when I rode it in Park City, Utah for five years. I also rode it in the Cedar City, UT Dirt Fondo. It's been retired for the past 5 years. Just hanging in my garage. I am considering updating the components to convert it into a gravel bike. The geometry looks like it could still be used as a gravel/ adventure bike. Should I just invest in a new gravel bike with all the sweet deals this year?
@Jeff Wright - An El Mariachi is essentially a flat bar Fargo, so yes - it can make for an excellent gravel machine.
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