Elisa's Eye on the World

FAT Chance Specialty Bike: F'n Chance featured in Dirt Rag

I spotted this in our paper copy of Dirt Rag, and this image of the page now appears on the First Flight Website. 

Team FAT Chance Hat from the 1990's

This has was scooped up a west coast bike expo in 1995 or so - a nice brushed twill, but the "Made in USA" stamped plastic adjustable band is broken so it's for display only.

1991 Yo Eddy!

Shown here is Dan's Yo, as profiled on his site and previously in this blog . Sweet innit?

That's Mr. Ed to You

Elisa's Eye is pleased to present this guest contribution from someone who worked across the alley (at that other frameshop) from FAT City Cycles in Somerville, MA.  I believe the photo was recent. Thanks R.

Fat City was also know as an appliance "Pimper" in the day.  Shown here is fine example of some of their best work.  Disappointing, that this is all that is left of functional artwork in action.

"It sure made my coffee hot" was heard by more than one mourner on its last day.

"YO is Hot" and lives on and on and on and on....  What's the 1/2 life of a microwave...?

FAT City Cycles "Made in America" Shirt

Front of shirt with Japanese lettering and implication it translates as "Made in America." Can someone confirm this? Back of shirt has this huge logo.

Somerville FAT Tee Shirt

Small classic logo on left hand side of shirt front.Large "historic" image on back.

Vintage FAT City Cycles Caps

Watch this blog for more posts like this of vintage FAT City Cycles stuff. Not for sale. These are from my personal collection. Shown here are two cycling caps featuring that bad boy of dirt Yo Eddy!

Factory Set up of my 1989 Wicked FAT Chance

Sparkling! Sorry the photo is fuzzy since it's a bad scan from an old print.

Another View of Big Blue the Tandem

"Big Blue" the Somerville FAT Chance Tandem

This is probably a one-of-a-kind, manufactured in the early 1980's in Union Square, Somerville, Massachusetts USA. Recently put back into action by R & S out in western Mass. More photos and details to come!

Phil and Friday Mug Shots

Drop me a line if you want to know any of the specs.

Phil and Friday Profiles

Love the flat pedals from Rivendell Bicycle Works.

Ride and Snap along Trail Shot 3

Rader Creek trail.

Ride and Snap along Trail Shot 2

Cabin Trail.

Ride and Snap along Trail Shot 1

June brings our annual trip to Winthrop, Washington and the wonderful trail system at Sun Mountain.

Please enjoy these pictures of my 1989 Somerville FAT and hub's Saratoga FAT.

Factory Fork on my 1989 Wicked FAT Chance

This was probably taken in August 1989, judging by the Mt. Snow water bottle. Shortly after that I had the stickers removed and fork painted a cooler color green at the shop in Somerville.

New Wheels for a Classic Bike

Closeup detail of the hub of my 1989 Wicked Fat Chance; these are the new wheels Hubs built for me - road test forthcoming. Yes, the bike's name is Phil.

Team FAT Chance Banner and 1989 Wicked

This official banner was donated by FAT City Cycles for an event I organized in the early 90's. The ride is my beloved Phil, a 1989 Wicked FAT Chance. The location is undisclosed.

Yo Eddy Button from Late 80s

I'm sure few were  ever manufactured of this "Yo Eddy" pin. The design is less detailed and more appealing than later versions.

I was lucky girl to get this in the late 1980s - probably from my friend R. who worked at Merlin Metalworks, who had a brother working and racing for Fat City Cycles.

Two FATs along the trail

After zipping down the Radar Creek trail and before the Patterson Lake trail at Sun Mountain in Winthrop, WA.

1989 Monster FAT Chance Fixie

More fixed gear switch details found online. Read here, in the Fixed Gear Gallery about a guy in SF building up a Monster.

Yo Eddy

Yo Eddy, the venerable punk rock happy face mascot FAT Chance riders adore.

Over time, he was modified for the "Team FAT Chance" racing team, and appeared on items such as race wear, water bottles, Frisbees and band aids,  which occasionally show up on Ebay.

Nice Photos of FAT Chance Frames

Using the Technorati search engine, I found a post about FAT City Cycles on a Canadian Blog About Bikes featuring some great photos of models such as the Team and Wicked FAT Chance. I'm not sure if these are Somerville or Saratoga FATs so I've put this under both categories to be safe.

 

Fixie Switch for Vintage FAT

Googling around today, I found an April 2006 post about switching a 1989 FAT to a fixed gear bike. "Wicked Fun" by Todd Burpee .

"...understand that, among rigid folks, the Wicked is a contender for the accolade of the finest-handling, most intuitive, best-made, sweetest (and any other superlative you'd care to attribute) MTB ever."

Exactly!

Shown here is my 1989 Wicked FAT Chance with the original 3-ring, 21-gear setup for comparison.

Saratoga Ti and Somerville Steel

Hubs 1998 Saratoga Titanium FAT Chance and my 1989 Somerville Wicked FAT Chance between rides at Sun Mountain, Winthrop, WA.  If you bring a tarp, most places let you keep the bikes inside.

FAT Chance Handlebar Alternate View

FAT City Cycles Handlebars

Original True Temper American Steel handlebars (1989).

Original FAT City Cycles fork repainted Candy Sparkle Green in the Somerville, MA factory (July 1990), to replace stock neon green painted fork and stickers.

Frame treated for rust and repainted stock black in 2001 at the Davidson Custom Cycle factory adjacent to the Elliott Bay Bicycle shop in Seattle, WA.

Aftermarket Chris Igleheart Bar Ends, Michelin tires, Terry woman's leather saddle (rare non-cutaway model), Avid brakes, Suntour thumbshifters and Seahorse the mojo and Avocet cyclometer, Specialized Dirt Dinger bell, red lucky dice valve caps.

2002 Interview with Chris Chance

Here's an interesting backgrounder on the legendary Chris Chance posted on Inspired Ink by writer Brion O'Conner who notes:

"Initially written for the now-defunct Mountain Biking, this piece on Chris Chance's Fat City Cycles, and the wonderful trails surrounding his shop on the outskirts of Stowe, Vermont, finally saw the light of day in Dirt Rag."

 

Yo Eddy Frisbee

Right now on EBay there's some competitive bidding for a used Whammo Frisbee with the official Yo Eddy Team Fat Chance logo.

Independent Fabrications - Old FAT Chance talent New Brand

Adding to previous posts about brands, or shops formed from the incredible talent pool at FAT City Cycles, we wrap up the year with an Independent Fabrications History Lesson .

IF is "...a talented team who draw on experience at legendary firms such as Fat City Cycles and Merlin Metalworks and produce arguably the most desirable bike frames in the world."

:::: Best wishes to everyone at IF for keeping the dream of the perfect steel frame ride alive. ::::
 

Fan Site from Holland

FAT Chance owners tend to be smart and funny,  and this fan site  from Holland is a good example. In 2003 the owner purchased his Aquafade Saratoga FAT on ebay from a seller in the US. You can read all about it (in English) from the point of view of the bike "YOM1075",  including his specs  in this charming site. There's also a FAT Chance Yo Eddy! review from 1990, and photos taken on various rides and excursions.

Igleheart Custom

Chris Igleheart, formerly of FAT City Cycles in Somerville, and  creator of the fine steel "Bar Fly" bar ends for my 1989 Wicked Fat Chance is in the news!

Issue #117 of Dirt Rag Magazine has a nice blurb on his Danvers, MA steel fork / custom frame shop in the "Specialty Files" section on page 20 of the print edition.   His specialty these days? 700c / 29'' wheels with a Rohloff 14 speed internal hub and Columbus Life steel tubing with a 100mm adjusted TNES fork with disk brakes.

Says Chris, "This is the future for an all round bike. Off road with the 29ers & fenders (mud guards) with 700c road tires you have a super touring or commuter bike. The enduro of bicycles." 

His website is in progress- so for now email him: Iglebike @ AOL dot com .

Historical Recap of New England Bike Makers

Those looking for a little history behind the coveted bike frame-makers in the Boston area, might want to zip back in time to a September 2000 article from Bicycle Retailer and Industry News posted on the Seven Cycles website:

"For nearly twenty years, New England's bike makers have been building on what Chris Chance started at Fat City Cycles. But even though Fat City is now gone and Merlin has moved, the region shows no sign of decline as a major hub of bike making and cycling culture. Fat City loomed large over the New England scene from the mid-1980's to the mid-1990's, creating bikes and an attitude behind them that would help make mountain biking what it is today."

Dang those Seven frames are sweet!

1983 FAT Chance Conversion

One of the coolest bike shops in New England is Bikeman, in Woolwich, Maine. It's no surprise the custom built section of their site boasts a FAT Chance custom built town cruiser lovingly documented for the DIY biker.

FAT Chance Owner Online Community

This, unofficial website of FAT Chance Owners has active forum discussions and classifieds of interest to the FAT Chance community.

As a point of reference, before FAT City Cycles closed its doors- there was an official FAT COG (Chance Owner's Group) - this is just a take-off on the name, as the club sadly ceased to exist. Thankfully, I have my way-cool member shirt to remember it by. Enjoy.

FAT Chance Fan Site from Germany

I just discovered a website for FAT Chance Mountain Bike Fans and Friends that is filled with high quality photos and personal stories. Unfortunately, many of the links are dead. The (official) owner's club it speaks of ( FAT COGs) is no longer, as FAT City Cycles closed its Saratoga NY factory a few years after the move from Somerville, MA.

Fork Upgrade from Rigid. Never.

Looking online, or talking with most any wrench, you will find confirmation that some bikes are not destined for shock suspension. You can try, but it's tricky. On-line forums, such as this one on Shock for older frame (1")  give you an idea of what some people will go through. Others feel it's not worth messing with.

This blogger rides trails on a 1989 Wicked Fat Chance with the factory fork (see related post for photo). You just have to know the limitiations. It builds character and strong shoulders to do without.

A fellow FAT owner, B! summed it up:  "Don't EVER put those weenie shock absorber forks on yer fat ride!!! Keep that one old school!" Yup.

Evolution of FAT City and Salsa

While the intention of this posting  on the Competitive Cyclist website is to sell Salsa frames, FAT Chance followers will find their overview of hard tail frame evolution by Salsa and FAT City Cycles of interest. Here's a snip:

"As you might recall, the Wicked Fat Chance begot the Yo Eddy!, and then came the Monster Fat then the Buck Shaver then the Bro Eddy. How many iterations of the steel hardtail could one company get away with making? Companies like Fat Chance seem determined to find out."

1989 Wicked FAT Chance

Owner: Blog author

Purchased: June 1989 from Fathead, Somerville, MA - wheeled right over from the factory across the alley by Yo Betty herself.

Comments:  First thing I did was have the factory remove the neon green stickers and repaint the fork (also neon green) to a metallic Candy Green.

Right now "Phil" is set up for road riding - don't have a cow man! One bike, two sets of wheels.

King cages (stainless), Rivendell "Bananna" saddle bag, Brooks B.17 saddle, "Bar Fly" bar ends made by a guy who used to work at Fat City. There's a pink "Team FAT Chance Yo Eddy" sticker on the stem along with a froggy mojo.

Wore out most original parts over the years- specific details forthcoming with fat tire setup posting.

1995 FAT City "Buckshaver"

Owner: C, who I met through BBTC in 1994.

Purchased:  From factory after mailorder sizing fiasco

Comments: I used to live in Mass. and Fats were a local favorite. My 1st mt bike was an '86 Myata Ridge Runner (what a tank). I then had a couple of Bridgestone's-- a Zip and another one I also broke. I was tired of mediocre bikes so I looked around and road a few Fats and other bikes. The Fats had a almost magical ride quality to them. So I. called around for one no one from Seattle had any at the time. I called around to the shops in Mtn Bike Action (mag) and order one from Cambria Bike. I ordered a red one and after an eternity it came and I built it up. It was a medium -the size Cambria recommended. It was too small so I sent it back and called Fat City direct they were cool and I got to order a custom color large Sapphire fade Blue/purp (really nice) 

The Buck was named after Buck a Fat employee who road his bike to work to save a few bucks. Unfortunately for him he was run over and died, so Chris Chance named this model after him. That's the story I got. It was touted as the same size as the Yo with a softer ride.

The Buck sat a spare bike with no wheels for a few years until this year 2005 when I built it up again to take out once and a while.

My 2 best memory's of the Fat are meeting Chris Chance at the Specialized Cactus Cup and racing it and riding on my favorite trail Chickimin Ridge trail where someone one saw my Fat City Cycles sticker on my truck, and left a note that I have tacked up in the garage that reads "Right on, Yo eddy's! Rule singletrack" I hope you all had a fine ride."

It's a great bike and I never broke it. It's too bad that Chris isn't making bikes anymore he really knows his stuff. Quality welds, quality paint. See you one the trail!

Resource for Owner Written Reviews

On the MTB Revew Website there are reviews by owners of WIcked, Yo Eddy, Bro Eddy and Ti Fat bikes. I just discovered this site, so there's no post from me yet on my 1989 Somerville Wicked Fat Chance or hubbies Saratoga Ti Fat.  If you can bear with the typos it's a valuable resource of information on component configurations and the community of people who love the Fat Chance frame.

1991 Yo Eddy

Owner: My friend D, who also owns the 1986 Fat described below.
Purchased: Used in 1993, from a guy who built it up and hardly rode the thing.

Owner Comments: I immediately pulled off the Marzocchi suspension fork and clip less pedals, replaced them with the stock Yo Eddy fork and some Suntour XC Pro pedals.  Old school me was not quite ready for the suspension revolution.

Rode this bike quite a bit from ’93 to ’99 wearing out yet another Pile-O-Parts on a Fat frame.

Lots of good memories from this bike including a trip to Moab for the Fat Tire Festival, where I met up with some NJ riding pals for a few days of fun. I raced this bike a few times as well, suffering like a dog to my usual mid-pack Sport class finish. I later did cave to suspension and installed a Manitou III fork – the wonders of elastomer bumpers with greased skewers as damping devices.

In ’99 I bought a full-suspension Ellsworth and returned the Yo Eddy back to full rigid – the Yo Eddy skulls on top of the fork tubes looking back at me like old friends when I ride.

I still occasionally ride the Yo Eddy and just did so the other day, with my 5 year old son on his bike around the neighborhood. I think the Yo Eddy was one of the best mountain bikes ever made.

Part Specifications and Timeline

Yo Eddy! Have you seen First Flight Bicycle's Guide to Fat City Cycles ?

Feast your eyes upon technically specific data and a nicely documented archival photo gallery of bicycles produced by Fat City Cycles. The earliest model shown is from 1983:

Owners and collectors will delight at part specifications by model and a timeline of the framemaker's short but sweet history. There's also a guide to the unorthodox numbering sequence of their steel frames.

1986 FAT Chance

Owner: My friend D, who I met back in 1995 through Backcountry Bicycle Trails Club, Seattle .
Purchased: New. Ridgewood Cycle, Ridgewood, NJ

Owner Comments: At the time, a very trick upgrade from my 1984 Miyata Ridge Runner. This was the era of friction shifting, bolt on hubs, and platform pedals. I rode this bike from ’86 to ’91.  Loads of NJ and later on, WA singletrack. A few NORBA mountain bike races and trials events, as well as road rides with slicks. After I semi-retired it, used it as a loaner for visiting friends and introducing others to mountain biking. I wore out a pile of parts on that Fat frame - and it currently hangs in my garage with mostly late ‘80s vintage stuff on it – including a Hite-Rite to drop and raise the saddle.