Since it's inception in the garage of Ross Schafer in 1976, Salsa Cycles have relied heavily, at times exclusively, on steel as its driving frame material. Even as the company made its first forays into scandium and titanium production, steel mountain bikes remained at the core of the company's spirit. As industry trends have come and gone, Salsa has stuck true to the original frame material and improved its offerings as the years have progressed.
Several years back, with the popularity of 29 inch wheeled mountain bikes surging, Salsa introduced a limited run of its El Mariachi frameset. Featuring a True Temper OX Platinum steel tubeset, an eccentric bottom bracket shell and no derailer hanger, the limited run frame was a hit with the single speed crowd. The following season, Salsa put a geared model into its line, retaining the eccentric for easy single speed conversion. Although the frame had a somewhat goofy looking triangular brace along the top tube for standover clearance, the bike was a hit and remained constant for several seasons, eventually ditching the brace for a much classier aesthetic. Despite the popularity, steel fans found, much to their horror, that the model was being phased out in favor of a much pricier, geared specific, titanium version for 2010. As the remaining stock vanished, so did the idea of Salsa's roots. Fans of the brand were left to ponder the direction of the company. Without a viable steel mountain offering from Salsa, who could say what reality was anymore?
Fast forward to Sea Otter 2010 and Salsa unveiled a striking new rendition of the El Mariachi. Vibrant "Baja Blue" with redesigned "Alternator" dropouts and a proprietary steel tubeset, steel fans everywhere unleashed a river of collective drool and began clammering to get ahold of the new rig. While the new Mariachi has retained the same geometry as previous models, promising the classic stability the bike has become known for, several substantial upgrades set it apart from preceding editions.
The biggest deal is the inclusion of new pivoting dropouts, dubbed "Alternator", that act as both a chain tensioner for single speed use and as replaceable dropouts. Gone are the days of a torn derailer ruining a beloved steel frame. Simply replace the damaged dropout and keep riding. Gone too are the days of an incessantly creaky, constantly slipping, problem saturated eccentric bottom bracket shell. The new dropouts, previously only seen on mortgage priced custom bikes, perform flawlessly and set up brainlessly. Once tensioned, the rider need only pedal and not spend every energy bar stop checking how much chain slack has developed throughout the ride. With several hours of testing thus far, the chain has yet to slip and the dropouts have remained rock solid. One small flaw is the inclusion of a permanent derailer hanger, thus making it difficult to establish total superiority over your geared riding buddies, but there are some that might argue the potential for shifting is a good thing.
Another change for the new Mariachi is the use of a proprietary triple butted steel tubeset Salsa calls "Kung Fu" tubing. While retaining a similar weight compared to OX Platinum, the new tubing is said to double the fatigue life of the frame. While its hard to test this attribute at such and early stage, the new tubing does provide a noticeably stiffer ride. Torquing up hills feels more responsive and it seems to track its line through corners with more authority. Compliance is definitely lost in the process, but the improvements in performance more than make up for it. The ride loses a bit of the lively feel of steel in favor of rock solid efficiency, but there are many who will appreciate this shift.
As Salsa forges ahead with its "Adventure by Bike" makeover, the models and improvements that have been trickling in thus far show great promise for the brand. By sticking with tried and true models and providing them with modern, sensible updates, Salsa is keeping their heritage and making inroads into the future. With its striking aesthetic and performance upgrades, the new El Mariachi frameset lays claim to the 29'er steel crown. Currently only available as a frame with available matching fork, there are rumblings that big things are afoot from the Minnesota based company for the coming season...
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