Sports Garage’s passionate founders set up shop in the Quonset huts at the corner of 27th and Spruce in 1994, and we never left. Anchored by not only our history as a locally owned small business, but also the history of mountain biking, this year we celebrate our 30th anniversary. A quick look back at what made headlines in the world of cycling, and beyond, the year Sports Garage’s doors first opened.
Founders Thom Beckett and Frank Vogel moved into “Q1,” the south hut of the current Sports Garage location at 27th and Spruce. With workbenches for early MTB suspension and skis, SG focused on cutting edge service for serious adventurers.
The movies Shawshank Redemption, Forrest Gump, and Schindler’s List are all released with critical acclaim award nominations. In June of that year, Schindler’s List was banned by Indonesian censors.
The MTB World Cup DH race was held just up the road in Vail, Colorado, where American Julie Furtado was expected to dominate, but finished 4th. David “Tinker” Juarez earned silver, leading the U.S. to second place with a total medal count of 4, behind France’s 7.
Whitney Houston wins R&B/Soul song of the year for her cover of Dolly Parton’s “I Will Always Love You.”
Yeti Cycles, early in their tradition of alphabet soup model names, releases the A.R.C. A.S. LT.
In South Africa’s first post-apartheid election, Nelson Mandela and the ANC are officially confirmed winners. On May 6, Mandela is sworn in as South Africa’s first black president.
Unseeded Andre Agassi wins his first U.S. title, defeating German player Michael Stich at the U.S. Open in September.
In response to his murder charges, O.J. Simpson pleads “Absolutely 100% Not Guilty.”
Entrepreneur Jeff Bezos founds Amazon in Seattle, Washington.
The world record for distance covered on a bicycle in one hour is set, for a second time, by Tony Rominger, reaching a distance of 55.291 miles.
Orbea Bicycles, which had been in business nearly 150 years by 1994, built and showcased an iconically (odd) model called The Orbea Next One, which featured an of-the-moment pink paint job and a one-legged fork.
