phil wood passed away this week at the age of 83. he was responsible for not only making the first sealed bearing hub and bottom brackets, he was responsible for one of the most recognized and trusted hubs today. there's also a whole laundry list of innovations under the phil wood name: oval tubing in tandems, the first production sealed bearing pedal, the first moderned bicycle disc brake, the patented spoke cutter and lest we forget that awesome grease- i'm pretty sure if you cut a hardcore phil wood enthusiast, he or she will bleed that stuff.
phil let go of his company in '91, but by that time he had already set the cycling world aflame. ask someone- ask anyone, who makes great hubs. among that list or usually at the top, is phil wood. it's amazing what he did- if it weren't for him, we would all be utilizing loose ball bearing bubs and bottom brackets (well eventually we would be on sealed bearings, but in '71 that's some innovation).
i know people who wont ride anything else. it's understandable due in part that these components were built in the US, even more san jose, CA (OH FUUUUUCKKK YEEEEEEAAAH!). i dont think phil knew how much impact he had on the fixed gear/track bike front. now if you ask any fixed gear/track enthusiast who makes the BEST, yes, THE BEST effin' track hubs on the market today. phil.
phil wood, one of the greatest innovators of the cycling sport, march 14, 2010.
jmik
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