Fat Chance Wicked

The Wicked is quite possibly the most popular and common model from the Fat Chance lineup. First introduced for the 1986 model year the Wicked was meant to offer a compelling blend of aggressive geometry (71/72 and 17 1/8″ CS) with compliant tubing and slotted in between the more relaxed Kicker and all our race Team Comp. Priced at a reasonable $1250 it quickly became Fat’s leading model and started popping out on trails everywhere. Though it is a somewhat common bike the diversity of paintjobs they came in means these fun riding bikes are still sought out among collectors and fans of vintage mountain bikes. For this post I opted to showcase a variety of Wickeds that have passed through my hands rather than focus on any one bike in specific.

This particular 1987 was was my personal Wicked for a summer and was the bike that convinced me to give the Wicked serious look. I always discounted it as a soft and flimsy bike that was a far distant second to the Yo Eddy and shouldn’t me considered worthy of collecting. While I still maintain that it’s not the best bike for all out assault style of riding, or if you’re a heavier chap it’s a great bike by most measures. It’s quite comfortable while maintaining snappy handling a very light front end making it easy to navigate in tight or rocky sections, though surprisingly it doesn’t get easily upset with the occasional root or rock section.  Steep and punchy climbs reveal noticeable bottom bracket flex, rear wheel traction is fine whether you’re seated or standing. Really compared to the Yo Eddy the bike just lacks or maybe in this case it’s more of a matter of opts for a more sublime feel rather than a razors edge, all out assault ready weapon.

Multi color fades were quite common on Fats and the Wicked was no exception and at that price point really made them stand out among the field of bland options from bigger manufactueres.

This particular fall inspired camouflage paintjob is among the coolest I’ve seen on any Wicked and reminded me of far more expensive Ritcheys or Salsas.

Neon was the it color of the late 80s and early 90s and there were scores of neon green, yellow and pink Wicked blurs criss crossing the forests of New England.

This post could go on and on and I’d likely never run out of photos of cool Wickeds to share. Suffice it to say if you’re a fan of vintage mountain biking and have a soft spot for east coast builders you shouldn’t overlook the Wicked as a bike to have in your collection. The sheer volume Fat built and sold over the years should be a testament to the popularity of the bike during those days. For me I would hold out for one in a cool color to set it off against the throngs of others Wickeds that will grace the pages of online forums and local meetups.