It all began with a stick figure on a mountain bike. Equipped with aluminium bolts and quick-releases, the one-dimensional biker rolled up the mountain seemingly effortlessly. The tiny advert in a 1988 issue of BIKE magazine was the starting signal for one of the most iconic parts manufacturers in the industry: Tune Alpin & Rennsport Technik.
The spidery little advertising man was created by inventor and Tune founder Uli Fahl. The now 52-year-old worked as a chemist and lives with his wife Gisela in the Schwabing district of Munich. He likes to spend his free time in the mountains biking or climbing. Clinging to steep rock faces, the outdoor freak ponders the possibilities of weight tuning. "When climbing, every superfluous gram gets in the way," explains Fahl. Even in the saddle of his green Kettler mountain bike, he dreams of floating over the trails as light as a feather. So he puts his bike on a zero diet. His seat tube quick-release skewers have to go first. Not only are they heavy, they also don't work reliably. There's a better way, Fahl thinks, and goes down to the cellar to tinker. A few weeks later, new, lighter quick-releases are designed. The Tune company is born. The first interested parties respond to the advert he scribbles himself. Fahl and his wife send out the parts from their living room after work.
But since 1991, the days of manual labour are numbered. At the first trade fair appearance at the Eurobike, visitors flock to quick-release skewers, screws and tuning kits. Fahl realises that lightweight construction has potential. He quits his job as a chemist, moves back to the Black Forest and throws himself into the development of new parts. With success. At the beginning of the 90s, the lightweight construction virus infected the bike industry. Tune surfs to the top of this wave. Whether carbon handlebars, aluminium wheels or titanium chainrings - Tune ensures record lows on the scales. However, as with so many competing products, there don't seem to be any problems with durability. This is how the small German company survived the collapse of the lightweight construction boom at the end of the 90s. Fahl's secret recipe seems simple. "Nature has shown us everything," reveals the weight guru. "We don't have to reinvent anything, we just have to copy it." This philosophy turns trees into masters. Fahl uses their stable yet flexible structure as a model for the design of his cranks. Strictly according to the motto: what is natural is good.
This slogan has found prominent followers over the years. Professional cyclists such as Jan Ullrich, Sabine Spitz and the Fumic brothers are fast and, above all, light with tune parts. Weight tuning is not only setting time records in the racing camp. Despite all the critics of lightweight construction, downhill pro Markus Klausmann is chasing victory with Tune hubs, cranks and seatpost. And thus puts paid to the myth that lightweight construction is not for tough guys. After all, Klausmann is a ten-time German downhill champion.
Uli Fahl has also earned himself a title over the years: that of tuning pope. He is a little proud of this. After all, he puts his heart and soul into Tune. Even if he no longer has to pack the parcels himself: Uli Fahl doesn't want to retire for a long time yet. Because the "top-heavy" tinkerer has no shortage of ideas. And then perhaps another stick figure will be the small start of a big tuning idea.
