If you don't already have good roads, then you need a very rugged and durable bike, which wasn't possible at a reasonable price with the materials and tools ava

If you don't already have good roads, then you need a very rugged and durable bike, which wasn't possible at a reasonable price with the materials and tools available at the time. Even with today's technology, a cheap "mountain bike" from Walmart would be unrideable after just a day or two of true off-road use.