Since the 1980s, Montague has provided full-size folding bicycles to
various divisions of the military.
In 1997, under a grant from the Defense Advanced Research Projects
Agency (DARPA), Montague partnered with the US Marines to develop the
Tactical Electric No Signature (TENS) Mountain Bike. For this project,
Montague developed a new folding frame design called the X-Series™,
integrating the F.I.T.™ system into the frame design. The non-electric
version of the TENS Mountain Bike, named The Paratrooper®, became
available shortly thereafter.
The F.I.T.™(Folding Integrated Technology) system was developed to
allow a full-size, high-performance mountain bike to fold in half so
that it could fit through the cargo door of a military aircraft with
an airborne ranger. When the soldier would hit the ground, he or she
would have a tactical mountain bike to use as transportation, thereby
bridging the gap between walking and deploying heavy military
vehicles. This would not only aid in transportation but it would help
to facilitate battlefield reporting as well.
The Paratrooper® is a full-size mountain bike that can traverse
terrain silently at high speeds with no thermal or acoustic radar
signature – key components when trying to avoid the enemy. The
Paratrooper® offers up to 500 pounds of load hauling capability and it
does not need gasoline. It has enhanced off-body load bearing
capabilities, a high level of maneuverability, and can compact to a
portable size in less than 30 seconds. The bikes are indeed used in
conjunction with LAV’s (Light Armored Vehicles) and HMMWV’s as back up
transportation and they also help to facilitate battlefield reporting.
It became clear that the folding technology found on bikes developed
for the U.S. Military could be used in the civilian world as well, as
these bikes began turning up in car trunks, closets, and a host of
other places where conventional non-folding bikes could not fit. By
popular demand the military bikes made their way into civilian use.