Bike industry

The Start of Something COMMON

Posted on 01. May, 2011 by in Bike industry, Client News, Personal | No Comments

The Start of Something COMMON

I didn’t exactly come to Boulder Digital Works to help start a bike company. But, sure enough, I’ve been involved – at least to some degree – in the early stages of Common Cycles as part of a bigger ongoing role designing a user experience and writing code for COMMON.is. Anyways, my role as more of an observer than a participant in the creation of Common Cycles has been an interesting chance to think about the bike industry in general and what I was actually doing in it. Something I realized: Passion isn’t special. Humility is.

Tumbleweeds at Interbike

Posted on 27. Sep, 2010 by in Bike industry | 1 Comment

Note the distinct lack of crowdedness in the background.

In general terms, Interbike’s malaise has been attributed to a couple problems that are pretty specific to bike manufacturers. But the big change from last year to this year was the number of non-bike companies that opted not to exhibit even though they have shorter lead times and can fill small orders whenever. In other words, Interbike isn’t working for the companies that it should still be working for.

Made in America

Posted on 14. Jul, 2010 by in Bike industry, Marketing | No Comments

Made in America

The bike industry has its faults but at least we’re not just cranking out ads that gush with empty pontifications about American greatness. Let’s compare the 2011 Jeep and Corvette campaigns to one of my favorite sections in last year’s Zipp catalog.

The relative merits of cannibalism

Posted on 14. Jun, 2010 by in Bike industry, Marketing, Sponsors | 4 Comments

The relative merits of cannibalism

Despite the legend of its namesake, Eddy Merckx Cycles NV is a small company. And if you’re small, you do what you have to do to get attention. But is a shock campaign the right approach? Sort of.

Dorel plays it safe with Schwinn’s big campaign

Posted on 21. Apr, 2010 by in Bike industry, Marketing | No Comments

Dorel plays it safe with Schwinn’s big campaign

There’s a palpable optimism in the bike industry, and much of it is due to a belief in the bicycle as a instrument for positive social change. But in the most ambitious mainstream advertising campaign in the industry’s recent history, that sense of activism is nowhere to be found. Still, the ads are pretty good.

Bikes are the new microwaves?

Posted on 29. Mar, 2010 by in Bike industry | 10 Comments

Bikes are the new microwaves?

Mark Sanders – the man who brought you the no-spill cutting board as well as some nifty folding bikes – gave this presentation at the Taipei show and it’s worth a look. Although he compares bicycles to everything from iPods to electric shavers, Sanders himself wrote in a comment on BikeRadar that one of his preferred yardsticks is the humble microwave. That, he claims, is what the bicycle should be like: functionally simple, readily available, and designed for everyone.

Cracks in the hegemony of high performance?

Posted on 15. Jan, 2010 by in Bike Racing, Bike industry, ROAD Magazine | 3 Comments

Cracks in the hegemony of high performance?

The bike industry knows that the overwhelming majority of serious cyclists don’t race, at least not formally. Nonetheless, the common assumption has been that these consumers desire the same qualities in their bikes, components, and accessories as professional racers do. But this assumption is eroding.

LeMond v. Trek at the precipice

Posted on 20. Nov, 2009 by in Bike industry | 2 Comments

LeMond v. Trek at the precipice

Here’s my take on the soon-to-be-really-really-ugly lawsuit between Trek and Greg LeMond. Once Lance won his first Tour, there was no way that Trek could pursue the massive opportunity of its association with Armstrong without putting the LeMond line on the back burner. That’s what doomed the partnership.

Postmodern road cycling and VDB

Posted on 22. Oct, 2009 by in Bike industry, ROAD Magazine, Trends | 1 Comment

Postmodern road cycling and VDB

Here are a few excerpts from my next column for ROAD Magazine. The topic is the new dichotomy in cycling between the hegemonic modernism – driven by the notion that high-end cycling consumers want increasingly high-performance, race-proven equipment – and the new postmodernism – which filters simplicity, camaraderie and iconic elements of cycling’s past through an artistic lens. I’ve also collected a few thoughts about Frank Vandenbroucke’s passing.

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