I-RIDE DEALER SHOW
Northwave’s shoes avoid putting
pressure on shallow areas of the foot
i-ride is now offering a wider range of
complete builds for Argon 18
i-riding into the market
i-ride’s First look Fortnight show gave dealers and press chance to get the jump on Eurobike visitors and see 2014 lines from Argon, Catlike, De Rosa, 3T and more. Jonathon Harker reports…
IT’S BEEN a good few years for i-ride. The distributor formerly known as Jim Walker has seen consistent growth despite this year’s famously low key spring and looks like it is going to result in a warehouse extension to handle increased stock, or maybe even a move for the West Sussex HQ. That likelihood has increased following the taking on of a number of brands too, marketing manager Tom Marchment tells BikeBiz. There might just be a couple of new arrivals in the works too, but more on those soon. First up at the Eurobike preview was Argon
18. 2014 will see an expansion in i-ride’s Argon offering – namely a wider number of UK- assembled complete bikes to complement the frame. Crucially, as i-ride is making the bikes up on-site, the bikes are UK-specced and at a price point relevant to this market, not just based on the Euro exchange rate. At the top end is the Gallium Pro, closely
followed by the Krypton which is now sporting a similar spec to the Gallium of two or three years ago, including full carbon monocoque frame and fork, compatibility with electronic and mechanical gearing and featuring the brand’s 3D headtube. Coming stocked with name components like
Conti tyres and Fulcrum wheels, the bikes have been well received at the show, we hear, not least because if customers purchase the complete bikes and want to swap out components, dealers will be left with named components, rather than bargain bin vanilla parts. However, if a dealer wants to swap a component before they take delivery, i-ride can help there too. Onto the frames themselves: The Gallium
Pro has been fully redesigned, featuring the
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Horizontal Dual System which takes into consideration ride quality and comfort alongside sturdy stiffness for maximum power transfer. There’s been an improvement in the quality of carbon, with a reduction in weight. i-ride’s bike brands are all in line for a custom bike build service where customers will be able to develop their own bike spec which will then be delivered to the shop for the customer. There’ll be full margin for the shop and that service is hoped to launch this autumn, so look out for that. Catlike moved to i-ride last year and far
Prologo’s CPC tech has now trickled down to mid-range saddles
exceeded predictions – performing four times better than i-ride expected (no doubt aided by Team Movistar). Subsequently there’s now a bigger investment in stock for dealers. The distinctive Catlike helmet style – with
many smaller vents – isn’t just about looks. It’s all about distributing the energy from any potential impact across the helmet, improving crash resistance. Onto product, there’s a redesigned Mixino
featuring an improved profile, the slender helmet avoiding that classic ‘mushroom’ effect on the head. The Mixino uses an advanced graphene roll cage – a higher spec version of Kevlar used in bulletproof vests. It uses atoms of carbon in sheet form, so it’s flat, while weight and bulk are both reduced. The fitting system is touted as ‘the most adaptable on the market’, with a wheel adjuster, movable cradle, floating retension and straps, all changing the internal shape of the helmet. All have removable side pads to further customise the side-to-side fit of the helmets. Speaking of pads, the Mixino uses technology in the padding first developed for NASA, which is anti-bacterial and temperature regulating.
Moving on, De Rosa is getting an expanded
range at i-ride too, with more bikes geared up for Ultegra Di2. Industry watchers may be interested to note that the Merek is the current bestseller of the range (at the £3,000 to £4,000 price range), where it used to be the R838 (£2,000 to £3,000), representing a rise in the average price the customer is willing to pay for a bike, for this brand at least. Some of the brand’s bikes are sporting an increasingly unified understated look, like a high-end sports car. The Handmade Italian frames Milanino – high end aluminium framed product – have performed well too. Fulcrum’s Racing 7 and 5 have been fully
redesigned, both sporting all-new oversized aluminium hubs and axles, shaving grams off the weight. Meanwhile 3T’s bar and stems are thought
by i-ride to be the leader in the UK for the mid-to-high end, with a new addition to its road bar range. While MTB bars have been part of the line-up for a few years – used primarily in OE (see what BMC has in store) there will be developments in this area in the next six to nine months. Overall, there have been efforts to simplify the range for the consumer and dealer. There will be a push on 3T wheels too, now being stocked with i-ride. Unlike some competitors, 3T has wind tunnel tested and designed its wheels to be stable in a variety of types and winds and – crucially – in transitions between winds/angles, no that sometimes dramatic change in drag is not there for riders. The Mercurio tops out the wheel range. BKool trainers haven’t been with i-ride that long – since October last year – and despite having no sell-in season, the brand sold five
BIKEBIZ SEPTEMBER 23
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