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mickey Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
8/3/2025 2:22pm
The elder Lynskey just passed away, so change may be eminent, but too-cheap has been the MO over there since day 1… Lynsksey’s pricing model has befuddled domestic ti bike manufacturing insiders for decades. They regularly sell frames for less than the price of the materials they claim they are made out of. Unless the family has some crazy backdoor connections to drop pieces from an aerospace contractor dirt cheap, it’s always been something besides margin on frames keeping the lights on there…
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earleb Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
8/1/2025 1:07pm
Most of them just didn't keep up with the trends. Turner had a huge following but was stagnant at updating as enduro bikes kicked off. Wasn't there like 5 years of "new RFX coming soon"? By the time it arrived loyal customers had moved on to become Knolly and Banshee fans. Foes it feels like they just made the same bike for 15 years without visual change and it just looked dated (my own opinion). When did Lenz make anything that was actually relevant? Tomac licensed the brand off to Planet X in 2013...so that's dead and gone ages ago...
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pamtbr Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
8/1/2025 6:11am
I'll have to carve out time to read the full blog, but to go along with that, here's a short article from Bike-eu https://www.bike-eu.com/50389/pierer-mobility published this morning. I don't think this one is behind a paywall.
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jeff.brines Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
7/31/2025 10:36pm
I know KTM's troubles might go beyond the boundary of this thread but considering the number of similarities and the fact it was e-bikes that sank the company some of you may find my latest post worthwhile ( substack // blog) One thing I find very interesting is how much control KTM has over inventory control (dirt bikes, not e bikes) and re-stablizing the market. Turns out, when there are only a handful of players in a market, and one player has a particular niche cornered (KTM/Husky/GasGas owns the off road market), they can more easily fix a problem by...
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Digit Bikes Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
7/31/2025 12:35am
They mostly only cover whatever is in press releases they receive. If I closed up shop making an announcement about it wouldn't be high on my to do list. Come to think of it I never sent BRaIN a presser when I started in business. Is it too late now?
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Buckets Up Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
7/31/2025 12:35am
I get what you're saying and I mostly agree. And while my intel is anecdotal, it comes directly from a very trusted source who was there and involved directly with many of the issues. I've also owned several Intense frames from around the era and wasn't blown away by build quality and had numerous issues. I saw first hand everyone (including myself) who had gravity focused Intense frames have to zip-tie their upper link bolts in place one summer in whistler because they would back out incessantly even with loctite. I started to carry an allen in my pocket and...
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Tburkhardt_ Liked a bike check Homemade Enduro Bike (Steel Scott Voltage Freeride)
7/31/2025 12:30am
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TEAMROBOT Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
7/25/2025 9:41pm
DIRT TV!!!!!!
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Stiksandstones Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
7/25/2025 2:27pm
I only worked there for about a year and a half, but I’ve known the brand and the people for a long time. And yeah, I tend to agree—it might’ve been exaggerated. Kinda like that rumor about Lopes always parking crooked in his van because someone snapped a pic a couple times... and now it’s gospel lol. Point is, I knew how many frames were made and sold during my time there. I wasn’t in warranty or CS, but I was close enough to the crew to see what was going on. It wasn’t like frames were flying out the...
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jeff.brines Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
7/25/2025 2:22pm
Thanks. Apologies to how badly that post needed an editor prior to posting. If you suffered through the reading of it, I appreciate it. I'll do better pausing before posting next go! Those asking about Intense, it'd be a worthwhile deep dive to try and detail their history. Honestly, that'd probalby require talking to employees and even Jeff himself. I have dreams of doing "Acquired" style podcasts about these companies, being there is a lot of cool history and story behind all of them. I think they still have a great shot but will have to buckle down. Their bikes...
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iRider Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
7/25/2025 2:21pm
I wrote a lengthy post on another forum back in the day when they gave up all their US production and predicted that would get them in trouble. Previously the arguments for them were short turnaround times because of in-house production (early production 29ers, 27.5ers), constant evolution of "same model year" frames (small modifications between batches when they found a better solution, e.g. additional/differently placed cable stops), and made in the US. They had a unique selling point in "made in the US" that they gave away because of the wish to grow and go carbon. Now they have to...
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metadave Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
7/25/2025 5:30am
The years is 2043.... All work cup racers are either on Commencal, Santa Cruz or Frameworks, with Bruni still racing a single Specialized, the 87th iteration of "The Proto" I've always had a soft spot for Intense. An M1 was the first real DH bike I ever laid eyes on and I had an old Tazer FSR as a trail bike at one point when I was a kid. The 2017ish Tracer is still one of my favorite bikes I've owned as well. I do feel like they were back and forth the last few years with getting their mojo...
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Poweredbyhotdogs Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
7/24/2025 9:22am
Bike Rumor reporting Intense exiting UK and EU markets " citing ongoing economic challenges in the global cycling industry." Somehow incredibly not surprising.
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PisgahGnar Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
7/24/2025 9:21am
Posted a comment on the other site, but this statement is pretty shitty " If you placed an order before July 15th, please note that—due to legal regulations—it may be part of the restructuring process and will be reviewed individually." No, YT, you made the choice to prioritize short-term cash flow by screwing over customers. There are well-established legal options for protecting customer payments from becoming part of an insolvency estate. You could have used an escrow or trust account from the outset, structured payments to transfer only upon delivery, or at the very least paused sales and issued a...
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chriskief Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
7/24/2025 9:21am
We’ve all seen the “clarity and support” email they sent out. LOL
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iceman2058 Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
7/24/2025 9:21am
Since YT is being discussed in depth here, I figured a link to today's launch of the new Decoy would be appropriate: https://www.vitalmtb.com/product/guide/e-bikes/yt/decoy-67731#product-r… A statement from YT regarding the current restructuring: “We are currently undergoing a legal restructuring to put YT Industries on a strong and sustainable path for the future. If you placed an order before July 15th, please note that—due to legal regulations—it may be part of the restructuring process and will be reviewed individually. Our customer service team is already reaching out to affected customers to provide clarity and support. Orders placed on or after July 15th...
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owl-x Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
7/23/2025 11:13pm
Wheeeeeeeee!!!
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Mwood Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
7/23/2025 2:02pm
Not to beat the dead horse, but my wife gets these Term Sheet emails everyday about the tech world, and today's was on YT. https://fortune.com/2025/07/23/the-insolvency-of-ardian-backed-mountain… Good read, but nothing ground breaking, other than rappers and Walmart heirs at YT parties. It's more the fact it's being covered by such a prominent publication that surprises me.
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pinkrobe Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
7/23/2025 12:47pm
*sets down beer* Pro Team variations - fit is too tight for anyone with a body fat higher than 5%, but that won't stop a dedicated MAMIL [see also: Lampre Man]. Aspirational[?]. Very tight fit. Replicas of jerseys from every race team they sponsor, plus non-logo versions of the same. Tight, yo. Core - regular road jerseys for warm weather riding. The fit is what most would consider snug but doable. Brevet - merino version of the Core line, with more pockets. MAMIL-tolerant. Classic - MAMIL-friendly merino, very comfy on brisk days.
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ShapeThings Liked a reply to forum topic The Bikeconomics (Mega)Thread
7/23/2025 12:47pm
I’m not sure, as you alluded to, bike clothing is an insanely saturated segment. How much clothing do you need? My dresser drawers are at max capacity. I can’t imagine any apparel company is doing well right now, but an NF with a slightly more manageable scale is probably safer than Rapha? I wish specialized would update their shoe line, but may default to the freerider pro again.
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