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Cannondale goes Canadian

As the owner of two Cannondale road bikes, I read with great concern that Montreal-based Dorel Industries has purchased Cannondale Bicycle Corp. The purchase is reported as an all-cash transaction valued between $190 million and $200 million, VeloNews reported this week.

Dorel also owns Pacific Cycle, the parent company of Schwinn, GT and Mongoose.

As a result of the acquisition, Dorel’s recreational/leisure segment, which includes Pacific Cycle, InStep, Playsafe and Roadmaster, will be split into two separate divisions, VeloNews reported. The Cannondale Sports Group, which will target the independent bicycle dealer and be separate from the mass-market line, will include Cannondale, Sugoi, GT and the company’s other premium bicycle brands, presumably Schwinn and Mongoose. Cannondale Sports has already stated that it plans to seek acquisitions of similar high-quality brands.

Bethel, Conn.-based Cannondale Bicycle Corp. also includes the Sugoi Performance Apparel Co.

CyclingNews.com reported this about the sale:

"As with any event of this nature, speculation as to how this will affect Cannondale's corporate structure and product line have run rampant but (Cannondale President and CEO Matt) Mannelly and (Pacific Cycle President Jeff Frehner) Frehner were quick to dispel any rumors. According to them, there are no plans 'at this point' to move production overseas (other than items that are already produced in Asia, that is), Cannondale designers and engineers will still be able to pursue their trademark 'out of the box' style of research and development, and the company will remain very distinctly focused on the enthusiast independent bicycle dealer) market."

For more than 20 years, I've been happy with the quality of Cannondale bicycles. Their aluminum frames are well-suited for a larger cyclist such as myself. The fact that both of my Cannondale bikes were made in the United States is a bonus.

Let's hope Cannondale's new owner not only keeps up the quality of the bikes, but continues to make bicycles in the United States.

Labels: bicycles, Cannondale, United States

Roger 1 comments links to this post 4:49 PM

Tuesday, October 09, 2007

Easing the way for cyclists

In case you missed these stories online yesterday, USA Today and The Associated Press had a couple of stories about making things a bit easier for people who want to ride their bicycles as a means of transportation.

The USA Today story says that cities are accelerating their efforts to encourage commuting on two wheels, putting bike racks where cars once parked, adding bike lanes and considering European-style bike-share programs to get residents out of their cars.

Among the cities mentioned in the USA Today story is Chicago, which is striving by 2015 to have 5 percent of all trips shorter than 5 miles to be taken by bicycle. Mayor Richard Daley also is considering launching a bike program he saw in Paris. That effort, begun in July, allows residents and visitors to check out a bike at one location, ride free during the first half-hour and park the bike at another location near their destination. As I mentioned last week, Montreal is implementing a similar program. That program is expected to begin by the fall of 2008.

The AP story focuses on New York City, which received bronze medal from the Washington-based League of American Bicyclists for the city's efforts under Mayor Michael Bloomberg to promote cycling for a cleaner environment and a healthier populace.

The city is installing 400 to 500 bike racks a year and plans to have more than 400 miles of bike lanes and paths by 2009, the AP reported. There will then be 1 mile of bike lane for every 10 miles of road; the ratio is now 1 to 15. In San Francisco, it's 1 to 7.

Labels: commuting, cycling, United States

Roger 0 comments links to this post 10:01 AM