Wow. I can't believe Eddy would do that unless he's getting ready to retire soon. Sort of makes sense, I guess. According to my google search, he turns 60 in June. Would probably get a nice nest egg and a fat 5-year consulting deal with enough time to enjoy a villa on the Mediterranean coast.

I might be partly responsible. I bought a Fisher MTB in the 80s (before it was "Gary Fisher"). Trek bought them. I bought a Barracuda MTB in the 90s, then Ross bought them. I bought a Merckx last summer, then ? The big boys must be spying on my garage to see what's hot.

Resistance is futile. We will assimilate you.

---

__________________________________________________
What a drag it is getting old. -- Stones

Hmm, I have kind of mixed feelings about this idea. My Merckx is such a great bike, I would hope that the company wouldn't be ruined by major corporate influences. On the other hand, Trek has done a *fairly* good job at not ruining Klein (although I was disappointed when they moved from WA to WI). I have a lot of respect for the Trek company for bringing bikes to the masses (with help from a certain guy from texas), but it would be disappointing if the Merckx line went from being a set of very cool, high-performance eruo-bikes to another mold in waterloo, WI.

-Colin

---

------------------------------------------------------------
Any run that doesn't include pooping in someone's front yard is a win.

Wowser. As an avowed Merckx aficiando, I dunno what to think. Trek has a habit of buying quirky topend companies and turning them into bland vessels for the mothership (Bontrager, anyone; Klein; Fisher). might be time get that MXLeader I've benn pining for.

---

*****
"In case of flood climb to safety"

Signal intelligence within prior 30 minutes warrants revision of probablity to as high as 60% favorable.

---

Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

This could end up being a very good thing for the Merckx brand.

The SC and the Carbon bikes are the only ones with any real technical advantage. Most of the remainder of the line is pretty generic alu frames with nothing real special to offer other than his name.

Now add some marketing appeal, Trek's buying power and engineering abilities, they could easily make some special bikes with a cool name. Due to the low dollar in Europe, his bikes are overpriced. Bringing them here means we can buy them cheaper and his countrymen can buy them cheaper. Furthermore, if Eddy does want to retire but keep his name on bikes, he has to either turn it all over to some corporate type to run (possibly not very well) or find a suitor like Trek. Trek will pay well and keep the name alive as well as and likely better than most any other group I can think of. I think its a win for everyone.

I agree. I am exctied about this if it is true.

---

Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

If Trek is considering buying Merckx instead of having bought Merckx, maybe it's not a good idea to post this inside information on a public forum.

.... or .... maybe it is a good idea.

See what I'm sayin?

---

Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

No surprise really. Merckx and Lance Armstrong have been close friends for many years. It was Eddy, that first saw the potential in the young Armstrong when he first went over to Europe.

Fleck

---

---

Steve Fleck @stevefleck | Blog

the jerk calls bullshit. april first is still a while away.



jerk

---

http://www.echelonbicycles.com

Yes... but for good reason there are laws against doing things that influence mergers and acquisitions of companies...

Additionally... the original party who's confidences were breached might not be very happy about that being passed along...

I think Lance just wants to ride a Merckx.

---

__________________________________________________
What a drag it is getting old. -- Stones

Or they did it on purpose to gauge response...

Nothing ever happens by accident.

---

Tom Demerly
The Tri Shop.com

Doubt it, and

Maybe

[reply]Yes... but for good reason there are laws against doing things that influence mergers and acquisitions of companies...

Additionally... the original party who's confidences were breached might not be very happy about that being passed along...[/reply]

No, what I think you mean is that it is against the law to trade on securities based on material, non-public information. (Paging Martha Stewart!) There is no law that I am aware of regarding speculation and rumor-mongering for fun and sport.

Paul

No

I think people noticed the talent in Lance before Merckx pointed it out. Merckx was one of the few Euro based former pros who embraced his, um...attitude, candor, brashness, and disregard for the unwritten respect you gave to the senior members of the peloton.

Perhaps the strength of Lemond, one of Trek's brands, in Europe is the only highpoint of that brand for Trek. It has undergone several face lifts over the years, from traditional steel, to OCLV carbon, back to steel, with some aluminum offerings, then to a mix of steel and aluminum, a 'cross bike (which got its demand from Ryan Kelly's win aboard a custom steel LeMond 'cross bike at worlds, and the Bowen and McCormack boys at Saturn killing on a LeMond painted steel rid.) and some unusual script logos. The brand is in a tailspin in the US, and no one seems happy about it. Perhaps Merckx will give Trek the much needed facelift its "premeir" Euro brand needs here and still appeal to the international audience of consumers who don't argue with LeMond's comments regarding Lance, rather they acknowledge their likelyhood.

Or maybe Tom is full of crap and just needs warmer weather to quell his rumor spreading.

-SD

---

https://www.kickstarter.com/...bike-for-the-new-era

Is Trek a publicly traded company?

Ah the power of Lance ;-). Seriously, assuming the reason that Trek is looking to buy another bike company is because they want more of a Euro image, do you really think that Lance likes the owner has more influence than P&L, debt, product, assets, market share, distribution network, etc?



Styrrell

Friendships at the top have more influence than you think. If you buy into the whole concept of "relationship selling", then the best deals or the deals we will conduct most frequently and with the greatest level of comfort are with those that we know best!

Fleck

---

---

Steve Fleck @stevefleck | Blog

I heard the same rumor via my LBS Trek dealer.

If you think about it, it makes sense. Most Eddys are made in Taiwan now (look at your average aluminum Eddy- it is really nothing special)- this way they could be made in USA. Eddy does not have much penetration in the US via Gita. They could still make steel Eddys in Belgium.

This would allow Trek to drop the Lemond Brand name and still have something to sell to Lemond only Trek dealers, heck they could more or less re-badge the Lemond brand as Eddy Merckx.