for those that really know competitive track riding and racing in the u.s. (and even worldwide), here is a strange question:
is there a market for a high-end carbon highly aero track bike frameset that does* not* comply with UCI rules ?
i.e., how much of u.s. local track racing falls under UCI bike rules ?
or would that limitation effectively kill most sales ?
Pretty much zero market.
Styrrell
Another genius idea brought to you by the great GregX…
Call it an aero fixie and not a track bike and make it trendy with the coffee shop crowd. You’ll sell tens of thousands of them.
only if its njs . . .
i’m not a track rider.
so, “njs” is what ?
NJS is the Japanese gold standard for track bike equipment,
from wiki - “Nihon Jitensha Shinkokai (the Japanese Bicycling Association, or NJS) requires that all Keirin racers in Japan ride and use equipment that meets their standards. All riders use very similar bicycles, so that no rider will have any advantage or disadvantage based on equipment. In addition, all riders must pass strict licensing requirements.
All bicycles and equipment must be built within strict guidelines set by the NJS, by a certified builder using NJS approved materials. The products are then stamped by NJS and only equipment bearing this stamp may be used. However, it should be noted that the NJS standard is to ensure that no rider will have any advantage or disadvantage based on equipment, and does not necessarily relate to quality or standard of manufacture; e.g. 36 spoke wheels are allowed but not 32, and frames must be built by a very limited number of approved builders.
NJS approved equipment often sells for triple the price of comparable equipment because of its popularity in Japan. NJS equipment can usually be obtained more cheaply outside Japan, in places like the US, Germany, France, or Italy, where advanced technologies such as carbon fiber are more popular and more commonly used in racing than the steel required of Keirin. However, NJS frames are still much more expensive than their advanced-material counterparts. Popular manufacturers include Samson, Nitto, Bridgestone, 3Rensho, Shimano, Nagasawa, LeveL, Panasonic, Hatta, MKS, Kashimax and Sugino.
NJS approved equipment is not required for keirin races outside Japan.”
is it required for a coffeebike, no. but the knowledgable bikehipster would know.
for those that really know competitive track riding and racing in the u.s. (and even worldwide), here is a strange question:
is there a market for a high-end carbon highly aero track bike frameset that does* not* comply with UCI rules ?
i.e., how much of u.s. local track racing falls under UCI bike rules ?
or would that limitation effectively kill most sales ?
The track market is small, very small, and within that market you have companies competeing for a static number of units sold (current fixie trend notwithstanding)
To develop a bike that is NOT legal that is also faster than the current fast bikes UKSI, P3T, Tk1, BT Blade (I’m guessing on that one) would be exceedingly expensive and one not likely to ever recoup in terms of investment. Let’s suggest however that Specialized/Gerolstiener/Schumacher all wanted to break the Ultimate Hour Record for a marketing stunt aimed at finding a replacement title sponsor. I could see Specialized building a non-UCI legal bike for that one purpose.
Honestly the Cost/Benefit ratio doesn’t fit track bike production unless you throw in the contribution from the marketing departments of the companies behind them.
Pretty much zero market.
Styrrell
^^^ What he said.