Originally Posted by FlashBazbo (Post 21057097)

2018 bike sales in Germany . . . 23.5% of all bike sales were e-bikes. 980,000 e-bikes sold in 2018 in Germany alone.

https://www.bike-eu.com/sales-trends...833.1564779717

Originally Posted by 79pmooney (Post 21056818)

My hope - grass track racing. Won't sell a ton of bikes but could be a life changer for many. (I'd love to see inner city kids racing $600 Fuji track bikes on vacant lots. Another Nelson Vails?)

Ben

Originally Posted by Abe_Froman (Post 21057024)

I don't see it happening.

E bikes are expensive. I think e bikes are the ultimate niche bike. There will never be enough people interested in them to be the next 'thing.'

Originally Posted by tyrion (Post 21057157)

But e-bikes are cheaper than cars. Those that can transition from cars to e-bikes will save a lot of money. Those that can't afford a car might be able to afford an e-bike.

Originally Posted by Abe_Froman (Post 21057176)

And regular bikes are even cheaper than e-bikes. And skateboards are cheaper than regular bikes..and shoes are even cheaper than skateboards.

Yet, I havent seen any mass exodus from the ranks of vehicle drivers towards cycling (or skateboarding, or walking...).

Originally Posted by Abe_Froman (Post 21057024)

I don't see it happening.

E bikes are expensive. I think e bikes are the ultimate niche bike. There will never be enough people interested in them to be the next 'thing.'

Originally Posted by DrIsotope (Post 21057265)

Loads of e-Bikes under $1,000. The bulk of the market falls into a segment from $1,500 to $2,000. Sure, if you're only looking at Specialized, e-Bikes are expensive.

People who think even $500 is simply too much for a "pedal bike" don't even blink at $1,000 for a bike with an electric motor on it. Like it or not, e-Bikes are absolutely here to stay.

Originally Posted by tyrion (Post 21057226)

No one is making a claim of mass exodus. But e-bikes fill a niche (cheaper than cars, greater range than walking, less physically demanding than regular bikes).

Originally Posted by tyrion (Post 21057226)

No one is making a claim of mass exodus. But e-bikes fill a niche (cheaper than cars, greater range than walking, less physically demanding than regular bikes).

Originally Posted by FlashBazbo (Post 21054819)

I couldn't bring myself to put this in the first post. But . . . urp . . . gag . . . uhmp . . . you don't think it's e-bikes, do you? They're going big in Europe. (On the whole, I'd rather ride a Honda.)

Originally Posted by Rides4Beer (Post 21056403)

My club does a monthly TT series through the summer, it's great, we usually get around 65 people.




Every area is going to be different, but there are some pretty serious guys crushing gravel around here, retired/current Pro/Cat1 guys, etc.. Cycling is already big here, and the gravel scene is picking up. I'm sure a lot of people will just cruise on their gravel bike, just like a lot of people with Jeeps never get them dirty. When I bought my gravel bike, I made a deal with myself, if I was going to spend the money, I had to ride gravel every week. So far, so good (except for last weekend, because it's in the shop for a caliper replacement).

Personally, I love riding gravel, if I could do it every day, I would. Less traffic, get into nature, can still ride fast and cover a lot of ground.

Originally Posted by Lemond1985 (Post 21061403)

...jingle written...

Originally Posted by shoota (Post 21054896)

95% of the time I still don't know why anyone would want to ride gravel roads given the choice.

Originally Posted by dgodave (Post 21061385)

"Pebble bikes"

Thats the next big thing.

Originally Posted by chas58 (Post 21057112)

I posted this a week ago. You might enjoy it...

Interesting article about track training on a grass "velodrome" in Kansas.

https://www.velonews.com/2019/07/new...lodrome_497324

Goes back to an interesting quote:
"On the national level, USA Cycling is looking to expand access. “We have 330 million people and we have a hard time finding 20 exceptional riders to come and race on track,” Jeff Pierce, Director of Elite Athletics, Road and Track at USA Cycling, says. “They’re out there for sure. One of our issues is our lack of tracks.”

This is one way to discover new talent...

Originally Posted by Chi_Z (Post 21061513)

not having to worry about cars is pretty big plus

Originally Posted by FlashBazbo (Post 21054815)

Against my better judgment, I tend to be an early adopter. I was doing gravel back when Dirty Kanza had fewer than 100 entrants and nobody seemed to know what gravel was. Gravel bikers were seen as rather odd by all other cyclists. Roadies couldn't imagine why anyone would WANT to ride on dirt and gravel roads. For years, nobody had a clue that gravel cycling would become the NEXT BIG THING. (I thought it was popular, in part, because it WASN'T a big thing!)

But now, the sales wave is peaking, the fad is in full force, and everybody from road cyclists to MTBers to triathletes is talking about riding gravel. (But how many gravel bike buyers will actually ever ride a dirt or gravel road?) There's a major manufacturer new gravel product introduction just about every week. The gravel segment has become the mainstream and even traditional road race bikes are feeling threatened. But even this mania won't last forever.

So . . . what's next? What cycling segment will be next to see a resurgence? Or, what yet-to-be-widespread new cycling idea is going to become the "next big thing?" What do you think? Where are all the early adopters going now?