MOAB, Utah (BRAIN)—Outerbike, Western Spirit’s experiment at bringing a slice of Interbike to the average bike consumer, attracted 450 riders from 30 states and four Canadian provinces in its first year.
“All the people riding had a $3,000 bike at home and they left psyched to buy a $5,000 bike,” said Ashley Korenblat, owner of Western Spirit Cycling. “All the super high end brands just killed it. They were totally slammed.”
The demo event was staged about 10 miles outside of Moab at the new Bar M Trailhead and drew about 30 exhibitors eager to show their 2011 product to consumers. Exhibitors paid $1,000 to $2,000 to put up their tents depending on the footprint.
Turner Bicycles’ Willie Rodriguez brought 28 bikes to the demo and reported steady traffic over the four-day event.
“Our bikes were out most of the time for the whole event. We got a lot of positive feedback on our bikes for sure and with a fraction of the fleet that Specialized and Trek had and Cannondale as well. For us it was a big hit,” Rodriguez said.
Other exhibitors included Rocky Mountain Bicycles, Ibis, Yeti, Maverick, Fox, Kona and Osprey, as well as start-ups Wingnutgear and Club Ride.
Rodriguez noted that Western Spirit could improve Outerbike by adding more clinics.
Korenblat agreed and already has that on the checklist for next year’s event. This year, the only clinic offered this year was Rebecca Rusch’s women’s skills clinic and it was at capacity both days.
She also said Western Spirit needs to do a better job at promoting Outerbike in an attempt to attract more newer riders looking to upgrade from, say, a $1,000 bike.
“The core idea of Outerbike is moving people up the scale," she said.
Each consumer paid $150 or four days of riding, free lunches and movie showings. Most attendees were professional men, about 45 years old, but about 30 percent of the consumers were women.
Next year, Kornenblat is adding two dealer days to Outerbike, which is scheduled for Oct. 5-9.
—Nicole Formosa
nformosa@bicycleretailer.com
Photo courtesy of Whit Richardson
