BLOOMINGTON, Minn. (BRAIN) — Snowstorms ahead of QBP’s yearly open house and expo may have kept several retailers back home, with some exhibitors noting a moderate drop in booth traffic compared with previous years. But the Frostbike spirit was alive and well over the weekend as new suppliers came to the event for the first time; fat bike demos pedaled out on an amazingly sculpted snow course under clear, azure skies; and retailers (many at their first Frostbike) sought expert counsel at seminars aimed at giving them the tools to keep up with the latest technology as well as the big-picture view to sustain their businesses in the long term.
Check the March 15 issue of BRAIN for a full Frostbike wrap-up. In the meantime, a few of the highlights we saw in Bloomington …
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Frostybike: A rack in front of QBP headquarters greets attendees Saturday morning. -
With four new bikes to show, plus new colors for its category-defining Pugsley fattie, Surly’s booth was among the busiest at the expo’s opening day. -
The Ice Cream Truck is a new fat bike platform for Surly. The chromoly rig has slacker geometry and more aggressive handling than Surly’s previous portlies, with a symmetrical rather than offset rear end, suspension-corrected fork and Surly’s O.D. 22/36T crankset. Set to deliver in June or July, the 5-inch-wide-tired Ice Cream Truck with SRAM hydro brakes and Shimano XT/Deore mix will retail for $2,750, while the 4-inch-tire “Ops” version with Avid BB7s and LX/Deore carries an MSRP of $2,450. -
Australia’s JetBlack Cycling is looking to make a name for itself in the U.S. with its trainers and eyewear. The decade-old company also sells pumps and racks Down Under, and distributes bike brands in its home market including BH and Pivot. Trainers available in the U.S. range from $130 to $529 MSRP. The best-selling ZI trainer pictured here is one of several models featuring a hydrogel-elastomer roller to reduce noise. Upgrades to the trainer line, including new power and cadence applications, should be ready for unveiling at the Taipei Cycle show in March, managing director Trent Fitzgibbins said. -
Intense snowstorms just before Frostbike gave course designers plenty to work with for the traditional Saturday-night fat bike races. -
Putting the chill in chillax: QBP house brand 45NRTH set up this “ice couch” lounge next to the fat bike track. -
QBP’s All-City midrange urban and cyclocross bike brand is breaking the $2,000 price barrier for the first time with two new bikes, including the Reynolds 853-tubed Macho King Ltd. Disc ’crosser, spec’d with SRAM Force and QBP’s own Whisky Parts Co. thru-axle carbon fork. (Stay tuned for final brake spec.) Just 50 bikes will be available, at a suggested retail of $3,500. -
QBP took visitors on tours of its Wheel House production facility, which will put out some 80,000 wheels this year--ranging from $30 replacements to $2,000-plus customs. One can only imagine how many spokes are stocked on this wall alone. -
A master wheelbuilder uses a pneumatic tool to place nipples in a fat-bike rim too wide to be accommodated by a Holland wheel-building machine. -
Fat bikes were everywhere at Frostbike, and Saris has a new way to get the tank-trackers to the trailhead. This tire-mount clamp, and matching bottom carrier, secures the fattest of tires and will be available in about two weeks. Retail for each piece is $49.99.
