REYNOLDSBURG, OH (BRAIN)—Kenda has jumped into the budding 650B (27.5-inch) market by showcasing its most popular tire, the John Tomac Nevegal, at this year's Taipei Cycle show.
Kenda displayed the 2.35 version and promises that a 2.10 size will follow.
When asked why Kenda chose to pursue this new size, Kenda marketing director and events coordinator Jim Wannamaker, said, "From a design standpoint, this new wheel size makes sense. It allows a bigger wheel to be used on a longer travel bike, plus smaller riders can get away from some of the negatives like toe overlap and stand over clearance issues found with bigger wheels. It looks like Kirk [Pacenti] is onto something."
"We've also been asked by many product managers with various companies to offer our most popular tire in this new size format," added Matt McClendon, Kenda's OEM sales manager. "We're in the tire business 100 percent. We don't do grips, saddles, rims or cockpit components, so it's important for us to plug into these new tire-related trends. Kenda provides tires of all sizes for cyclists of all kinds, so adding this new size helps us round-out our product offerings for the consumers as well as the bike manufacturers.
"Going forward, we want this to be an open dialogue between Kenda, product managers, engineers and even the small frame builders concerning this new project. That's why we chose to have the unveiling here at Taipei where the industry's movers and shakers meet. In the months to follow, we encourage any and all industry folk to contact us so we can provide them with the specs of our tires to help them design their products." McClendon added. "As with all Kenda tires, we're making the 2.10 and 2.35 true to size and every bit comparable in performance to our 26-inch versions."
When asked about production, Wannamaker said, "We're in the initial testing phase with the 2.35 size and the mold for the 2.10 is being cut as we speak. If all goes well, consumers should expect to see these models by mid summer."
