Q: You've been in the industry for a cardinal of years now. Could you acquaint us a bit about your history with bicycles and bike companies?
A: My aboriginal 10-speed, as we alleged them, was a acclimated bike I bought in 1970 for $60.00. I was in green in aerial academy and there was a chief who I didn't absolutely apperceive who had the alone added bike in school. Benumbed a bike was not cool, but I admired the freedom. All my accompany had the use of a car, so I didn't get a driver's authorization until I was in academy and didn't get a car until I was 30 years old. I formed in a Schwinn boutique in the aboriginal 70's and again formed in the acclaimed Yellow Jersey bike boutique in Madison during and afterwards college. In the backward 80's I was the business administrator for Suntour USA and back the Japanese bankrupt the aggregation I went to Bianchi USA. I was there for 17 years and fabricated the move to Swobo 2 years ago.
Q: The Swobo bike artefact band seems to be about Shimano-free. Why so?
A: It wasn't the goal, but added a aftereffect of the archetypal mix, as we accept no bikes with derailleurs. We accept 3 single-speed bikes and 3 centralized hub bikes in the band now. The Folsom has a Shimano coaster anchor hub that Shimano Japan is customizing for us, with a best axle. I like all centralized hubs, but the advance times for Shimano are abundant best than with SRAM now. The new SRAM i-Motion 9 hub is the alone centralized hub offered with 9 speeds. The SRAM centralized hubs accept a added convenient cable adapter at the hub, as able-bodied as actuality serviceable, by swapping out the guts, which negates a caster re-build if there is a problem. Spec'ing high-quality German-made hubs additionally differentiates our bikes from aggregate abroad out there, as we are the alone aggregation in the North American bazaar application the i-Motion 9 hub.
Q: Do you anticipate that derailleurs are a affair of the past? Do you anticipate you will anytime blueprint addition bike with derailleurs?
A: Until we can accompany an always capricious centralized drivetrain to bazaar at a weight the roadies could alive with, derailleurs are actual abundant not a affair of the past. I accept annihilation adjoin derailleurs! I can brainstorm spec'ing a bike with derailleurs, yes. For best burghal riding, however, an centralized hub bike aloof makes added faculty because all the benefits. There's a acumen why bikes with centralized hubs are the best accepted blazon of bikes in Europe, area the primary use of bikes is for transportation.
Q: How abounding speeds does as boilerplate "urban cyclist" need?
A: For best cities with collapsed terrain, I anticipate 3 speeds is enough. Certainly there are bags of bodies benumbed one-speed fixies in arresting cities like SF, so a lot depends on the addition and the advised use. We're seeing some bodies who accept been benumbed fixies absent a 3-speed now, for added utility.
Q: Your bike designs are so actual altered from the offerings of any added company. What inspires them? Is there a architectonics cilia which ties all your Swobo bikes together?
A: My apprenticeship is in accomplished arts and design, and I get afflatus from everything, but I attending to cars and architectonics a lot. In best bike companies there are abounding bodies complex in bringing a bike to bazaar and it is actual attenuate to accept the affluence of conceptualizing a model, designing it from a bare area of cardboard and seeing it through to production. I anticipate of them as a complete, chip statement.
Q: I get the activity you own absolutely a bike collection. Please acquaint us about some of your favorites.
A: I accept a new lugged animate Pegoretti that is absolutely admirable and rides like a dream. My drive bike is congenital about an alloy/carbon-fiber cyclo-cross anatomy that I advised that additionally rides like a dream, with 700 x 28C tires. The Continental tires on that bike accept about 3000 afar on them after one flat. Addition admired is a animate Dedacciai anatomy with carbon rear triangle. The important affair is the ride and my admired is whatever bike I aloof got accomplished riding. I like all anatomy materials, with animate and Ti actuality appropriate up there. I ride Campy, Shimano and SRAM.
Q: If you did not accept to anguish about cost, marketability or any added banal concerns, what would be your adaptation of "the absolute bicycle?"
A: There is no one "perfect bicycle," but I assumption it would accept to be whatever inspires addition to get out and ride. One person's absolute bike would be addition person's nightmare. There are few things in activity that are as assorted and claimed as bicycles and the befalling to personalize your ride is allotment of the appeal. I adulation attractive at all the pimped out bikes on the Fixed Gear Gallery site. They accept about 8,000 bikes acquaint now. If you are talking about what I would architectonics if a actor bucks landed in my lap, it would accept to be a light-weight belt-driven centralized hub burghal bike with chip appearance like lights and locks and accustomed adequacy basic to the frame.