There seems to be lots of late summer activity at some of the biggest bicycle manufacturers. While I have seen few official announcements from these companies, they are clearly trying to generate buzz in advance of September's Interbike show by previewing their 2006 lineups to select media and industry influencers. Here's what I have gathered so far:
Specialized has upgraded nearly it's entire line of '06 mountain bikes. They have reduced weight on most models and added carbon fiber to some of its tried and true lines. Also, they seem to be moving away from pure Shimano componentry and including many components from Sram/Truvativ. See the following for more information:
Bike Magic has a comprehensive overview.
Singletrack's take on the line.
Cannondale is buying, building, and partnering; having made several moves in the last few weeks. First, Cannondale acquired Sugoi a Canadian apparel company that makes cycling and running apparel and has a following in the triathlon market. Next they inked a deal with Italian cycling shoe manufacturer Diadora. It appears that Diadora will gain a greater foothold (pun intended) in the U.S. market through Cannondale's distribution network, while Cannondale will gain greater name recognition in Europe through co-branding products with Diadora. Finally, Singletrack magazine got a sneak peek at some of their '06 rides.
Trek, in a more traditional fashion, held a press event at Whistler revealing the latest in Freeride rigs from its 2006 lineup. Trek undoubtedly has the lead in engineering and technology and it shows in this writeup from the crew at NSMB. Blue Collar Mountain Biking also has the press releases from Trek's subsidiaries Gary Fisher and Bontrager.
Should be interesting as the big three U.S. manufacturers continue to slug it out for market share.
***UPDATE***
I'll keep this post updated with additional posts I make about the 2006 model year since most are finding this article via search:
Wish I had a "people who like this post may also like these" feature.
