Core Bike 2009 will be cramming 150 brands and 15 companies into three days, starting this Sunday (January 25th). BikeBiz takes at look at some of the highlights from each exhibitor at the Whittlebury Hall-based event...

CoreBike 09 Guide

Silverfish
Silverfish, which will be celebrating its 10-year anniversary in 2009, will be exhibiting a wide range of products from 11 of the world’s leading cycle manufacturers at the show. The firm will have knowledgeable members of the Silverfish team alongside representatives from brands to speak to dealers at the event.

Evil Bikes will get its official UK launch at the show from the firm. Meanwhile Silverfish will also have the full range of 2009 DW-Link equipped Turner Bikes on display at Core Bike. Designer Dave Turner will be present at the show to meet
dealers face-to-face, and Dave Weagle will also be joining Silverfish, showing off the new range of 2009 e.thirteen chain guides and products.

Amongst Silverfish’s other Core Bike offerings is the 2009 Armour protection range with new youth and women’s pads alongside the popular soft goods line-up. RedFace’s multiple price point offerings will also feature in Silverfish’s show presence, as will THE’s range of biker protection, with full-face ‘One’ helmet, mud guards, pads and saddles.

Rocky Mountain’s new Altitude 5.5” travel platform will also feature alongside the new carbon fibre Vertex frame, which has already been used to win a World Cup and the World Cup Series in 2008 testing. Representatives from the manufacturer will be available to talk attendees through the range and answer questions.

Other Core Bike Silverfish highlights will include the complete ange of SDG saddles and Cove Bikes Stiffee.

Upgrade
This year Upgrade is giving UK bike dealers the chance to speak to head honchos from three international brands: Lezyne, Oval Concepts and AtomLab.

Atomlab’s presence at Core Bike 2009 marks the return of the firm to the UK market after a few years’ absence. Founder Mike Flaherty will be at the show to speak to dealers and give them an insight into the firm and what’s coming up for Atomlab.

Upgrade will also be joined by founder, designer and head of Lezyne Micki Kozuschek. The enthusiastic Kozuschek will be available to talk to dealers through the finer details of the Lezyne range and will deliver a sales presentation that’s not to be missed. Upgrade will be launching Lezyne’s year two range, including an improved line-up covering floor pumps, hand pumps, multi-tools, hydration and saddle bags.

Oval Concept’s Morgan Nicol will also be on hand at Upgrade Bikes’ booth. Nicol’s wealth of knowledge and experience has led world-class riders to turn to him to help improve their bike fit and aerodynamic position and he will impart some of his expertise in a daily seminar. The talk will provide an insight into the workings of a pro tour team, the UCI and the stresses of competing at the highest level.

Ison
Ison has tantalisingly revealed that it will be announcing a ‘secret project’ at Core Bike ‘09. The firm has remained tight-lipped on the subject, apart from the fact that it has been working with a market-leading company on the project.

But secret ventures apart, Ison will be based in the Indianapolis room and will be bringing a range of industry faces from around the world along with them to the show, including Salsa Cycles’ Steve Johnson, Surly Bikes’ John Fleck, Schwalbe’s Chris Hearn and John Becker from Weldtite, Fibrax and KHE Bikes. Rohloff’s Stuart Stabik will also be joining the personnel and will hold question and answer sessions twice daily. Those Rohloff Speedhub sessions will take place in the ‘Imola’ room and will last for 30 minutes.

Ison will be showcasing many new for 2009 products from the likes of Halo Wheels, Identiti Bikes, Gusset Parts, Light Blue Cycles, Dia Compe brakes, ODI grips, Powergrips, TSG Protection, Trickstuff and more.

Ison will also host seminars with Rohloff Speedhub specifically designed for service technicians. The sessions will cover full tech set-up, service techniques and niggles for the gearbox, running on January 27th from 3.30pm to 6pm.

Paligap
The Paligap team, based in the Hockenheim room, will be on hand at Core Bikes 09 to go through its ranges, including a first look at the 2009 Sombrio clothing range, Kona Bicycles, Ritchey components and The CycleOps range of turbo trainers and PowerTap meters.

Paligap will be bringing along a selection of representatives from its suppliers to the Core Bike ’09 show too. Roland ten Brinke from Fast Forward Wheels will be joining Paligap to give one-to-one training on the firm’s 2009 range of carbon wheels to attendees.

TORQ Fitness owner Matt Hart will also be in the Paligap room and will go through every aspect of the firm’s Energy range, including bars, gels, powders and new Torq Singles. Hart will be on hand to impart his expert knowledge and experience to dealers wanting any information on training and energy.

UK dealers will also be able to get their first look at the 2009 Quintana Roo bicycles as part of Paligap’s presence at the Core Bike 09 show.

Chris Hewings from the American Bicycle Group will be at the show to talk about the Quintana Roo bikes, as well as the new Litespeed and Merlin bicycles.

Extra
Extra has packed a wide range of guests into its Core Bike 2009 schedule from some of the brands the firm will be bringing to the show. Those guests will include industry faces from overseas and UK-based firms.

From English manufacturer Brooks, Extra will be bringing Cristina Wurdig and Steve Green. US manufacturing firm Cane Creek will be represented by Peter Gilbert, Ergon’s James Towelson will also be joining the firm at the show, as will Nicolo Mannoni from Fizik and Albert Fonte from SR.

All of those guests will be on hand to answer questions and educate dealers about their respective brands.

Extra will have other brands on show too, including Diety, Bioflex, Easton and Progold.

Extra will be launching the new Intense Tracers and the BMC range, which includes mountain bikes, as well as revealing Mulebar –a firm that offers 100 per cent natural and organic energy bars that are available in six tasty flavours.

Chicken Cycle-kit
Chicken Cycle-kit will be showcasing its increasingly broad mix of products, including exclusive LAS Helmets and Vittoria. The firm will be paying particular attention to the accessories market this year with brands including Squire locks, Velomann Computers and those LAS Helmets.

Chicken Cycle-kit’s presence at Whittlebury Hall will be based largely in the Nurburgring room and the firm will be bringing a huge line-up of guests along to Core Bike ’09, including Roberto Peruffo from Italy’s Velomann Computers, who will be available to speak with dealers and attendees from Sunday to Monday.

Also from Italy, the firm will also be bringing over Mauro Moretto from Selle Italia saddles, Raffaele Rosafio from Capagnolo, Fabrizio Aghito from Cinelli and Roberta Ghilardi from LAS.

Holland’s KMC Chains will be represented with Chicken Cycle-Kit by Christ Bakker, while Klaus Greuter of Sapim will be joining the firm to speak to UK dealers.

Phillippe de Silva from Rigida rims will also be in attendance at the show over the weekend, as will Ryde wheels. Finally, TIME’s Alain Descroix and SKS’s Jan Henning will also appear.

Windwave
Windwave will be based in the Lounge area at Core Bike 2009 and will be bringing brands like Colnago, FSA, Marzocchi, Ice Toolz, Corsair, Mace and A2Z to the show.

Windwave has several guests lined-up to appear at Core Bike, including Gianni Silveri, European sales manager for German industrial cable manufacturer Nokon. Gianni will be on hand to answer technical or compatibility queries on Nokon’s unique and patented cabling system, based on solid, interlocking outer links with a sealed inner cable.

Other guests include notable names from racing cycle manufacturer Colnago. Alessandro Colnago, the man in charge of the firm’s marketing and website –and grandson of founder and owner of Colnago bicycles Ernesto Colnago – will be attending the event with Windwave. The firm will also be bringing Diego Colossio, international sales manager, to discuss the Colango current range and to tackle any technical questions.

Citrus Lime
Citrus Lime will be based in S7 at this year’s Core Bike event. The firm will showcase the tailor-made solutions it offers to cycle retailers. Including Ecommerce, Epos and Stock Control which the firm promises to be able to hugely benefit UK bike retailers.

The firm uses Microsoft Dynamics – software that manages Epos, Stock Control and retail for dealers. Taking care of troublesome tasks like mail merges, analysis of profits and integrating with ecommerce systems, the package is designed to ease the administrative burden facing bike retailers.

Citrus Lime also makes use of the Integrated Ecommerce systems for ‘Clicks and Mortar’ retailers. Integrating with the Microsoft RMS stock control system, the package allows retailers to display all RMS products and stock levels on their sites. Ultimately, the package allows firms to run one business online and instore with the minimum of fuss. The software also offers flexibility in producing sales and offers, as well as automated credit card processing, with a graphic design-friendly nature, and a full marketing system that tracks all-important ROI.

2Pure
2Pure will be found in the Catalunya room at Core Bike 2009. 2Pure will be squeezing plenty of products and brands into its show offering and will be bringing Crank Brothers and Clif Bar to the show, the latter of which’s electrolyte chew Shot Blok will be on hand for tasting. 2Pure will also have representatives of protective gear specialist Lizard Skins and US-based technical lighting firm NiteRider.

Pinhead Components will be showcased by 2Pure too, alongside safety lighting system creator Reelight, racing bicycle firm Rivette, Sqlab, Ultimate and –new for ’09 – Nema Clothing, a brand that 2Pure is planning to grow.

2Pure will also be bringing guests to the event, including Brad Barker, general manager at Lizard Skins. 2Pure will focus on Custom grips and Custom chain stay protection. Tobias Hild, founder and owner of SQ labs will also attend with his pressure mapping equipment that provide detailed ergonomic profiles of riders.

Hope
Hope Technology will bring its cutting edge designs for show-goers to get involved with. The UK firm’s range of wheelsets will feature – a line-up which prides itself on value, reliability and performance, and has recently grown to include the Pro3 SP.

Hope’s advanced disc brakes and hubs will also feature – covering many genres from lightweight Mono Mini Pro to the robust Mono M4. Core attendees will also get to glimpse the new Special Edition Pink Mono Minis, which the firm expects will be a ‘must-have’ this Christmas.

The exclusive Kidz 24” wheel frameset also promises to turn heads at the show, as well the Sh1t Shifter, a specially formulated bike wash that won’t harm brakes. Vision will feature too – with Hope shedding light on the new four LED 1000 lumen output light.

Buffera
11 year-old Buffera will be showcasing its own new SueMe brand –a fresh new line of ethically sourced sportswear. The energetic and young brand uses minimal packaging and waste materials at manufacturing, while using soya-based inks, bamboo viscose fibres and other environmentally friendly materials and methods to reduce its impact on the resources of the planet.

Buffera representatives will also be on hand to show dealers other lines being looked after by the firm, including Buff multi-functional headwear. Manufactured in Spain, the brand offers products that are suitable for every weather condition.

Buffera will also be bringing the Hides brand to Core Bike 2009, which includes products that offer multi-functional eyewear necessities. Based on ensuring expensive eyewear doesn’t come to a sticky end, the Hides products use a micro-fibre fabric featuring a ‘double roll technology’ that fits over expensive eyewear while also protecting and cleaning it with a special middle section.

Buffera will be based in S9, close to the Chequers Court Yard at Whittlebury Hall. Buffera’s presence at Core will also include the SueMe Buff Bar, found at their stand.

Jim Walker
High-performance specialising distributor Jim Walker is making its Core Bike debut this year and will have a fleet of well-known brands at its disposal.

Some of those top-end brands include 3T, argon18, Campagnolo, Ciclosport, Continental, Iron Horse, Speedplay, KoolStop and Token.

Also on show for dealers to peruse will be the 2009 DeRosa range, with the King 3 and the new Neo Pro.

World Cup winning Sunday bike from Iron Horse will be on show at the event, alongside the updated Six-point and MK III, and the brand new Bootleg cross-country bikes.

The firm will also showcase soft goods too, including the new Northwave Shoes and apparel ranges, alongside Campagnolo’s new line of Sportswear. Campagnolo components will also be on hand as part of Jim Walker’s Core Bike line-up, including the new 11-speed groupsets.

Also at the show will be Italian manufacturer Fulcrum Wheels with new additions like the Ceramic XLR carbon wheels and for mountain bikes, the Red Fire wheels.

Merida
Merida’s presence at the Core Bike event will be based in the Magny Cours and S11 rooms at Whittlebury Hall. Priding itself on a simple approach to the business, the firm will be showcasing a variety of new and popular bike models at the event.

Those include the Ninety Six model range, representing the latest carbon fibre technology available and is one of the stiffest and lightest full-suspension bike in the world – the 9kg Ninety Six Team D.

Show-goers can also expect to see the likes of the 12-inch wheel to Triathalon, from BMX to all-mountain products. With Merida focusing on producing innovative products and using some of the most state-of-the-art testing equipment in the world, the firm’s presence at Core Bike 2009 is sure to be a big attraction for attendees.

SiWIS
SiWIS will be based in S8, close to the Chequers Court Yard, this year. The firm, founded by Si Watts, offers bespoke web work for retailers, building dedicated systems to suit specific retailer needs.

Watt’s experience in the trade, which dates all the way back to the mid-1980s, has been utilised in the firm’s services. Watts originally worked in the retail environment and later as a rep for a major player of the time. Building websites began as a hobby for a select few customers, but the business soon grew to become a thriving service solely for the web needs of bike-related firms.

SiWIS also offers the i-bikeShop.com – an easy to use etail system. The comprehensive product includes simple self-management systems that make looking after the content of sites easy for those of all abilities, including both novices and those better acquainted with information technology.

Fox
Fox’s 2009 line-up was created with the aim of becoming the ultimate collection of riding gear for serious mountain bikes. The range that Fox will showcase at Core Bike 2009 will feature innovative ideas, twists on old favourites and top performing legacy products.

With a philosophy of using the best technology and design talent in order to create the optimal quality, comfort and performance of its products.

Fox’s premium goggle – the Main Pro – will feature highly at the show, including performance fit-enhancing outrigger frame clips and its O Matter frame these lightweight goggles are race ready right out of the box.

Also heading up the Fox range is the best-selling Flux Helmet, which will now be available in a third size. This new iteration of the popular helmet is smaller and suitable for younger and adult riders. With the added size offering an even better fit for consumers, the Flux Helmet is available in a wide range of colours.

Also on offer at Core Bike 2009 is the chance for dealers to see Fox’s new High Voltage Short. Using the strengths of the High Frequency Short, the High Voltage uses a Microfiber polyester outer shell, like its predecessors, but adds a detachable inner liner. Fox will be based over in the Monaco suite at this year’s show.

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