What did the assembled throng of bike trade journos 34 of em get up to in Amsterdam on Friday?

IFMA? In Amsterdam, not Cologne?

Nothing salicious, thats what. IFMA paid for trade hacks from Denmark to Italy and from Austria to the UK and beyond to get to Amsterdam and go on a bike ride and a boat trip on the Amstel.

We were then told of the IFMA organisers plans to make this once two yearly public and trade show into an annual big show for the trade only.

To go trade only was the choice of 60 percent of last years exhibitors. The concept will be on test this year and may revert back to public and trade if the test flops. 16 000 member sof the public came to the show last year on the one day it is open to all.

IFMA junkies can fill themselves up on the shelf loads of info BikeBiz brought back from Amsterdam, see following articles.

PIX

TOP:

The European cycle journalists (including Carlton Reid and Peter Lumley) were treated to a choppy boat trip on the Amstel. The guy with the beard is Bernd Aufderheide, board member of KolnMesse GmbH, and the director in charge of IFMA

RIGHT: we were all presented with these snazzy cycle jerseys promoting this years IFMA. Much better than yet another t-shirt, these jerseys are pukka cycling ones, made out of wicking polyster.

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