[wood booger]

What remains of Cannondale's USA production facility is up for auction. Their full alloy and carbon frame production line can be yours!

bike company for sale

Some super cool stuff in there. Anyone have a spare empty warehouse?

 

[Pepper Brooks]

Does the line automatically build wonky bikes that crack, or do you have to try and design for that?

 

[PUSHIND]

I remember flying down to that factory with Joe Montgomery behind the controls of the plane back in the "good-ol-days".

Bummer really IMO.

 

[karpi]

big bummer, to think they used to be the benchmark... this sucks. Good facility though! I wonder how many frames you could pump out a week from that factory...

 

[Pslide]

That is sad. Like an estate sale after someone has died.

I suppose there is no chance that someone will buy it up and start up an East Coast version of Intense...

 

[yuroshek]

Why couldnt I be a wealthy spoiled rotten kid that rides bikes...

 

[trib]

if only they hadn't tried to make a moto-x division....

 

[bogusbill]

I have warehouse space in Idaho.

 

[eatmyshorts]

if only they hadn't tried to make a moto-x division....

or sold their sole to a massive conglomerate...

 

[FlyinPolack]

if only they hadn't tried to make a moto-x division....

Big time.

 

[FCLinder]

Why couldnt I be a wealthy spoiled rotten kid that rides bikes...

You still can be that Kid. You already like bikes!!! Just get out there and make the $$$!!!! Stop waiting for it....

Cecil

 

[time-bomb]

You still can be that Kid. You already like bikes!!! Just get out there and make the $$$!!!! Stop waiting for it....

Cecil

I disagree, they say good things come to those who wait.

 

[norbar]

or sold their sole to a massive conglomerate...

I dont want to be a gramma nazi but what do you mean by sole? Does that mean that the workers had to work barefooted so their quit their jurbs and the company went down because ppl like to work their soles? Floor heating would have solved that fo sho.


btw. Its a bummer because of the history but for the dh market their bikes were always a bit off while they still make nice am bikes.

 

[trib]

and on the selling their soul part, sometimes you have to sell and change in order to stay afloat. I doubt they suddenly thought, 'you know what, it would be so much better if we just sold the brand we created and let someone else take charge' much more likely that it was sell and stay open, or dont sell and reach the point that they're at a whole lot sooner.

I don't really know the story behind it that well, but I really doubt there are many/any people who would think that being in the bike industry is a good get rich quick scheme.

 

[yuroshek]

Dear Santa,
All I want for christmas is the old Cannondale Factory. If you come thru with my wish I promise to put your elves to work and build rad bikes for everyone.

-Dennis

 

[LMC]

I dont want to be a gramma nazi but what do you mean by sole? Does that mean that the workers had to work barefooted so their quit their jurbs and the company went down because ppl like to work their soles? Floor heating would have solved that fo sho.

No. He actually means that the workers sold the soles of their feet, not the soles of their shoes. Said soles were then sold to a large meat conglomorate and marketed as a new variety of bacon to unsuspecting customers in a desperate attempt to pay off Cannondale's spiraling debts.

 

[norbar]

No. He actually means that the workers sold the soles of their feet, not the soles of their shoes. Said soles were then sold to a large meat conglomorate and marketed as a new variety of bacon to unsuspecting customers in a desperate attempt to pay off Cannondale's spiraling debts.

Considering the crack frequency of their frames I can understand their workers being lazy and therfore fat enough for bacon but feet bacon? Closer to a fetish than food. Though Im pretty sure some chinease restaurants would buy it anyway

 

[Huck Banzai]

I disagree, they say good things come to those who wait.

 

[eatmyshorts]

haha sole... what a turkey

agree the only way to secure Cannondale’s future was selling..

Obviously there are positives and negatives with one entity owning multiple brands..

The biggest negative IMO is that the huge chain stores, supported by these conglomerates are slowly putting a lot of smaller generic shops out of business.. Eventually I see that we will have a complete dyad in the future with the association of brands and shops with not much in between. Eg big chain stores with the parent company owning everything to the retail space and then totally niche brands probably selling/importing direct to compete with larger buying power of the conglomerates..

 

[ChrisKring]

They filed for bankruptsy in 2003. Not sure how anyone thinks that they sold out.

I would agree though that they major under estimated the amount of money that they needed to spend to enter the MX/ATV market. If they had just purchased engines and suspension rather than developing it they may have been sucessful. Julian Montgomery let me ride one of their bikes back in the fall of 2002. From the point of view of an engineer nerd, it was pretty cool. Fuel injection, AL Frame, reversed head (like the newest Yamaha), etc.

Anyway, I too would like the equipment. It will probably go for pennies on the dollar. The rigging cost will probably be more than the equipment goes for.

 

[jonKranked]

They filed for bankruptsy in 2003. Not sure how anyone thinks that they sold out.

I would agree though that they major under estimated the amount of money that they needed to spend to enter the MX/ATV market. If they had just purchased engines and suspension rather than developing it they may have been sucessful. Julian Montgomery let me ride one of their bikes back in the fall of 2002. From the point of view of an engineer nerd, it was pretty cool. Fuel injection, AL Frame, reversed head (like the newest Yamaha), etc.

Anyway, I too would like the equipment. It will probably go for pennies on the dollar. The rigging cost will probably be more than the equipment goes for.

yea, everything I heard about their moto attempt can be summed up as "they were in over their heads". their moto division was basically bleeding money. my understanding (from someone who had visited the plant and actually test rode the moto) was that everything was so high tech that a tweak on the engine would require tweaking almost everything else. apparently it was an incredible ride though, or so i was told.

also, very sad to see this.

 

[bizutch]

Why couldnt I be a wealthy spoiled rotten kid that rides bikes...

Change your name to Mickey.











.........kidding Mickey.

 

[jsg04]

I would agree though that they major under estimated the amount of money that they needed to spend to enter the MX/ATV market. If they had just purchased engines and suspension rather than developing it they may have been sucessful. Julian Montgomery let me ride one of their bikes back in the fall of 2002. From the point of view of an engineer nerd, it was pretty cool. Fuel injection, AL Frame, reversed head (like the newest Yamaha), etc.

It was a shame because their bikes were so ahead of their time. They would have been way better off starting off in mini's or like you said just working with another manufacture. I remember their first national at Mt. Morris and I think they DNF'd both moto's and left early. Their quads were well liked but by that time the ship was sinking.

 

[-BB-]

or sold their sole to a massive conglomerate...

You mean their Shoe division?




Edit: NorBar beet me to it.

 

[zdubyadubya]

yea, everything I heard about their moto attempt can be summed up as "they were in over their heads". their moto division was basically bleeding money. my understanding (from someone who had visited the plant and actually test rode the moto) was that everything was so high tech that a tweak on the engine would require tweaking almost everything else. apparently it was an incredible ride though, or so i was told.

also, very sad to see this.

one of my buddies has a cannondale moto (use to be a team mechanic, kept it as part of his severance package) and even though I was just toolin around on it for a short time, yes, it was a fun bike....

 

[NY_Star]

None of thoughts machines are very new. All from the good old days for sure.

 

[Sghost]

btw. Its a bummer because of the history but for the dh market their bikes were always a bit off while they still make nice am bikes.

I lusted after that double shocked DH bike pretty bad in 2001ish?

 

[jonKranked]

one of my buddies has a cannondale moto (use to be a team mechanic, kept it as part of his severance package) and even though I was just toolin around on it for a short time, yes, it was a fun bike....

that's a pretty awesome severance package.

any chance you could snag some photos?

 

[jonKranked]

I lusted after that double shocked DH bike pretty bad in 2001ish?

thankfully/unfortunately it was never put into production. it was a prototype that eventually went on to become the gemini

 

[Sghost]

thankfully/unfortunately it was never put into production. it was a prototype that eventually went on to become the gemini

I know all about it. We weren't allowed to touch them. Really it was the production Gemini in name only though.

 

[zdubyadubya]

I just so happened to have snapped a bunch of pics when he was messin with it.

and in supermoto dress...

 

[JTVW]

I dont want to be a gramma nazi but...

you mean a nazi grandma?

 

[jonKranked]

no, gramma nazi is from da 'hood.

 

[norbar]

Busted. Need to fix that south central laptop of mine. Half of the keys dont work and it gets me into all sorts of trouble

Though more on topic - that bike is hot.