15/05/2018

Cannondale is a brand that sets new trends. It is a company that has always been committed to following its own principles and has never doubted taking risks with its work to improve products. This audacity has often placed it ahead of the market with innovations that time itself has shown to be ahead of the curve. Cannondale is not a conventional company and this has always made its bicycles highly attractive in the cycling community, and still does. The US brand was strongly involved at Sea Otter Europe 2017 and will be even more so this year. Ignacio Gimenez, Marketing Manager at Cannondale for Spain and Portugal, told us why this event is so exciting and why his company’s stand should be on the radar for anyone coming to take part.

“The experience last year was very positive. We enjoyed sharing good times with the Sea Otter audience, riding with them, exchanging opinions and showing them our way of understanding bicycles. It also allows us to learn about their needs, desires and concerns. It is a great experience as professionals. Furthermore, as cycling fans ourselves, I cannot think of anywhere better to be for those days of the year. Ha ha… we don’t really have a bad time at all”, he said about that first experience last year and the increased involvement in the event by Cannondale for 2018.

The international growth by Sea Otter Europe is also palpable. “The opportunity provided by such an international event as this in Spain is something we cannot waste as either professionals or fans of the sport”, he said.

Which Sea Otter Europe values would you highlight as a brand? In terms of what you see, what the event brings, its audience, the events, etc.

“The organisational quality, its international presence, the high quality of the competitions held over the weekend and the spectacular surroundings of the city of Girona. The communication efforts being made could broaden this event’s area of influence enormously”.

A great deal for visitors to see and one huge surprise

Cannondale appreciates the pro-active approach taken by Sea Otter Europe and everything that entails. A specialised and well-informed audience in a full-on cycling context that offers the best stage for showing off the main strengths of its products. Cannondale will engage with this audience in many ways at the pro-active event that is Sea Otter Europe:

Ignacio explained that “Cannondale is known for its technology, as well as the careful design of its bicycle geometry (which has such a huge impact on ride quality) and a whole series of built-in components, such as the Hollowgram cranks or the Lefty suspension forks. The latter represents a totally new suspension concept that is based on a single-sided and inverted structure to obtain a weight to rigidity ratio never seen before in suspension forks, all with exquisite sensitivity and smooth movement. These are just a couple of examples that make the difference in terms of sensation when talking about the feeling you get when riding any of our bikes. They sometimes provide genuinely unique experiences. For this reason, product testing is fundamental and we will have a large fleet of test bikes available with all the latest innovations. New this year, we will be letting children try out our new push bikes and children’s bikes on the children’s track”.

He went on to announce that a sporting legend will be at the event with them. “The presence of MTB legend Tinker Juárez at the Sea Otter competitions and the museum of historic bikes will be two of the main attractions at the event, without a doubt”.

However, he is keeping one ace up his sleeve to reveal at Sea Otter Europe itself. “At Cannondale, we have always pushed our own boundaries and ignored industry convention. We did this when we created the Fatty and Lefty suspension forks and developed the BB30 bottom bracket, which is used nowadays on a large number of bicycles to found in the market. We follow a path of belief in our own instincts; we wouldn’t know how to do things any other way. 2018 will be a great year in that regard, a new milestone in the history of Cannondale. Ha ha, let’s just say that you’ll have to wait for Sea Otter to see it, touch it and try it out…”.

The company will also be very busy in the demo zone, where you’ll be able to try out a good number of its bicycles. “We will have a fleet of 22 test bikes and an extensive range of our latest innovations, both for exhibition only and for testing. Thanks to our Test Ride then Decide programme, you can always visit your nearest Cannondale store and try out the models available. At Sea Otter, however, we will be converting those tests into a different kind of experience. Guided routes, enjoying and sharing time with other cycling fans, which is what we like most. Ha ha, I think we enjoy talking about bikes just as much as we do riding them…”

It’s clear that a visit to the Cannondale stand at Sea Otter Europe 2018 will most definitely be worth your time. We’re very excited to find out what the US company has in store for us.