SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO, Calif. (BRAIN) — Interbike says The Circuit, its indoor electric bike test track, has sold out for the third year in a row and will be officially sponsored by Bosch.
The show also announced an agreement that extends its partnership with the Electric Bike Association as the official development partner of The Circuit at Interbike.
More than 30 brands will have the e-bikes available to test at The Circuit. Those brands include Bulls Bikes USA, Easy Motion USA/BH Bikes, eProdigy Bikes, Stromer, Bosch, Tempo and more. The Circuit test track will have an updated course layout, with long straightaways to get the bikes up to speed, a 50-foot ramp to experience how each model handles a simulated short climb, and more.
"Interbike saw the future of this category about five years ago when they launched their Electric Bike Media Event to help put a spotlight on the technology to non-endemic publications," said Ray Verhelst, executive director of the Electric Bike Association. "We couldn't be happier to extend our partnership with them, to help retailers experience so many of the leading e-bikes from the top brands selling here in North America – all in one place."
Interbike's new Shootout on E-Mountain at OutDoor Demo has also reached capacity, with more than 10 brands participating with the latest in full suspension and hard tail eMTB's. Retailers will be able to test these bikes on a dedicated e-bike trail, and be able to give their feedback to editors of Electric Bike Action and Mountain Bike Action magazines for input in their Shootout roundup. Brands that have committed to The Shootout on E-Mountain include: Bulls Bikes USA, Focus Bicycles, Haibike USA, Haro Bicycle Corp, IZIP Electric, Raleigh Electric, Smartmotion, Cannondale and Specialized.
"Recent BPSA data indicates sell-in numbers for e-bikes YTD through May 2017, up 79.5 percent," said Pat Hus, the vice president of Interbike. "The strong growth of the e-bike category is not to be ignored, and both The Circuit and the Shootout on E-Mountain provide the ultimate platforms for retailers to test bikes from brands they are considering. When you combine this with the educational content going on each day in the Electric Theatre presented by Bosch, it becomes very clear that every retailer in North America who wants to be in the e-bike business needs to attend Interbike this year."
Interbike returns to the Mandalay Bay Convention Center beginning with OutDoor Demo in Boulder City, Nev., Sept. 18-19, followed by the Interbike Expo, Sept. 20-22.
