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Crossing the Pacific!

Alex — Wed, 25 Jan 2012 20:20:13 +0000

Surprisingly for the off season, January 2012 has been one of our best months yet for sales, buoyed in part by an exciting new development within our company: overseas distribution. We have agreed with a Japanese firm, Groovy International, that they should be our first distributor outside the USA, bringing in our mountain bike components for sale to the burgeoning Japanese MTB market. We’re excited to bring our wheels to a whole new biking community, and to be involved with an excellent company to help us make our mark among Japanese cyclists.

Headed by former Japanese national Four-cross champion, Hiroshi Shirakura, Groovy International specializes in the importing and distribution of boutique American mountain bike parts like ours. Situated in the town of Joetsu, Niigata prefecture on Japan’s west coast, the firm occupies a favorable a mountain biking area. Sandwiched between the sea and the mountains, Groovy International is close to the site of the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, and all that region’s terrain, conducive to both skiing and world-class mountain biking. It is a natural situation for them, therefore, to supply the growing Japanese mountain bike market with high-quality parts.

We are confident that we’ve found an excellent match overseas, and look forward to Japanese riders and racers ripping it up with our wheels!

Dealer of the Month: Laguna Beach Cyclery

Alex — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 18:39:50 +0000

When we opened in 2009 and were searching for shops to help us find our footing, we were lucky enough to find ourselves involved with one of the coolest shops in Southern California: Laguna Beach Cyclery in Laguna Beach, CA. That summer, they were our very first dealer, and were responsible for getting Hermes Sport production wheelset #1 into the hands of a delighted customer. Since then, they have been our mainstay dealer in Orange County, and have continued to be a top provider for our new products. As such, now that we have our own company blog, it’s only fitting that they be the first dealer we profile.

From the outside, right off Pacific Coast Highway, the shop cuts an unassuming but charming presence against the wonderful backdrop of Laguna Beach. Built inside an old barn, and with a few beach cruisers outside, the shop doesn’t give much hint of the wonders within until you enter; bikes from Pinarello, Time, Lynskey, Ibis, Santa Cruz and others. Make no mistake, these guys definitely know how to deliver the goods. Owner/operator Patrick Fetzer, with his distinctive dreadlocked coiffure, has seen the shop become a major institution in the town and beyond, with their rasta-colored shop kits appearing in races throughout California. We’re proud to begin our third year of association with this fantastic shop, and wish them continued good luck.

Next time you’re in the area and in need of a fine bicycle in general, or Hermes Sport wheels in particular, pop in and tell them we sent you! Further contact details can be found in the “Where To Buy” section of our site.

Happy trails!

Firefly Bicycles and Hermes Sport

Alex — Fri, 06 Jan 2012 16:39:30 +0000

We take pride in our connections to small framebuilders and bike companies across the US, and with our new relationship with Firefly Bicycles, we have good reason to be proud. Formed last year by former employees of Independent Fabrications, Firefly Bicycles quickly established a reputation for themselves as one of the country’s most exciting new framebuilders. Definitely people we wanted to be involved with! Based in the Boston area, they specialize in custom-made, stainless steel and titanium frames for just about any application imaginable. Among their formidable talents, they maintain a unique expertise in metal finishing, which enables them to make anodized titanium frames that look completely unlike anything else rolling today. Beyond that, they produce an excellent line of handlebars, stems and seatposts.

We have been fortunate to associate ourselves with this fount of new energy in the handmade bicycle segment. In keeping with that handmade, haute-couture spirit of their frames, we are pleased to announce that our own Ritual GG wheelsets are available as stock equipment on all Firefly bikes. With Tune hubs that can be colored to match any custom frame, and performance to spare, they posit themselves as the best possible fit for Firefly’s top quality, high-performance machines. Should you find yourself desiring a fine, custom made American bike, we wholeheartedly recommend Firefly Bicycles with Hermes Sport wheels. Have a look at www.fireflybicycles.com!

Hermes Sport – MTB Zero-Hour

Alex — Wed, 28 Dec 2011 17:43:42 +0000

With the new year and cyclocross season winding down, it’s almost time for the 2012 mountain bike season to begin here in the Southwest. This is a particular exciting time for us, as our new ODB carbon MTB wheelset, so widely loved among testers and industry audiences at Interbike, will at last be getting to do what it was made to do: to provide racers and enthusiasts’ bikes with a new level of speed and performance. We are also one of the few manufacturers to offer a carbon tubular MTB rim, for those seeking the very zenith of off-road traction and ride quality.

Our ambassadors for this exciting new product range are San Diego’s Rodder Racing/Geekhouse team. As 12/24 hour racing specialists, they’ll have plenty of saddle time to spread the word of our products far and wide by personal experience. We wish them the best of luck! Look for us at the 2012 Kenda Cup racing series, offering free wheel truing services on-site! We are, as in multisport, looking to expand our sponsorship portfolio specifically in the MTB arena for 2012. Are you involved with a great XC racing team, or are just a talented individual? Send all pertinent info to contact@hermes-sport.com.

Hermes Sport and San Diego

Alex — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 15:55:02 +0000

We’re very fortunate to be continuing to do business in the San Diego area for 2012. Our firm was founded in Los Angeles, and after a year and a half of doing business there, it became apparent that pastures were just a bit greener further south. The decision to come down south has paid great dividends. In our efforts to ingratiate ourselves into the cycling community here, we’ve met some awesome riders and shops, and savored some of the best scenery Southern California has to offer.

It isn’t just surf, sun and company which has greeted us down here, either. San Diego has long been a hotbed of the cycling industry, with many illustrious names starting and continuing to do business here. This has left us with a great reservoir of expertise and talent, which has helped us have our best ever year in 2011, and promises to continue the upward trend through 2012. So, with the new year upon us, we at Hermes Sport would like to celebrate all that this town has given to our business, and also the other places whose patronage has made us what we are today. We’re here for the long haul!

Hermes Sport needs reps!

Alex — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 15:56:29 +0000

The past few months here at Hermes Sport have been very busy for us, and have given us the opportunity to expand our sales base further. Towards this end, we’re looking to recruit new independent sales representatives to help us open new territories and keep the momentum rolling. Are you a rep, and would to pick up an exciting, young company to add to your lines? If so, please send us an e-mail via the form on our site, and we can provide the necessary instructions. We pay an industry-competitive commission, and offer the opportunity to get in with a growing, exciting firm! Our current territories in need of reps are:

Southern California

Utah

Colorado

New Mexico

Texas (East and West)

Pacific Northwest

NAHBS Profile 2012: Calfee Design

Alex — Wed, 07 Mar 2012 17:32:57 +0000

NAHBS is right in the rear view mirror, so it seems appropriate to profile one of our associated framebuilders. Around this time last year, we were lucky enough to find ourselves associated with a very storied name in American bicycles: Calfee Designs. Based in La Selva Beach, CA, they hold the dual distinctions of being one of the pioneers of carbon fiber frame construction, with over 20 years experience in working with the material, and one of the most esteemed American builders of custom frames. Buoyed by a rich racing history, including support of Greg LeMond’s Z-Team in the early ’90s, Calfee frames are today beloved by racers and riders of all stripes.

All this performance and American luxury need not come with a ruinous price tag, either. Calfee’s entry-level Luna frame retails for only $1999, making it the least expensive US-made custom frame on the market today. From this inexpensive model, the Luna, all the way to their top shelf Dragonfly model, Calfee offers a variety of bikes for road, cross, and track, in both carbon fiber and famously, bamboo.

We approached Calfee in spring 2011 with an eye towards satisfying their need for a top-of-the-line aluminum wheelset to offer to their clients, and showed them the Ritual GG. They gave a much-needed vote of confidence to the the then-nascent product, and became among the first of many fans. Should you find yourself in need of a fantastic, US-made carbon bike, we invite you to take a look at these guys!

Rider Profile: Peter

Alex — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 16:18:51 +0000

At the end of 2010, we were making our first steps into Northern California, and clearly we needed something, or in this case someone, to close the legitimacy gap between our products and those of our competitors in the area. Enter Peter of the Third Pillar racing team. Perhaps the sort of rider which causes the most lost sleep among wheelbuilders, Peter is a 200+ pound sprinter with an appetite for crit racing, who wanted Hermes Sport wheels and promised to abuse them. He ended up with two sets: a specially-built Aerodynamic wheelset with red hubs and decals, and a super-deep version of the same model built to track hubs to use at the Hellyer velodrome.

Something must have been going right, because after a season of heinous abuse, courtesy of his merciless, 2000+ watt power output, all he could do was to sing the continued praises of our product. His confidence helped us position the Aerodynamic wheel as the weapon of choice for the sorts of riders who aspire to be a Mario Cipollini or an Erik Zabel; the kind of wheel that when there’s a bunch sprint, won’t cop out when there’s danger all about. For all the in-house use and abuse our wheels receive, it’s still a great feeling here seeing the wheels we built with our own two hands not only endure, but excel under the nastiest of conditions. Wishing Peter and all Hermes Sport racers a fantastic 2012 racing season!

Socal Crit Season 2012: Ontario #1

Alex — Fri, 13 Jan 2012 19:31:55 +0000

If you’re reading this in an area perhaps not so fortunate with regards to weather as Southern California, this may come off as gloating, but we’re here and we might as well make the most of things. If one is to observe the site of our local USA Cycling conference, the SCNCA (scnca.com), you will see that the first Ontario Criterium is right around the corner, January 15^th. Thus is brought to an end the brief off-season which we enjoy, from about September to now.

These races, famous (infamous?) for their 6-corner layout, and occasional bike handling misadventures have long been an important part of our company. Ontario is the traditional testing ground of our road wheels. The Aerodynamic, the Levitator and the Excellence all had their first acid test here. They have, in the past, provided us with a great opportunity to both subject our wheels to grievous abuse, and do so in front of a large local audience. 2012 promises to be no exception.

Why this new racing season is important for us in particular is that it is the debut of a new team under our sponsorship: Las Vegas’ Chamois Butt’r team. One of the fastest masters’ teams in the southwest, this team has taken up Hermes Sport wheelsets as their product of choice for criterium dominance. Under the leadership of former Carrera Jeans racer and Italian masters national champion, Roberto Pascani, the 2012 Chamois Butt’r promises to be a real scorcher, and a fantastic start to our involvement in masters’ racing.

Super Spokes

Alex — Wed, 18 Jan 2012 23:11:31 +0000

Spokes don’t often occur to people as being particularly exciting parts of a bicycle; unless special interest is paid, one can be forgiven for thinking that they’re all basically the same and coalesce themselves out of thin air. However, when it comes to the Superspokes our Ritual GG wheelset uses, it becomes apparent that some animals are more equal than others. Custom-produced by Sapim for Tune, these spokes are really something special. Double-butted 15-gauge wire and a special drawing profile give these spokes both phenomenal tension capacity and super-light weight while also having an excellent fatigue life. Tune reports a 20% increase in both fatigue life and a 20% decrease in weight over Sapim’s next-lightest spoke, the CX-Ray. The spokes were used as stock equipment last year on the bikes of the German national DH mountain bike team to establish their bona fides, which they did with flying colors.

All of these attributes lend themselves to the production of high-end, high-performance wheels, and were a natural fit for our new high-end alloy clincher last summer. We see them as being no small part of the Ritual GG’s sudden success, enabling it to be both lighter, stiffer and more resilient than any other wheel in its class. Currently, our number-one online source for Ritual GG wheels is Western Bike Works in Portland, OR. If the Ritual GG wheels interest you, mosey on over to our “Where To Buy” page and have a look!