Adidas Acquires Five Ten
Thursday, November 3, 2011 at 8:35AM The adidas Group today announced that it has signed a share purchase agreement to acquire Five Ten, a leading performance brand in outdoor action sports. The adidas Group intends to purchase the entire Five Ten business, which includes all of the issued share capital of Five Ten USA. The total purchase price is USD 25 million in cash at closing and contingent payments, which are dependent on Five Ten achieving certain performance measures over the next three years. The transaction is expected to close in the next couple of weeks.
As part of its Strategic Business Plan Route 2015, the adidas Group expects sales in the outdoor segment to exceed € 500 million by 2015 based on organic growth. Through the acquisition of Five Ten, the adidas Group will be even better positioned towards the goal to become a leading player in the outdoor market.
“We are very excited to join forces with Five Ten. Five Ten is a leading brand in the technical outdoor market and within the outdoor action sport community. Climbers, mountain bikers and other outdoor athletes around the world highly value their products,” said Rolf Reinschmidt, Senior Vice President adidas Outdoor. “Five Ten has continuously been at the forefront of innovations and shares the same passion for athletes as we do at adidas. It represents an excellent addition to the adidas Outdoor portfolio and will allow us to expand into complementary market segments. This acquisition underscores our clear commitment to the outdoors and our ambition to play a leading role in the outdoor industry going forward. I am very much looking forward to working on this journey together with Charles Cole, Founder and President of Five Ten.”
“The deal provides exciting prospects for Five Ten. Supported by the adidas Group, we can finally reach the full potential that the ‘Brand of the Brave’ has to offer,” commented Charles Cole, Founder and President of Five Ten. “Here at Five Ten, we like the philosophy of adidas’ founder Adi Dassler, with his focus on product quality and in doing whatever is necessary to give the athlete the advantage. adidas has the same principles of putting athletes and performance first that have guided Five Ten for nearly 30 years and we are thrilled to be partnering with them.”
Five Ten has been at the forefront of innovation in the technical outdoor market since the day Stealth, a revolutionary high-friction rubber compound, was created in 1985. Today, the Stealth product family includes more than half a dozen award-winning compounds that provide the highest friction to athletes in various conditions. The Five Ten Elite Team consists of some of the world’s most exciting athletes such as Dean Potter, National Geographic’s 2011 athlete of the year, JT Holmes, champion big-mountain skier and Suz Graham, the most versatile and progressive female action sports athlete in the world.
adidas is the athletic brand in the outdoors. It has a long history in innovative outdoor products including highlights such as the ‘Super Trekking’, the first light trekking shoe, being worn by climbing legend Reinhold Messner for his first Everest ascent without oxygen support in 1978. Its award-winning TERREX collection offers lightweight, technical equipment to athletes in the outdoors. The tradition of adidas founder Adi Dassler, who worked individually with athletes to make them better, continues today. adidas Outdoor has teamed up with top outdoor athletes like the Huber Brothers (Climbing, Germany), Beat Kammerlander (Climbing, Austria) and Barbara Zangerl (Climbing, Austria) as well as prestigious organizations such as Zermatt Alpin Center (Switzerland) and Ragni di Lecco (Italy).
About the adidas Group
The adidas Group is one of the global leaders within the sporting goods industry, offering a broad range of products around the core brands: adidas, Reebok, TaylorMade, Rockport and Reebok-CCM Hockey. Headquartered in Herzogenaurach, Germany, the Group has more than 46,000 employees and generated sales of € 12 billion in 2010.
About Five Ten
Five Ten is a family-owned company that is dedicated to making the best outdoor sports footwear available. It offers innovative products to athletes in categories such as climbing and mountain biking. Five Ten was founded by Charles Cole in 1985, is located in Redlands, California and employs 37 people. In 2011, annual net sales are expected to be approximately € 16 million excluding distributor business in Japan and Korea.
510, Bicycle, Downhill Mountain Bike |
2012 Reaper Madness Registration Opens
Tuesday, November 1, 2011 at 8:11PM Registration is now open for the first USA Cycling Downhill qualifier for the 2012 Gravity Nationals. This State Championship Event will take place on February 18/19, 2012 at the infamous and challenging trails of Bootleg Canyon in Boulder City, Nevada.
Downhill Mike & the rest of the crew from the Whiteface Mountain Bike Park will once again be heading out west to put on the Reaper Madness Downhill & Super D races. Event organizers will be putting up a $2,000.00 pro cash purse and sponsors will have plenty of prizes. Those that place 1st thru 3rd will surely be taking home some sweet swag or cash!
Bootleg Canyon Racing/Whiteface Mountain Bike Park - Bootleg Canyon Home is the official event web site where you can easily find online registration, many very different videos from last years race (including one shot from a remote control helicopter), last years race results, this years course maps and even where to stay in Boulder City!
The event promoter has made some changes to this years pricing structure: Basically, the earlier one registers the more that is saved! Online pricing from the official event web site states: November cost is $75.00 for 1 race or $120.00 for both, and will increase by $5.00 each month until on- line registration closes on February 12. On-site registration will cost $100.00 for 1 race or $150.00 for both races. Save up to $30.00 by registering early!
2012 Norco Aurum LE
Sunday, October 30, 2011 at 8:27PM ;)
A purpose-built World Cup level downhill bike, the AURUM is designed for riders that want to go downhill fast. It’s built for the lift and shuttle access-obsessed, featuring eight inches (200mm) of A.R.T. suspension and Gravity TUNE geometry for the perfect fit in any size. From World Cup races to downhill parks and shuttle runs, the AURUM is mind-blowingly quick, stunningly nimble and astonishingly precise. Designed to capture the gold it was named after, this is the bike you want if you describe your riding style as ‘fast.’
Pit Pass: Danny Hart's World Champ Glory
Friday, October 28, 2011 at 3:35PM ;)
You’ve probably heard about Danny Hart’s scorcher gold medal downhill run at the 2011 Mountain Bike World Championships in Switzerland.
Maybe you’ve also read a bit about the bike Danny has been riding during his rapid rise through the ranks of the downhill elite. It’s called the Giant Glory. The latest version of the Glory, the one Danny rode to that big win last month on a stormy, mud-soaked day in Champéry, Switzerland, was created this year for one purpose: to help Danny win races.
Those who have been following Danny have witnessed him redefining the possibilities of what downhill mountain bikes can do. With his signature no-holds-barred style, he’s blasting through boundaries and throwing in a whip just for fun. With riders like Danny leading the charge, the sport’s progression has suddenly sped up. This unassuming yet immensely talented 20-year-old from the seaside town of Redcar, in the northeast of England, is part of a new generation of riders who demand more. From themselves, and from their bikes.
A former BMX racer who regularly trains on a motocross bike, Danny knows exactly what he wants in his bikes. And before his second pro season he sat down with Giant engineers, product developers and Factory Team mechanics and articulated his ideas.
Giant is unique in its capabilities to fine-tune the ride qualities of professional-level bikes. It’s the only major manufacturer that literally builds its bikes from scratch—including producing its own aluminum frame tubing. Giant’s formula is simple: It brings together athletes and bike-builders, linking craftsmanship and performance.
With one season of racing the Glory under his belt—his rookie 2010 season—Danny knew exactly what was working for his attacking style on the world's most challenging DH courses. The super-strong, lightweight ALUXX SL frame material formed the perfect foundation. The Maestro Suspension gave him confidence and control. And going into 2011, he had a major new team sponsor, SRAM, that promised the lightest and most dependable components.
At that point Danny was looking for small adjustments that could make a big difference.
Over the following months, Giant engineered a modified race bike for Danny and his teammates Andrew Neethling and Duncan Riffle. The prototype Glory bikes were quietly unveiled at Round 2 of the World Cup series in Fort William, Scotland. The very first time he raced it, Danny scored a career-best second-place finish.
The rest is history: Danny went on to have a breakout season, getting on three World Cup podiums and laying down the run of a lifetime to win the World Championship in Champéry. Not bad for a second-year pro.
Here are the specs for Danny’s prototype World Championship Giant Glory, which will continue to be refined throughout the 2012 racing season. For more details on some of his race-day set-up secrets, click on the photos above.
Build Kit
Model: Giant Glory Prototype, size Medium
Frame: ALUXX SL Grade Aluminum with 8-inch Maestro Suspension
Fork: RockShox Boxxer with BlackBox internals and stanchions
Shock: RockShox Vivid R2C, custom-tuned for Champéry course; 350-pound RockShox Ti spring
Handlebar: Truvativ BooBar, 20mm rise, 780mm width
Grips: ODI Ruffian, non-locking type. Glued and wired
Stem: Truvativ Holzfeller direct mount 50mm
Seatpost: Truvativ Holzfeller straight
Saddle: Fi’zi:k
Pedals: Crank Brothers Mallet
Shifters: SRAM XO 10-speed trigger shifters
Rear Derailleur: SRAM XO DH 10-speed short cage
Brakes: Avid BlackBox Code calipers, 20mm disc front and rear
Brake levers: Avid BlackBox
Cassette: SRAM PG1070 11-23
Chain: SRAM PC 1091, hollow pin
Crankset: SRAM XO DH prototype with 38-tooth chainring, 165mm length
BB: Truvativ GXP 83mm
Rims: DT Swiss EX1750 white
Hubs: DT Swiss 240 red
Spokes: DT Swiss Competition
Tires: Schwalbe Danny Hart, custom labelled and custom compound (Dirty Dan)
Extras: Full titanium bolts (except stem bolts), RRP Fork splash protector, Carbon Kevlar caliper mud cover
