It was no surprise that Cervelo won the bike count by such a large margin. The only question on the minds of those representing competing bike brands was exactly how badly Cervelo would rout the competition.
As bad as it was, it could've been worse. Cervelo's 26 percent is still below the 31 percent that brand recently polled in our survey, when our readers were asked what bike they intend to buy next. Cervelo could top 400 bikes in the field next year, and all this run-up without a top gun in the race since the Steve Larsen era.
The big surprise was Kuota, up into a tie for second with Trek. For all the hype about QR and Felt, Kuota quietly came close to doubling its totals from last year.
Meanwhile, QR came close to halving its totals. Typically a brand can go out of business and still keep 75 percent, or at least two-thirds, of its bikes from a year before. You almost have to forcibly pull the bikes out from under riders in order to see this amount of decrease.
This is precisely what happened, in a way, when Trek wrested the Timex team sponsorship from QR. That may have been responsible for as much as a 20-bike drop in the Kona field. Still, QR has suffered a precipitous drop, and it had better do more than sign Bjorn Anderson if it intends to sell bikes next year.
It does not speak well for Trek's sales over the past season if its relatively flat performance in the count include being the recipient of a sponsorship padding its numbers. The brand that once polled 175 bikes in a field of fewer than 1500 is now sitting at 128 bikes in a field that has swelled by about 400 since those heady days.
The Equinox TTX is plenty bike for any triathlete — it can go toe-to-toe with any bike in the field. The question is whether Trek's brick & mortar, mom & pop, chain of retailers enjoys the confidence of the triathletes racing in a world championship like this. If a Trek dealer happens to be a bona-fide A+ tri shop, the Equinoxes will have to share floor space with Cervelos, Felts, Scotts and Kuotas. If the store is a second-tier tri retailer, the Equinoxes are likely never to get noticed.
Cannondale, with a modest drop from 83 bikes to 75 over the past year, will suffer in '08 from not having Faris race in Kona, but it shouldn't suffer that much. The new Slice is an exceptional bike, and it will sell well because of that fact. Cannondale is also likely not to be the Ironman licensee next year, based on the rumors from several bike companies that say they've been approached about an Ironman license. Cannondale may do well by emphasizing its terrific new bike instead of leaning on a license and an athlete — that formula has been successful for Cervelo.
The other brands enjoying an exceptional run-up were Scott, from 66 bikes to 89, and especially Orbea, with the largest percentage increase of any brand in the top ten: 34 bikes to 71. Felt did nicely, jumping from 40 bikes to 66, and it's about time. It's always been a mystery why this brand doesn't poll better in Kona since it does so well at the cash register. Look also saw a nice bump, from 38 bikes to 51. (photos: Chuck Cates)