Bike Buffs, Pedal Pushers Unite

Las Vegas—Heading into this year's Interbike Intl. Bike Expo, anybody following the news might have had questions about the tradeshow's future. Heading out, attendees were likely to have few, if any, doubts about its success.

Under attack from would-be competitors and cycling enthusiasts for most of the past year, and tethered to an industry rocked by scandals, Nielsen Business Media, owner of the show, managed to mollify critics and grow Interbike to record size.

The show, held Sept. 26–28 at the Sands Expo & Convention Center/Venetian Resort Hotel Casino, filled 313,000 net square feet of exhibit space, according to Nielsen. The company reported preliminary total attendance of 22,000, including 11,000 buyers.

Last year's show, No. 72 on the most recent Tradeshow Week 200, spanned 307,865 net sq. ft., and drew 20,507 total attendees. That already represented an increase in both size and attendance from the previous year.

Exhibitors in the show said the industry remained strong, despite the doping scandals that have plagued professional bike racing over the last couple years. Just weeks before Interbike, 2006 Tour de France winner Floyd Landis, an American, was stripped of his title following a year-long investigation into charges he used performance-enhancing substances during the race.

Attendees at the show could be seen wearing T-shirts with slogans such as "Tour de Drugs," and "doperssuck."

"We've found that enthusiasts who were influenced (by pro racing) before still are, but if they weren't, recent scandals have turned them off even more," said David Lawrence, marketing manager for the bicycle components division of Shimano.

Carmela Livorsi Petitt, global marketing executive for performance bike brand Specialized, agreed, but added that commuter bikes were "huge" nonetheless. "We have six different families of them this year," she said.

According to Petitt and others, high gas prices, rising awareness of global warming, the national obesity epidemic and other factors are keeping bicycles popular among the general public, which doesn't follow pro racing anyway.

Besides, Interbike also serves mountain, cruising and BMX bike retailers, exhibitors in those segments added.

But even if the show stayed above the road-racing stink, it wasn't immune to other troubles.

For years, a faction of participants has grumbled about Interbike's location in Las Vegas, which they consider unfriendly to bikes. Their dissatisfaction came to a head last November, when German show organizer Messe Friedrichshafen announced it would launch an American version of its successful Eurobike in Portland, Ore., widely considered by bike enthusiasts to be the most bike-friendly city in the country.

Shortly after, the German firm changed its plans and said it would instead have a role in the Sea Otter Classic. The cycling festival takes place each April in Monterrey, Calif., and includes a tradeshow with more than 200 exhibitors.

Nielsen took the wake up call and began making the rounds to cycling events, flagship exhibitors and industry organizations.

One of these, meanwhile, was toying with the idea of doing its own show, one that would be about more than just moving product.

"It's no secret, we considered the idea of launching our own show, following the model of many other industries whose associations own and operate shows," said Tim Blumenthal, executive director of Bikes Belong. "We have very strong support from all the leading manufacturers in the industry."

Ultimately, however, Bikes Belong decided it would be better off doing what it does best: "putting more people on more bikes more often," as its slogan says. The trade group, mainly for bicycle manufacturers, focuses on federal policy and funding, national partnerships, community grants and bicycling promotions.

Last month, Nielsen and Bikes Belong reached a 10-year, multi-million dollar agreement: The trade group will endorse Interbike in exchange for funds and representation of Bikes Belong's interests at the show.

Specifics of the deal were confidential, but Blumenthal said it made Interbike "one of our key financial supporters to further our work."

"Interbike is a solid show," he added. "Nielsen is a big company that does a lot of shows, and they do a good job. We knew the actual job of running a tradeshow is more difficult than it seems."

Lance Camisasca, Interbike director for Nielsen, said that, contrary to some speculation in the cycling industry, Bikes Belong did not extort Nielsen's support by threatening to launch its own show.

"They've always talked about doing a tradeshow. I've always known that," he said. "We're a successful 26-year-old show that's never had a formal relationship with a supplier or manufacturer association. Running the show without their support has at times been hard. We can share some of that weight now. I'm thrilled."

One group Interbike has had a formal relationship with since its inception is the Natl. Bicycle Dealers Assn. Executive Director Fred Clements — who, in his near-30 years in the industry, has survived several bouts between various rival organizations — said he was relieved that yet another round had been avoided.

"I'm so glad they came to an agreement instead of having another tradeshow war," he said. "There will be peace in our industry."

Like Blumenthal, Clements said the bicycling business faces too many challenges right now to waste time on infighting.

"The maturity of the industry showed in the way Interbike and Bikes Belong came together and rose above their differences," he added.

One of those differences remains, however: the show's location. Camisasca said he has a contract with the Sands for next year "and beyond that, we're making decisions. We'll likely stay in Vegas, but we'll have to look at it."

He added that he hoped to attend the Bicycling Leadership Conference again this year and get feedback from industry bellwethers on the best place for the show.

Blumenthal said, as part of the deal with Interbike, Bikes Belong would invest in a project in the show's host city each year.

"I'm not confident that we're going to be able to change the relationship between cars and bikes on the (Las Vegas) Strip," he said. "For those of us who live and breathe cycling, it's weird to come here."

Nielsen added an outdoor bike race on opening night and an indoor criterium on the last night of Interbike this year — exactly the kind of thing Bikes Belong members want to see more of.

"The most important thing is that Interbike is open to discussion of whether Las Vegas is the best place to hold the show, or there's someplace better," Blumenthal said.

Exhibitors agreed that, as Shimano's Lawrence put it, they have a "love-hate relationship with Vegas. It has all the tradeshow infrastructure we need, but it's not an environment that cyclists flourish in."

The Wheels Manufacturing booth was adorned with bumper stickers reading, "Vegas sucks! Move Interbike to Denver!" Dan Depaemelaere, who was manning the booth, said he's been handing out the stickers for three years now.

His complaint is that Las Vegas gets more expensive each year. "It used to be $20 to $40 for us to unload our van," he said. "This year, it was $400" because of a change in rules.

Toby Henderson, former BMX racer and owner of bike maker VSI, said he has a good plan to deal with ever-more-expensive setup and tear-down — using a van that holds all his product as an exhibit — but getting in and out of the Sands is still "a pain."

Retailers, on the other hand, have no problem with Sin City.

James Holmes, of Atlanta-based Bike Warehouse, has been attending Interbike since it was in Anaheim. "I love it here," he said. "You come to Vegas and, if you're young, you can party. If you're not, you can bring your family. It's perfect for everyone. I can't imagine it being anywhere else."