QF Focus Magazine
Page 31
Unibike 2017 The Spanish Bike Show On Friday 22nd September I left a sleepy Quesada at 5.30am accompanied by our apprentice mechanic Harry Morrow and stepson Moth Robertson and headed for Alicante to catch the high speed train to Unibike in Madrid. We boarded the train and left Alicante at 7.10am and were soon sitting in comfort with issue headphones, a good video and a cup of coffee, this is the way to travel stress free. Just after 9am we arrived in Madrid station and caught a taxi direct to the Recinto Ferial Ifema (Madrid’s exhibition centre). Last year we got the underground and we seemed to take forever with 3 train changes so this year we took a taxi and got there in half an hour and also saw a bit of the city. On arrival we checked in and got our security passes took a few pictures and proceeded into the main hall. Unibike consisted of 3 large halls with all the main bike and accessory dealers from all over Spain having large displays. Having Harry with us last year was a godsend as he speaks Spanish like a machine gun. It was really beneficial for us as we now buy direct from many Spanish companies including Shimano Spain. Our first impression on entering the main hall was the amount of dealers who were there, every bike manufacturer that you can think of was represented. After a few hours looking at the new models and new accessories, we had a well deserved lunch break where we took time to review and consider the different models and companies we would like to start working with. There was a considerable amount of cycle rack suppliers supplying racks for the rear of your car, these started from 70€ up to 1000€ with some of them looking like something out of Star Wars. The makes and models of bikes were incredible from all the companies, however most of the bikes were drab colours ie; matt black, grey etc. We even saw a beautifully made wooden bike fully equipped by Shimano which retailed at 8000€. What was interesting was the amount of e-bikes now entering the market, most of the big companies are now doing electric mountain bikes, cyclecross and road bikes, I would guess that 75% of the bikes at the show were e-bikes, so this is certainly the way forward. Outside there were various stalls inviting people to try E-mountain bikes, E-road bikes, BMX, fat boys etc and an abundance of people were queueing to try these out. All in all we had an excellent day at the show, saw a lot, learnt a lot and have some lovely new models of e-bikes and hybrid bikes arriving in the next few weeks. We are looking forward to next year’s show already. Gary and Lynn are available at Cyclogical in Quesada from 9.30am until 5.30pm Monday to Friday and from 10am until 2pm on a Saturday to help and assist you with all your cycling requirements. Call 637 487 377, visit www.cyclogicalcostablanca.com, or see us on Facebook www.facebook.com/cyclogicalquesada.