Posted on 06/14/2020 6:17:11 PM PDT by krny9
Fitness junkies locked out of gyms, commuters fearful of public transit, and families going stir crazy inside their homes during the coronavirus pandemic have created a boom in bicycle sales unseen in decades. In the United States, bicycle aisles at mass merchandisers like Walmart and Target have been swept clean, and independent shops are doing a brisk business and are selling out of affordable “family” bikes.
Bicycle sales over the past two months saw their biggest spike in the U.S. since the oil crisis of the 1970s, said Jay Townley, who analyzes cycling industry trends at Human Powered Solutions.
“People quite frankly have panicked, and they’re buying bikes like toilet paper,” Townley said, referring to the rush to buy essentials like toilet paper and hand sanitizer that stores saw at the beginning of the pandemic.
The trend is mirrored around the globe, as cities better known for car-clogged streets, like Manila and Rome, install bike lanes to accommodate surging interest in cycling while public transport remains curtailed. In London, municipal authorities plan to go further by banning cars from some central thoroughfares.
Bike shop owners in the Philippine capital say demand is stronger than at Christmas. Financial incentives are boosting sales in Italy, where the government’s post-lockdown stimulus last month included a 500-euro ($575) “bici bonus” rebate for up to 60% of the cost of a bike.
But that's if you can get your hands on one. The craze has led to shortages that will take some weeks, maybe months, to resolve, particularly in the U.S., which relies on China for about 90% of its bicycles, Townley said. Production there was largely shut down due to the coronavirus and is just resuming.
(Excerpt) Read more at baltimoresun.com ...
Ping :)
Tp? Never sniff a bicycle seat.
I bought my LAST piece of exercise equipment many years ago.
I now have enough to hold all my wet towels for drying :)
If I got a bike it would have to be reinforced with Titanium :)
The other thing that people are buying like toilet paper: Kettlebells!! There is currently a shortage ........
Inside the Great Kettlebell Shortage of 2020
https://www.gq.com/story/inside-the-great-kettlebell-shortage
Excerpt:
It didn’t happen exactly this way, but it feels like it did: one day we were all hearing about the coronavirus. The next day, we were all murmuring the phrase “social distancing.” And then the day after that, the kettlebells disappeared. All of them. Ryan McGrotty, co-owner of Colorado gym equipment retailer Rep Fitness, says he’s never seen a rush on his home gym inventory quite like what transpired on Friday, March 13, the day President Trump declared a state of emergency over the COVID-19 pandemic.
Rep Fitness did more sales in one day than it normally does in a month. Already it had been dealing with low inventory levels across its home gym lineup because the virus had temporarily shuttered factories in China. When the spike came, the whole system fell apart. Since then, the 55-person company has largely been reorganized to turn away from professional gym gear and focus only on home exercise products. “The demand almost seems infinite,” McGrotty says.
Rep Fitness isn’t the only company in its field that’s been overwhelmed with orders, as you’ve realized if you’ve tried to order weights from anywhere online. The kettlebell is the most obvious flashpoint of our great weight shortage. They’re appealingly simple—just a hunk of iron with a handle, and useful for working out your entire body. But kettlebells are part of a complicated and fragile supply chain, one that’s a microcosm of a global economy currently in crisis.
LOL! I never would have thought to sniff a bike seat, but now that you mention it, it doesn’t sound like a good idea ... still LOLing.
There is long sitting Cannondale bike in the garage.
90% of bikes from China?
All the bikes I’m interested in are made in the US or Italy.
I had to look it up. Seems like a good bike.
It is only one of many millions that are at rest in garages across the country :)
I have a treadmill, rower, exercise bike and weight machine holding wet laundry once a week :)
And I’m so dense that after seeing this article i thought for a second about getting a bike :)
Thank God it was only for a second.
I can vouch for this as I am riding again after being out of the sport for about 7 years. Stores sold out of bikes and bike supplies, and things like bike racks are aslo in short supply.
Not electric. There sales are also up.
Yesterday was the first time the tires were pumped up in over a decade maybe.
They still hold air but will need replacing.
So, how many months before I can get a great deal on a lightly used and slightly dusty bike?
Same here. Our whole family now bikes regularly.
My neighbor said something similar when looking for bikes for his kids.
I’m into my 3rd season of riding 100 miles or more a week.
My trails are filled with morons, kids on training wheels and people riding abreast instead of single file.
A new wheel took a week to get, my LBS is picked clean of inventory and they’re saying resupply in October.
Please, don’t go biking, you might get a cramp or get dirt on your bike.
A cheap electric sets one back $2500/new. With the better ones just under $4000.
Just before Wuhan virus shut down common sense in this country, I dropped my 20 year old classic 24 speed Mongoose on/off road bike at the shop to re-wire, re-brake, re-just-about everything for about $450. Someone remarked, why don’t you just buy a new Cannondale for $700. My response was - you can’t buy this classic anymore, and I love it. Anyway, did a great 15 miler today.
Yepp, i am seeing a couple more morons out there than usual. They won’t be for long on the 2 wheels.
Either that or more people who are fit.
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