When stage one of the Tour de France begins in Noirmoutier, northwest France, on 7 July, Continental will launch into its first year as a sponsor of the world-famous cycle race. Through its sponsorship of the Tour de France, Continental not only aims to draw attention to its bicycle tyre range; it also hopes the exposure gained will aid its ‘Vision Zero’ push towards a world without road fatalities and accidents.
Continental has become the official tyre of the Giro d’Italia as part of a three-year agreement signed with organiser RCS Sport that sees the tyre maker also take on the role of official partner to the cycling Grand Tour race. As official tyre partner, Continental will collaborate with Shimano to supply both bicycle and car tyres for the neutral technical assistance team.
Pirelli has returned to the bicycle tyre market with its PZero Velo range, and Goodyear is also making a comeback. The tyre maker has been absent for a long time – after more than three quarters of a century in the business, Goodyear stopped producing bicycle tyres in 1976. But now it is back and has already appointed a distributor for the UK and Ireland.
Apollo Vredestein has introduced three new Vredestein brand cycle tyres for the sport segment at the Eurobike exhibition in Friedrichshafen. The tyre manufacturer said it was responding to road bike manufacturers’ production of increasingly stiffer frames and wheels to ensure better feedback, comfort and grip for riders. With these characteristics, the importance of tyres increases, since the feel of the road surface and grip contribute more to the overall cycling experience. Vredestein has introduced the Fortezza Duralite, Fortezza Tubeless Ready, and Fortezza Senso Tri, in addition to a new size for the Fortezza Senso Superiore.
Cycling products distributor Extra UK has announced it will act as the exclusive distributor of Pirelli’s new PZero Velo tyre range in the UK and Ireland.
Pirelli recently announced its return to the cycling tyre market with three versions of its PZero tyres: silver for road racing, red for time trial and blue for four-season use. The new tyre range was announced in May.
The PZero brand has long been associated with tyres for high performance cars, and now Pirelli is using its flagship name for the company’s return to cycling. The PZero Velo tyre range for high performance bicycles will be released in September and distributed in Europe, North America and within Asia Pacific. Pirelli will sell the PZero Velo through its own e-commerce site, veloworld.pirelli.com.
Bridgestone has announced its aim of bringing airless tyres to market by 2019, however don’t expect to find them in sizes suitable for your car. The commercialisation of the company’s Air Free Concept, which was first shown at the Tokyo Motor Show in 2013, will begin with a non-pneumatic bicycle tyre. Together with Bridgestone Cycle Co., Ltd, Bridgestone Corporation has developed what it calls a “next-generation bicycle tyre” as part of the Air Free project, and now plans to undertake feasibility studies ahead of a market launch.
Interview Giulio Cesareo, founder and CEO of Directa Plus It may have been discovered in by scientists at the University of Manchester, but graphene is entering the tyre business via Italy after well-known bicycle tyre manufacturer Vittoria SpA launched a tyre produced using the Nobel Prize-winning material in conjunction with another Italian firm, Directa Plus. […]
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