Some
of the team riders were involved in a parade at the
A1 grand prix this past weekend. It was a pretty wild
affair with all sorts of crazy folks involved. The
guys had to pedal around the track in the scorching
mid day sun while performing choreographed moves and
tricks. Needless to say it was pretty funny seeing
the guys do their thing. Here are a few pics snapped
by Rupert on his cell phone while he rode in the parade.
We
also have a new bike check with Paul Soderlund up
in the team page. He has just put some new cranks,
wheels, and bars on his bike so check that out.
We
have also had a monster order arrive yesterday with
United, DK, and Bicycle Union goods. There are a lot
of new products in this lot so look for a detailed
update in the next day or so.
As
mentioned earlier this week we have a new web video
for all of you. This one is a promo from the Gate
Crash Tour, and features a few clips from all of the
stops. Click on the pic below to check it out.
We are also expecting
the new United and DK shipments to arrive early next
week. Look for updates on those new products as soon
as they come in.
We
just got back from a great weekend up in Johannesburg.
Greg's birthday party was awesome, and it was great
to see all of our friends from that side of the world.
While we were up there we got to hang out with some
of the team riders we haven't seen in a while, and
managed to catch up on what they have been up to.
On Sunday afternoon all of the guys went for a ride
at Wesbank skate park and the giant "spox"
was shredded! Thanks to Tyrone for these pics.
United team rider Paul
Soderlund with a giant boost!
Paul with a whipped out
seat grab.
Paul tweaking a stylish
indown.
Brad
Illingworth with a massive flip. Brad also let us
know that he is growing his sideburns back, and that
all of the powers attributed to them are subsequently
returning. We cant wait to see the results!
Brad
with a big step through as the sun goes down...
Jimmy
Reynolds also went up to JHB for Greg's shindig and
during the drive home they stopped off at a some spots.
Here are some pics of Jim and Andrew riding the wall
in the Drakensburg. Pics by T Silk.
Here
is a pic of Andrew with a fakie to slider.
Federal
team rider and general warehouse dude Jimmy Reynolds
boosting out of the tranny.
That's
the news for today. We hope you guys have some bandwidth
left on you internet sub because we have a belter
of a video going up on our Youtube page later this
week. Look out for that!
Odyssey
have just released their new limited colour (guacamole)
and this colour should be available in SA in a week
or so. Look for new Guacamole JC pedals, Team grips,
and linear slick cables to be in stores by the end
of the month!
Jimmy
is currently building up the bikes for the show and
they are looking awesome! If you want to see what
we are building then you will have to come past the
booth (or wait for the pics afterwards), but lets
just say that these are going to be seven of the most
amazing bikes out there. All of them are being built
up with the best of the best components, and the bikes
are dialed to say the least.
Its
is our good friend Greg Illingworths 21st birthday
tomorrow and all of us here at the office are heading
up to JHB for his party tomorrow. This should be a
good one so we are all looking forward to it. In related
news Greg recently had a bike check up on the Riot
web page. His bike is packed with the good stuff (odyssey,
Fly, G-sport, etc, etc) so head on over to www.theriot.co.za
and have a look at that. Its up in their news page.
It
is almost that time of year again when we head down
to Cape Town for the Cycle Tour Expo. For those of
you who don't know about the show it is basically
a big bicycle trade show that happens annually in
conjunction with the Argus Cycle race. Last year was
a lot of fun and it was great to see so many people
coming through to see what we had up on display.
This
year the show is taking place from the 7th - 10th
of March and we will once again be in booths 8 and
9. We have some awesome new products up on display
this year as well as some new show bikes, so if you
are in the area make sure you stop by and check out
the booth. We will also be launching a brand new addition
to the Empire product range at the show! So if you
want to find out what that is then you will have to
stop by the booth and see for yourself. The show is
open from 9am - 8pm and we hope to see all of you
there.
James
Brawn called us up to say that there is going to be
a WCBMX demo at the Belleville Velodrome in Cape Town
this weekend (11th Feb.). The demos will be at 11:45
and 1:30, and should be a lot of fun. The setup is
going to consist of a box jump and a few other ramps
and everyone is welcome to bring their bikes and ride.
Sounds like it should be a good one so if you are
in the area head on down there and check it out. For
more info call James on 0829234765.
Today
we bring you two bikes that have been in and around
the warehouse over the last few days. We think both
these bikes are pretty awesome so we thought we would
put them up here in the news for you guys to have
a look at.
First
up is Kyle Scott's yogurt inspired Fly Pantera. Over
the last few months it seems like everyone who comes
past the warehouse is working on a crazy new colour
combination for their bike. Some of you may remember
Kyle's Brown / Yellow paint job we had in the news
a few months back which also looked super good. This
bike is DIALLED! and the new colours are awesome to
say the least. If you live in the Durban area and
see Kyle rolling around on this pink beast, make sure
you take the time to admire his new whip (and also
discuss a few quotes from Anchor Man). He will appreciate
it.
Next
up is this little gem! For almost a year now our friend
Johnny (who works in one of the other warehouses here)
has been telling us that he has an "old BMX"
at home that he wants to get rid of. We didn't think
much of it until he walked in the door with this!
A 1984 Kuwahara Laserlite mini! He bought this bike
brand new back in 84, raced it for one season, and
since then it has just been sitting in his garage
at home. This bike is dead mint, and even has its
original grips and tyres! Needless to say we snatched
it up while we had the chance, and it is now on display
here at Empire.
Since
the new year started it has been crazy here at Empire.
New orders and products keep coming through the door
in what seems like an endless stream of boxes. last
month it was Odyssey and United, and this month has
started off with the first of the 07 Fly goods. All
the new shipments are certainly keeping us on our
feet, and will no doubt please all of you when you
see the new products on the shelves of you local store.
The
new Fly Shipment arrived yesterday and there are a
bunch of new items in this lot. First up are the new
Pantera V2 bars which have a "Retro" V style
crossbar. As with all the fly bars these are multi
butted and are also heat treated. 3 Amigos bars are
also back in stock as well.
Fly
Brakes and Stems are also restocked. The brakes are
now available in Seat Stay and Chain Stay Versions.
With frames coming out with lower and lower top tubes
the guys at fly thought they would add a version with
less of an angle to the arms for the seat stays. Brakes
and stems are available in black.
The
Long awaited Fly Cranks are also here. These cranks
are LIGHT! They are available in black, dirty white,
and dirty green. Fly cranks feature a unique 3 piece
design that allows both arms to slide on from ones
side which eliminates the use of hardware on one side.
This saves a lot of weight and also allows the spindle
to be machined out on the inside. Fly cranks also
feature D shaped arms to prevent twisting. Available
in 175mm and 180mm.
New
Pantera V2 and 3 Amigos forks are also in stock. These
forks are completely revised and now feature elliptical
steer tubes which are ticker in the front and back
and thinner on the sides. These forks also feature
the bearing race machined into the top of the crown
so you no longer have to beat it on when installing
your headset.
The
new forks also feature CMC machined dropouts to save
weight and retain strength. The bottom of the legs
are also angled for grind clearance and to remove
any excess material. Both forks are also fully heat
treated.
Pantera
V2 forks and 3 Amigo forks use a new compression bolt
that is lighter then the previous one. The new compression
bolt threads into the sides of the steer tube so if
choose to remove it you don't have the ugly welded
bits inside your fork. Compression bolts are also
available in a wide range of colours to match the
rest of the fly parts.
The
popular Ruben grips are back in stock in all sizes
and colours.
Fly
pedals are also back in stock and are now available
in black. the new pedals feature hollow spindles and
also come with a set of shorter studs if you don't
fancy the longer ones that come installed on the pedals.
The
long awaited Fly rims are also finally here and these
rims look awesome! the rims feature a cross lace pattern
and are available in 36 hole only. Fly have also pre
drilled the rims to remove all the excess material
which makes these rims very light as well. The rims
come in Black, Blue, Orange or pink. All the other
Fly products like Frames, Pegs, sprockets, and tyres
are also all in stock and on the way to a store near
you. We are busy shipping orders as we speak so you
should see these products in stores by the weekend.
That's
it for today, we've got boxes to pack and wheels to
build... More news in the coming days.
