This Could Be Big

 NOTE: Large doses of "my opinion" will be handed out in gloppy dollops today. You've been forewarned.....

 Last Friday I reported on the lawsuit that is pending involving Rad Power Bikes. The chatter on "Bicycle Twitter" has been very interesting with some good takes and even with one industry icon weighing in. So, since this has grabbed the attention of a lot of people within and without the cycling industry, I think it bears a closer looking at, and one reason why is that not only will this possibly affect HPC/electrified bike sales, but the "D2C" model in retail. 

The incident that got Rad Power into this hot water revolves around a child operating a Rad Power cargo bike, a fast down hill, a 'wobbly front wheel', and poor brakes. Reportedly, this was on a cargo bike with a passenger on the back. The cyclist lost control and the12 year old female passenger was flung from the bike and eventually succumbed to her injuries. 

Rad Power uses quick release levers on many of their bikes, and Rad Power relies on consumers for the final assembly of their bicycles. Since the wrongful death claim was filed in court, more stories about people experiencing failures on Rad Power bikes have surfaced, as you might imagine, making things seem worse. 

Comments: I assembled a few Rad Power bikes while I was working at Andy's Bike Shop, so I can speak to this somewhat, in terms of what the difficulty level might be for a consumer in assembly of one of these HPC's. 

In my opinion, these types of "Direct To Consumer" (D2C) bikes have a bit poorer fit and finish than, say a Trek, or Specialized does. This, overall, makes assembly a touch more difficult for someone like myself. Now, added into this are the lack of clear instructions for assembly. As a mechanic with decades of experience working with bikes? Not that big of a deal. But I was a bit surprised that directions were so vague and in some cases, critical information was not there at all. I'm sure there is a YouTube channel for that, (there is), but written instructions are best, in my opinion. I took the liberty of looking up the Rad Power manual for the bike shown above, the Rad Rover. In the PDF I downloaded, it says the folowing:

"Assembly and first adjustment of your bike from Rad Power Bikes requires special tools and skills. We recommend that you have this done by a certified, reputable bike mechanic."

I'll bet the marketing schtick doesn't say that..... Then, after some stuff about "death" and serious injury, there is this:

"If you are not sure you have the experience, skills, and tools to correctly perform all assembly steps in the manual and the assembly video at www.radpowerbikes.com/assemble, consult a local, certified, reputable bike mechanic."

I was working at the Cedar Valley Bicycle Collective the other day when my assistant, Carl, quipped, "I bet most people would never know that (about bicycles), but you do!" 

I had just explained how wheel dishing centers the rim over a hub and why that is important. Yeah, I don't think about that a lot, but I do know a lot of complex ideas and ways of implementing them correctly that the common person, who hasn't gotten nearly 30 years of experience in bicycle mechanics, wouldn't know. 

One of those things has to do with quick release mechanisms. Rad Power decided to use quick release front wheels over a bolt-on axle or a through-axle bolt style wheel attachment. When you use a quick release mechanism, you introduce a LOT of ways to "do it wrong" versus a bolt-on axle or through-bolt axle. 

You may "think" you've got it tight, but do you really?  I find that the heavier the wheel assembly, the more possibilities there are to get the wheel in not quite right, which can be a problem. Add in an inexperienced person unfamiliar with quick releases and, well..... I can see where that could lead to problems. 

And I've even pulled a quick release fat bike wheel out of its drop outs upon hard braking. Me. And I know all about how quick release mechanisms work. So, this relying upon consumers to assemble a heavy, unwieldy bike with no repair stand and typical household tools and little to no bicycle assembly experience? With a warning in the manual that, let's be honest, probably is not seen, and if it is, gets ignored almost all the time? I find this especially odd when in the pedal installation step in the assembly PDF manual, it asks the consumer to tighten the pedals to 35Nm with a pedal wrench. First off, I did not know a simple pedal wrench had a reading in Newt meters. I'll have to scrutinize my Park pedal wrench more closely! (sarcasm alert!) And how many consumers even know what a pedal wrench is?

So, will D2C have to change fundamentally? I doubt that will happen. Too much money to be made and traditional bike shops are not accessible for many folks. Even when they are, those shops are often not going to work on a Rad Power bike- or any D2C HPC/electrified rig. So, how will things work going forward? My guess is that slight changes in spec, like never using QR's again, would be a good start.  But I don't see all the D2C craziness getting shut down. The genie is out of the bottle and there is no going back on that one.
 
But I could see partnerships develop where D2C purchases are assembled at a "distribution center" in bigger cities and then delivered. Or maybe mobile shops come into the picture, and there already is a high-end outfit doing this with premium level bikes in the USA now. That might not make sense for cheaper bicycles and HPC's, but I think eliminating the consumer as the end assembly person might be a good idea. It just won't be a "bike shop" model if that's how it goes.