Surly Bikes

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Surly Bikes
TypePrivate
IndustryBicycles
Founded1998
Headquarters
Bloomington, Minnesota
,
United States
ProductsBicycles and bicycle parts
ParentQuality Bicycle Products
Websitewww.surlybikes.com

Surly Bikes, or Surly, is a bicycle brand based in Bloomington, Minnesota, United States, that was founded in 1998. It is a division of Quality Bicycle Products, a manufacturer and distributor of bicycles and bicycle parts. Despite sharing a similar name and being headquartered in the U.S. state of Minnesota, Surly Bikes and Surly Brewing Company are separate enterprises, with an agreement between the two companies allowing the bicycle company to display the single word "Surly" on its products.[1]

History[]

The Surly brand was developed in house at the Minnesota-based Quality Bicycle Products in the 1990s as a complement to its other brands, such as Salsa Cycles.[2] At the time, "fatbikes" were emerging on the market for winter use in snowy climates, but they were considered exotic and too expensive to produce. Quality Bicycle Products hoped to standardize parts to make mass production easier.[2] Soon after its founding in the late 1990s, the Surly brand was mostly known for in the bicycle industry for its single-speed bikes, but in the 2010s it became known for fat-tire bikes that it helped pioneer with machinery it owned. By the 2010s, many brands that manufactured fat bikes used Surly tires.[1] In April 2020, Surly's parent company announced layoffs for 12 percent of its workforce due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[3]

Products[]

A Big Dummy, a model of bicycle manufactured by Surly, in 2010

Surly's Pugsley fat bike that debuted in 2005 was praised by reviewers for its common hub feature that allowed for interchanges, additional gearing combinations, and ability to handle a variety of conditions.[4][5][6] In 2019, Surly faced a product recall of 5,000 bike racks due to crash hazards.[7]

References[]

  1. ^ a b Zoss, Jeremy (10 October 2012). "A Tale of Two Surlys". The Growler.
  2. ^ a b Ojeda-Zapata, Julio (18 January 2014). "Minnesota company keeps winter biking rolling". Pioneer Press.
  3. ^ Emily, Cassel (14 April 2020). "Bloomington bike parts company QBP, the country's largest, lays off 88 in mass video call". City Pages.
  4. ^ Regenold, Stephen (July 2006). "Adventure bikes :: Gear Review :: July, 2006". Retrieved 2008-05-15.
  5. ^ Brown, Sheldon. "The Amazing Surly Pugsley!". Archived from the original on 2006-04-28. Retrieved 2008-05-15.
  6. ^ Cassidy, Chris. "Surly Pugsly". Bicycling Magazine. Retrieved 2010-10-16.
  7. ^ "Surly Bikes recalls bike racks due to crash and injury hazards". WAFF48. 19 December 2019.
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