A Trip to Pivot Cycles
Pivot Cycles is a high-end performance mountain bike brand that makes some of the best bikes in the business. We carry their bikes at our Bountiful store and couldn’t be more thrilled to have them as a partner. Started by Chris Cocalis in 2007, Pivot’s goal is to build the best mountain bikes in the world. This is bolstered by a partnership with Dave Wegal, the brains behind their DW link suspension system. Nevertheless, Pivot has been top notch at continually getting us products at the dealer level, despite global supply chain shutdowns.
Front of Pivot Cycles headquarters in Tempe, AZ
Bernard Kerr jersey in the showroom
I had the opportunity to visit the Pivot Cycles factory in Tempe, AZ for a few days to ride bikes and see what happens behind the scenes. I arrived with a few representatives from other dealers and we were greeted by some Pivot employees. They were genuinely stoked to see us, and seemed equally excited about working for the brand. When we first walked into the showroom it was clear that there was no shortage of passion. There was a display showing Pivot’s impressive history, an homage to how far the company has come. This has been achieved alongside esteemed athletes such as Chloe Woodruff, Ed Masters, and Bernard Kerr.
The Pivot factory is just around the corner from the South Mountain bike trail system. In fact, this is where Pivot conducts product testing for many of their bikes. They offer demos right out of the factory for just $50 a day making it easy for customers to test out the latest offerings. The money generated from these fees also goes directly back into the South Mountain trail system.
A switchback in the South Mountain trail system
After a few meetings and a trail ride we were finally able to walk through the factory. We got to see some of their processes firsthand, such as decals being added to forks and shocks, alignment of frames, cnc milled parts, and 3D printed prototypes. The attention to detail was apparent as we saw measurement after measurement taken for each bearing, BB, and rear triangle. Pivot only wants to send out high quality products that are also going to be problem free. We see this translate to the dealer level, as we’ve seldom had any issues with Pivot's product quality. Before circling back to the main entrance we got to see an interesting bike that you may have heard of: the infamous “Grim Donut”. It’s about 8 feet long and can’t really turn, but Pinkbike.com has ranted and raved about it so it must be pretty wild!
The infamous Grim Donut, up close
Strength testing for frames
At Pivot Cycles it’s not all just about bikes and selling them, the brand is also a big advocate for cycling in the Phoenix area. They do cool things like fund and build trails, assist with bike friendly laws and legislation, and provide access to bikes through local community programs, even supporting NICA when the supply chain allows it. They understand that not everyone will be able to afford one of their bikes but want to make sure they feel like family no matter what they ride.
All in all, I had a great time during my visit. First impressions are highly important within the cycling industry, and Pivot Cycles maintains an impressive attention to detail throughout each and every part of their company. Follow the links below to read more about how Chris (CEO) wanted to make the best bikes in the world and also some of the events they put on weekly to help grow the cycling community.
- Tyler Callister