HELSINKI (BRAIN) — Sales in Amer Sports' cycling division, comprising the Mavic and Enve brands, were down 12 percent in local currencies in the first quarter, to 32.1 million euros ($38.9 million). The company said its cycling sales were "adversely impacted by lower OEM orders."

Amer's total sales were up 1 percent in the quarter, to 664.2 million euros. The company did not adjust its forecasts for the remainder of 2018.

Amer's Outdoor division saw the most growth in the quarter, up 2 percent in local currencies. Within that division — which includes the cycling brands — Arc'teryx apparel sales and winter sports equipment were bright spots, up 3 percent and 16 percent, respectively. Sports instruments sales were up 26 percent thanks to some new introductions by Amer's Suunto brand.

Across all divisions, EBITDA was 40.4 million euros, up from 35.5 million euros in the same quarter last year.

"In the first quarter, we delivered solid progress across our strategic transformation areas with ongoing acceleration in Direct to Consumer, modern sales channels, and China," said Heikki Takala, Amer's president and CEO.

"Following a year of significant transformation and restructuring, our focus in the quarter was on solidifying our margins through more attractive mix, higher quality distribution through sharper segmentation and reduced number of doors, and reduction of promotional sales especially in Footwear. As result, our margins and profit improved, and we can now focus on driving a more sustainable topline with a good pipeline of initiatives.

"The market continues to evolve rapidly, and we are embracing the changes proactively and with encouraging results. Whilst we make good progress and continue to accelerate in most areas, we also have more work to do to address the remaining areas of underperformance. As always, we maintain a long-term view guided by our sustainable growth model."

In a conference call with investors later Thursday, Takala expanded a bit on the cycling results.

"The cycling market has continued to be quite challenging. There are quite a lot of changes and a lot inventory," he said. "OEM has not rebounded yet, in fact it has continued to go down. If bike makers don't make bikes, they don't order wheels, that's kind of the logic there. ... Of course at some stage the market will reach each bottom, but we will clearly be going along with the market, so if the market does not gain traction it will impact us. ... That's clearly the driver, there is not much else dramatic going on. We are continuing to push quickly online, we are pushing distribution to new channels, but the growth in those channels is not enough to offset the millions and millions of decline in the OEM orders."

MALLABIA, Spain (BRAIN) — Orbea, an employee-owned co-op organization, announced this week that its first quarter sales were up 26 percent, to 28 million euros ($34.1 million). 

"In spite of the harsh winter, 2018 is off to a spectacular start for Orbea. The first three months of the year have turned into the best in the brand's history," the company announced.

Orbea said it has seen sales increases in every product category. It also said its Q1 sales were up 55 percent over the same period in 2016. Full year 2017 sales were up 20 percent over 2016, according to an earlier announcement.

"The boost in demand is something we anticipated in our Management Plan in light of the data we had at that time. But the scope of the growth has exceeded even our best expectations," Orbea said.

The company said it has increased its investment in its Mallabia factory, adding a new painting area and new manufacturing and assembly lines. 

Orbea began business in 1840 as a rifle and gun producer and began making bicycles in the 1930s. It is part of the Mondragón Cooperative Corporation, a large federation of worker cooperatives in Spain's Basque region.

DENVER (BRAIN) — Colorado could become the third state with a law that allows bicyclists to treat some stop signs like yield signs and red lights like stop signs. Last Wednesday the state Senate passed SB 144, which is now waiting for Gov. John Hickenlooper's signature. Bike advocates in the state expect Hickenlooper to sign the bill.

Colorado would join Idaho and Delaware with similar laws. Idaho enacted its law in 1982, so the practice is often called the Idaho Stop.

In Colorado, the bill allows municipalities and counties to adopt local regulations allowing the stops. Four Colorado entities — the city of Aspen, the towns of Breckenridge and Dillon, and Summit County — already allow the stops, although the language varies a bit in each.

"This bill would remove that ambiguity, which is why it is important for bicyclists and all road users," Bicycle Colorado, a state advocacy group, said in an email Thursday. "The safety stop itself allows bicyclists to treat stop signs as yield signs and stop lights as stop signs when the coast is clear, making sure to obey all rules of the right of way. Studies have shown that the safety stop reduces conflicts on the road, makes the roadway safer for bicyclists and drivers alike, and even cuts down on travel time for road users as well."

Bicycle Colorado actively pushed for passage of the bill and testified on its behalf at the Capitol. Pete Piccolo, the group's executive director, told BRAIN, "We believe the governor will sign the bill, but it's not a done deal until the ink dries."

A bill summary provided by the State Assembly describes it this way:

"Under a local regulation, a bicyclist approaching a stop sign must slow to a reasonable speed and, when safe to do so, may proceed through the intersection without stopping. A bicyclist approaching an illuminated red traffic control signal must stop at the intersection and, when safe to do so, may proceed through the intersection. The bill sets the reasonable speed limit at 15 miles per hour. However, a municipality or county may lower the reasonable speed to 10 miles per hour or raise the limit to 20 miles per hour at any individual intersection."

Alex Logemann, PeopleForBikes' director of state and local policy, said to his knowledge only Delaware and Idaho currently have similar laws on the books. The Utah Legislature considered a similar bill this year but rejected it, he said.

"In terms of effect, the Colorado bill and Idaho law are quite similar but the Colorado bill defines what constitutes a 'reasonable speed,'" Logemann said. "The Delaware law is also slightly different in that a bike rider can only yield at the stop sign if the road has two or fewer lanes. On roads with three or more lanes, a complete stop is still required," he said.

Last year, BRAIN published an opinion piece by Walt Seifert in support of the Idaho Stop. In particular, Seifert supported California AB 1103, which was then being considered. That bill was later tabled by a legislative committee and then was killed by the committee in January this year.

BRAIN also published an opposing point of view from Ray Keener. Keener is a Colorado resident who said he opposes the Colorado legislation for the same reasons he outlined in his 2017 opinion piece.

PHOENIX (BRAIN) — Arizona's governor has vetoed a state measure containing three-class e-bike legislation favored by the industry. In an unusual gubernatorial protest related to a proposed teacher pay raise that Ducey supports, he vetoed unrelated bills that had been supported by Republicans, who oppose the pay raise.

"Please send me a budget that gives teachers a 20 percent pay raise by 2020 and restores additional [school district] assistance,'' Ducey wrote in a veto message for the e-bike legislation. "Our teachers have earned this raise. It's time to get it done."

Tens of thousands of on-strike teachers and their supporters marched on the state Capitol on Thursday as more than 1,000 Arizona public schools in nearly 110 districts and charter schools shut down, according to The Arizona Republic. 

"Much of the protesters' ire was directed at Gov. Doug Ducey, a Republican, who has resisted demands to end tax cuts to bolster public education spending. Teachers pressed ahead with the walkout despite a promise by the governor to increase their salaries 20 percent by 2020. Betting that a growing economy will bolster revenue, Mr. Ducey said he could provide the raises and reinforce school budgets without tax increases, a proposal that many teachers and lawmakers doubted," the newspaper reported on its website.

The three-tier model e-bike legislation has been promoted in several U.S. states by the Bicycle Product Suppliers Association and PeopleForBikes. The Arizona Legislature passed it last week and state advocates had expected Ducey to sign it. 

"We are disappointed that our bill stalled when it hit Gov. Ducey's desk due to an unrelated legislative dispute, as it would have greatly benefited retailers and small business across the state. There is a slim chance that the bill language could be inserted into another bill currently on the floor, but we're betting on a success in 2019," said Morgan Lommele, e-bike campaigns manager for the BPSA and PFB.

Brandee Lepak, owner of Phoenix-area retailer Global Bikes and board chair of the National Bicycle Dealers Association, and Pivot Cycles' Chris Cocalis have both been involved in the industry groups' legislative effort in their home state.

"We need to get the three-tier e-bike law passed here," said Cocalis, president and CEO of Tempe, Arizona-based Pivot. "It passed the Arizona House and the Senate. It was on the governor's desk for final signature, and it should have been signed and gone through smoothly. However, he vetoed everything that came across his desk last week due to a looming teachers strike. He's basically told the Legislature that he's not signing anything until they get an education budget figured out. We got caught in the political crosshairs a bit.

"I don't think it's a long-term problem and hopefully the education situation gets resolved quickly and we can get back on track. It was my understanding that the governor was in support of the bill and that this setback has nothing to do with the bill itself."

OXNARD, Calif. (BRAIN) — Galfer Bike has added adapters to allow use of larger brake rotors with post-mount calipers. The adapters can be used with rotors including Galfer's new Disc Wave 223 millimeter rotor.

Galfer is offering two models of radial adapters that allow mounting rotors 20-40 millimeters larger, front or rear. Mounting the new SB001 and SB002 adapters requires four bolts — two fixed to the caliper and two fixed to the fork or the frame.

"With this system the caliper stays firmly attached and well placed relative to the brake disc, avoiding vibrations and/or torsions that would cause noise while braking and disc deformation," the company said.

The adapter SB001 allows separating the caliper to mount brake discs 40 millimeter bigger than standard, while the adapter SB002 allows mounting discs with an outer diameter 20 millimeter bigger. 

The new adapters weigh 22 grams each, and will be available in May.

More information at galferbike.com.

CARLSBAD, Calif. (BRAIN) — Focus Bikes is now selling a long-travel enduro e-bike, the SAM², in the U.S. The company introduced the model in Europe last October. The company said it has already sold out the first order.

"At Interbike last year, we successfully launched the JAM² and Focus BOLD² models, which represented an important step for the brand in North America," said Andreas Krajewski, the North American marketing manager of Focus Bikes. "The addition of our Focus SAM² e-Enduro further enhances our appeal to dealers and consumers."

Krajewski said he expects the 170 millimeter-travel Focus SAM² to appeal to a new kind of rider.

"The Focus SAM² shows again that Focus is one of the most innovative e-bike brands," he said. "It's a great enduro bike for technical downhills and for those who want to bypass the chairlift to get up the mountain on their bike."

The Focus SAM² features the Focus Optimized Linkage Design kinematics, a suspension design that the company said "ensures a perfectly balanced combination of stability and sensitivity."

The bike also used the Tailored Energy Concept, an adjustable power system that offers battery capacity of up to 756 watt hours, distributed over two equally powered batteries.

The bike retails for $5,999/CAD $7,999 and will be available in two color options, Burgundy/Red and Irongray Matte.

More information at focus-bikes.com.

SUN VALLEY, Idaho (BRAIN) — Club Ride Apparel has added a new independent sales organization in New England: GPM Sports Group. GPM is headed up by Andrew Ewas and Matthew Shoemaker.

"GPM has a very relevant portfolio of brands that compliments the category of casual performance softgoods that Club Ride has defined in bike," said Mike Herlinger, the founder and CEO of Club Ride.

Earlier this year the company announced it had hired Gerald Green in the Southeast and Brett Faulk in Texas, Arkansas, and Oklahoma.

Club Ride also has hired Daniel Ryan to run marketing strategy and deployment. Ryan will be developing key brand stories and communications, directing digital marketing efforts, managing copywriting, and spearheading PR and media communications.

"This is an exciting time in bike and we feel the shift to riding in more comfortable stylish gear is more popular than ever. We see all ages of cyclists from the enduro world to commuters sporting our Alpine-Hawaiian print tops looking good and smiling ear to ear. The Club Ride brand DNA has always been, and continues to be, the 'original casual performance bike apparel company," said Herlinger.

More information at clubrideapparel.com.

DES MOINES, Iowa (BRAIN) — Bike World Iowa recently moved its West Des Moines location and the company’s warehouse into a former grocery store. The Ridgway family, which operates two other Des Moines-area Bike World Iowa stores, bought the building last year after the local Dahl’s chain of supermarkets went bankrupt.

“It was a consolidation and an upgrade in a way. We had three stores and a separate warehouse,” said Forrest “Bif” Ridgway, sales manager and son of BWI founder Forrest Ridgway who started the business in 1979. “We weren’t really looking for a new space, but it made sense to buy this building when it became available.”

The Ridgways completely gutted the 25-year old building. They revamped the exterior, added a new HVAC system, and replaced all plumbing and electric, and worked with an architect to design the space. The bike shop and warehouse occupy about 30,000 square feet of the building, and the Ridgways lease the remaining space to an Ace Hardware retailer.

“We’ve been in our warehouse for decades. We did a big warehouse sale so we would have less inventory to move,” said Bif Ridgway, who has worked at Bike World Iowa since he was 13. “It was kind of like moving into a new house, and it will probably take a full year before we are completely organized.”

The new location is about 10 blocks from the shop’s former building in West Des Moines. All Bike World Iowa stores carry Trek, Giant, Liv, Waterford, Moots and Co-Motion, and the company employes about 30 people full time across three locations.

All photos: Maharry Photography

OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. (BRAIN) — The North American Bikeshare Association is claiming another victory as an Oklahoma bill that would have pre-empted local control of dockless bikeshare did not make it to the House floor last week.

NABSA helped defeat similar legislation in the Florida Legislature earlier this year. Both bills would have pre-empted local government powers to regulate bike share.

NABSA's executive director, Samantha Herr, said, "Legislators in Oklahoma have sent a clear and powerful message that bike share needs to be regulated at the local level."

According to NABSA, the Oklahoma bill did not account for cyclists' safety, data privacy, right-of-way management, the needs of communities and other critical policies.

"As a leader in the bike share industry, NABSA works hard to encourage its members as well as advocates to share their voices and fight for safe, equitable bike share systems everywhere," Herr said. "This bill's defeat is a victory for the bike share industry, as well as users of bike share systems, to uphold the standard that bike share providers work with communities to develop the system that best meets each community's needs.

Following the defeat of the Florida bill, NABSA expelled bike share company Ofo from the association, saying Ofo violated association rules by lobbying in favor of the bill. Ofo also supported the Oklahoma legislation. A spokesman for Ofo said the company was entitled to have its own position on the legislation and said it chose to leave the group.

BURKE, Vt. (BRAIN) — The Rasputitsa Spring Classic, a muddy, snowy gravel event in Vermont's Northeast Kingdom, held April 21, raised $18,000 for the Little Bellas, a nonprofit that aims to help young women realize their potential through mountain biking.

The event attracted more than 1,300 riders. Funds were raised through the sale of event merchandise and raffle tickets for a custom painted Specialized Diverge frameset (raffle tickets are still being sold until May 1, see below).

Rasputitsa is a Russian word for mud season. The five-year-old race was launched by Anthony Moccia and Heidi Myers. The event has been a successful effort to unite cyclists, bring economic opportunity to a remote area of Vermont, and give back to cycling with every dollar they profit.

"From the moment we experienced the event last year, we knew there was something special," said Stephanie Kaplan, road product manager at Specialized. "The energy of the riders and the organizers is infectious, and we're so glad to be a partner and to help support the race, and to help raise money for a cause that Specialized is so passionate about. Anthony and Heidi have built something incredible, and it's no surprise that the race, the participation and the money raised keeps getting better and better every year. We look forward to the continued partnership."

Little Bellas was founded in 2007 in Jericho, Vermont and has worked to get more than 2,700 girls on bikes.

Sabra Davison, the co-founder and executive director of Little Bellas, said, "This partnership with Rasputitsa is built on an incredible synergy and Vermont community values. This years' fundraising effort will make a lasting impact on girls for years to come. The funds will be used to help girls in need and start new chapters to get more girls on bikes. We are thrilled to increase our impact."

To learn more about Rasputitsa, its impact on cycling, register for next year's race, or purchase raffle tickets for the frameset, visit rasputitsagravel.com. The raffle ends May 1.

MILL VALLEY, Calif. (BRAIN) — WTB has teamed up with the NorCal High School Cycling League to introduce a limited edition saddle where a portion of the proceeds contributes to the Buddy Newman Scholarship Fund, which in turn covers race entry fees for high school athletes throughout the racing season.

More than 1,200 kids from grades 9-12 participate in the NorCal League.

The WTB NorCal League saddle is a Team-level Volt 142 saddle, which features titanium rails and DNA Padding. It's available for purchase through WTB.com for a retail price of $129.95 and a portion of the proceeds will be contributed to the Buddy Newman Scholarship Fund. WTB made just 100 of the saddles.

More information: wtb.com/collections/saddles/products/california-volt-limited-edition-saddle.

HELSINKI (BRAIN) — Amer Sports is increasing its presence in the softgoods market, which has been one of its best performing segments in recent years, with the purchase of Peak Performance.

Based in Stockholm, Sweden, Peak Performance offers fashion sports wear for urban, outdoor, running and golf. It had net sales of about 145 million euros ($175 million) last year. Amer is paying 255 million euros for the company with the closing expected this summer.

"In line with our strategy, we accelerate in softgoods and direct to consumer by acquiring Peak Performance, the iconic Swedish premium performance outerwear and streetwear brand. Peak Performance is distinctively positioned versus our current brand portfolio and it has a strong relevancy in sports fashion, and moreover a significant share of sales in womenswear and direct to consumer. With this acquisition, we take another important step toward our longer term target of bypassing EUR 1.5 billion sales in softgoods," said Heikki Takala, the president and CEO of Amer Sports.

Amer's other brands include Salomon, Wilson, Atomic, Arc'teryx, Mavic, Enve, Suunto and Precor.

MEQUON, Wis. (BRAIN) — Hayes Components has spun off its ProTaper line of mountain bike components, formerly housed within the Answer brand, as its own stand-alone brand of handlebars, stems and pedals. The company has also expanded its Hayes Road Show dealer education program.

“ProTaper is an entire new brand we’re introducing to the market. It’s an evolution of the Answer brand,” said Eric Schutt, marketing manager for Hayes. 

Hayes has also launched consumer-direct sales of the brand at full MSRP online at ProTaperMTB.com. It’s the first time Hayes has sold any of its brands direct to consumers. 

“We’re not competing with the bike shop. We’re not competing with the traditional channel. We’re still selling through distributors and bike shops. The fact that we’re holding that retail price, we’re not going to undercut the rest of the channel. We’re just giving our customers another option. Out of all of our brands, this is the only one we’re doing it with,” Schutt said.

The line consists of aluminum and carbon bars, aluminum stems and aluminum platform pedals.

The ProTaper Carbon Handlebars are 810 millimeters wide and come in 1-inch rise for 35-millimeter clamp and half-inch and 1-inch rise for 31.8-millimeter clamp. The Carbon 20/20 bar features 20 millimeters of rise and 20 millimeters of sweep for 31.8-millimeter bar clamp. MSRP is $164.99.

Aluminum bars are also 810 millimeters wide and come in flat, half-inch, 1-inch and 3-inch rise for 31.8-millimeter clamp diameter. They retail for $84.99.

ProTaper EVO stems ($99.99 MSRP) are 3D forged and machined from 6061 aluminum and are offered in four lengths from 35 to 50 millimeters for 35-millimeter clamp diameter and five lengths from 30 to 50 millimeters for 31.8-millimeter clamp. 

ProTaper EVO pedals ($119.99 MSRP) are CNC machined from 6061 aluminum and feature replaceable traction pins, a chromoly spindle and sealed bearings. Weight: 340 grams. 

Additionally, Hayes has expanded its Hayes Road Show dealer training program from one van to two, based in Charlotte, North Carolina, and Crested Butte, Colorado. The Hayes Road Show provides technical and sales training across the company’s portfolio of brands, which include SunRinglé wheels, Manitou forks and shocks, Wheelsmith spokes and Hayes brakes.

“They don’t sell anything, but they go into a shop and make sure they understand how our products work and where to get service parts and information. We go in there and try to help because a lot of our wheels and other products are on OEM bikes, and maybe the shops haven’t seen or heard from us in a while,” Schutt said.

SAN FRANCISCO (BRAIN) — Bay Area retailer The New Wheel is organizing an e-bike festival that will include demos, complimentary breakfast and workshops. The Super Bicycle Festival will be held at The New Wheel's Larkspur Landing store on Saturday, May 5, and Sunday, May 6.

"I think building the culture around the new part of the bicycle market and this type of customer is important. It's been in the works for awhile," said Karen Weiner, co-owner of The New Wheel. "We started brainstorming the idea for a festival based on the e-bike expo that traveled around the U.S. last year. And after having a big grand opening party for our Larkspur Landing store, we knew it would be possible to do this, and that we also have a draw. As far as we know, Super Bicycle is the only event of its kind put on by a retailer. "

About 70 bikes from a variety of brands will be available to demo, and guided rides will take place throughout the weekend. Attendees will also have the opportunity to interact with several brands during Meet the Makers sessions. Riese & Müller co-founder Haiko Müller and co-owner Sandra Wolf, Faraday's Adam Volner and others will give presentations and field questions from the audience.

"We're really trying to elevate the people designing e-bikes as well as the companies who are leading the industry," Weiner said.

The event is free, with the exception of lunch. Breakfast and coffee from Good Eggs Organic Grocery Delivery will be served from 9-10 a.m. both days, and lunch prepared by local chefs will be available for purchase on-site. Craft beverages from Lagunitas Brewery will also be available for purchase, with proceeds from all beverage sales benefiting the Marin County Bike Coalition.

The New Wheel will also have demo bikes and overstock accessories on sale, and attendees can also take advantage of family cycling and commuter workshops throughout the weekend.

In addition to its Larkspur Landing store in Marin County, which opened in 2016, The New Wheel has operated its San Francisco shop since 2012. The company employs 17 people across both locations and sells e-bikes from Riese & Müller, Benno, Faraday, Brompton, Gazelle, Stromer and several others.

To learn more about Super Bicycle, visit superbicycle.org.

INDIANAPOLIS (BRAIN) — The second annual PlacesForBikes Conference takes place this week here. Organized by PeopleForBikes, the conference kicks off Tuesday afternoon and runs through Thursday.

The conference brings together about 300 attendees, ranging from city officials and advocates to bike industry leaders and retailers to focus on the challenges and opportunities for building better bike infrastructure. The agenda is centered around PeopleForBikes' four-part formula for building better biking: Pan, Build, Engage and Measure. Topics like planning complete bike networks, finding funding, building more equitable communities and making the business case for bicycling, among several others.

Keynote speakers include Valerie Jarrett, former adviser to President Obama and a senior distinguished fellow at the University of Chicago Law School; Manuel Calvo, mastermind of Seville, Spain's bicycle network, and sustainability senior consultant for EstudioMC; Doug Gordon, writer and producer of BrooklynSpoke.com; and Toks Omishakin, assistant commissioner and chief of the bureau of environment and planning at the Tennessee Department of Transportation.

More than 35 other experts will speak throughout the conference about building connected infrastructure, fostering political leadership and more.

Conference attendees will also have the opportunity to experience Indianapolis' Cultural Trail, which is regarded as one of the most visionary urban bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure projects in the country. The 8-mile long decorative brick path connects visitors to hotels, restaurants and other attractions. The $63 million investment has garnered international attention as a model for urban revitalization, and led the city to implement the Indiana Pacers Bikeshare program in 2014. The program has 250 bikes available for locals and visitors to explore Indianapolis. The city aims to add three additional protected bike lanes in 2018.

PlacesForBikes is a PeopleForBikes program to develop, connect and celebrate great places to ride. It focuses on accelerating bike infrastructure improvements, inspiring local decision makers and building political leadership to make bicycling better for everyone.
To learn more about PlacesForBikes, visit placesforbikes.org.

FARMINGTON, Utah (BRAIN) — Vista Outdoor Inc. plans to sell Bell, Giro and Blackburn — and its Savage and Stevens firearms brands — and return its focus to ammunition sales. 

The company also said it will sell the Copilot bike baby carrier brand, Raskullz and Krashco child helmet brands and the Jimmy Styks paddleboard brand but retain CamelBak, Camp Chef and Bushnell, as well as its ammo' brands.

Vista's firearms and ammunition sales had already been soft for several quarters when the company found itself in the spotlight following the Parkland High School shooting in February. On March 1, REI, MEC and some independent retailers said they would stop ordering Vista products because of Vista's lack of response following the shooting. Although REI and MEC don't sell firearms, they sold Bell, Giro, Blackburn and other Vista Outdoor outdoor cooking and water sports brands.

"We have been on this path ... way before any of the noise came about eight weeks ago."— CEO Chris Metz

In an investor conference call Tuesday, Vista Outdoor CEO Chris Metz said the canceled orders had little effect on the company. Answering an investor question, Metz noted that REI represents less than 1 percent of the company's total sales. 

"As we look at the rest of it, there's been some puts and takes: So we've had some small independent dealers that sided with the REI side and we've had some independent dealers, frankly, that stepped up and said, 'We want to take advantage of this market opportunity and replace that volume.' In total it's built into our guidance and expectations, and fortunately we have been on this path of strategically determining where we wanted to guide the company way before any of the noise came about eight weeks ago."

The company announced last year that it planned to sell its Bollé eyewear and helmet brand. Metz said Tuesday that he expects to complete that sale, which also includes the Cebe and Serengetti eyewear brands, in the next fiscal first quarter. He said the company hopes to complete the sale of the other brands by the end of its 2020 fiscal year, 24 months from now.

Vista bought Bell, Giro, Blackburn and C-Preme from BRG Sports in 2016 for $400 million.

Vista released a statement Tuesday announcing the new plan and its financials for its fiscal fourth quarter, which ended March 30, and its full-year results. 

"This transformation plan is a significant first step toward creating a portfolio of brands that is laser-focused on our target consumer and leverages the strengths of our combined platform," Metz said in the statement. "This renewed focus will allow us to invest in these categories and their natural adjacencies. Coupled with our previously announced sales and marketing reorganization to drive a founder's mentality back into our brands, this strategic orientation will also allow us to accelerate our efforts to expand e-commerce capabilities and increase our emphasis on market-leading product innovation. The end result will be a Vista Outdoor that lives up to the potential envisioned three years ago when the company was formed. We intend to begin the portfolio reshaping immediately, and anticipate executing any strategic alternatives by the end of fiscal year 2020."

In the quarter, sales were $571 million, down 1 percent from the prior-year quarter. The company said the decline was caused by lower prices across all ammunition categories due to market conditions, and lower sales in hydration, optics and water sports. It said those declines were partially offset by increased firearms sales due to a product refresh and improved sales in outdoor cooking and its sports protection business.

For the full year, sales were $2.3 billion, down 9 percent from the prior year. The company said the decline was caused by lower volume across all ammunition categories, lower pricing across the portfolio, and lower firearms sales as a result of decreased demand affecting the shooting sports industry. 

Related articles:

• Vista Outdoor hires new CFO — March 29, 2018
• REI suspends orders of Vista brands— March 1, 2018
• MEC suspends Vista orders— March 1, 2018
• Bell, Giro, Blackburn, CamelBak face backlash over parent company's affiliation with NRA  — Feb. 26, 2018
• Ammo' and hunting sales slump dampens Vista earnings  — Feb. 8, 2018
• Vista sees organic decline in outdoor product sales, plans to sell Bolle— Nov. 9, 2017
• Mark DeYoung steps down as Vista Outdoor CEO  — July 10, 2017
• Vista Outdoor buys BRG's Action Sports business for $400 million— Feb. 25, 2016 

AUSTIN, Texas (BRAIN) — Members of the Profesional Bicycle Mechanics Association can now register for its 2018 / 2019 PBMA Technical Workshops. The three-day workshops are planned for Philadelphia, Peachtree City, Georgia; and Phoenix. 

Workshops are $375 until October 16. A price increase of $25 is applied after that date.

Workshops kick off Mondays with check-in and a product expo followed by catered reception and keynote speaker.

For more information and registration visit: ProBMA.org/PBMA-Technical-Workshops. PBMA members may login to the site and navigate to "discounts" to access the discount code to save $125 on their registration fee.

Dates and Locations:

• Feb. 4-7 - Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
• Jan. 7-10 - Peachtree City, Georgia
• Nov. 5-8 - Phoenix, Arizona

Brand participating in the tech sessions: Bosch • Campagnolo • DT Swiss • FSA • SRAM • Stan's NoTubes • Pedros • Winged Wheel • SR Suntour • Enduro Bearings • Magura • Rotor Bike Components • Maxxis Tires • PBMA.

Sponsors: Park Tool Company • Feedback Sports • Silca • Presta Cycle • Efficient Velo Tools • Kryptonite • Finishline

INDIANAPOLIS (BRAIN) — Some bike and e-bike heavy hitters are joining Trek and Ford in helping create safety standards related to bicycle-to-vehicle communication.  

For nearly a year, Trek has been working with the software company Tome and Ford on developing the so-called B2V technology, which uses artificial intelligence to evaluate and identify safety measures at specific vulnerable roadway locations.

The B2V technology would be part of the C-V2X  — a cellular communication network that connects vehicles with "everything" (that's the "X") including bikes, pedestrians, road infrastructure and safety warnings and other elements. 

The new board was announced at the Places For Bikes Conference, which opened in Indianapolis on Wednesday. 

"The new B2V board will leverage the expertise of cycling and automotive leaders to bridge the gaps between groups by creating cross-industry safety standards," the group said.  

Founding members of the B2V Executive Advisory Board are:

1. Accell North America
2. Bosch
3. Dorel Sports
4. Ford Motor Company
5. Giant Bicycles Inc. USA
6. Orbea
7. Shimano
8. Specialized
9. SRAM
10. Stages Cycling
11. Tome Software
12. Trek Bikes
13. Quality Bicycle Products

“Trek is dedicated to actively seeking innovative ideas and working with like-minded partners on easily-accessible solutions that will enhance the safety of cyclists and pedestrians,” said Scott Kasin, electronic products manager for Trek Bikes. “Working with the automotive leaders and bicycle industry competitors is a momentous step in forming a bipartisan advisory board that will oversee the development of bicycle-to-vehicle safety solutions. We’re excited that both the cycling and automotive industries have seen the value and potential that B2V has and will be collaborating to bring it to life.” 

Tim Frasier, regional president of Automotive Electronics for Bosch in North America, said, “Bosch is dedicated to providing solutions that enhance mobility options and safety throughout the world. ... The B2V Executive Advisory Board provides an excellent opportunity for the industries to come together and encourage safety solutions. We look forward to contributing our expertise as a leading automotive and cycling global supplier and partner.”

BREMBATE, Italy (BRAIN) — 3T is now distributing its frames, bikes and wheels direct to dealers in Canada from its Toronto headquarters. The company said its previous Canadian distributor, Live to Play Sports, will continue to distribute 3T parts.

The Italian company said the change will allow it to bring more focus on its bike and frame sales in Canada.

"This is a positive step for us and positions 3T for a consistent North American market management strategy," said 3T president Renè Wiertz. "LTP Sports know our range well and will continue to work closely with our team in Toronto. We both have a common interest in the successful rollout of 3T bikes in Canada.

"At the same time, we can focus our own efforts on building share in the high-end bicycle market, which requires a significant investment of time, capital, and creativity," he said.

Martin Tammik, the vice president of LTP Sports' aftermarket division, said, "We look forward to working closely with the 3T team to ensure the brand's continued growth in Canada."