March 14/17 12:01 pm - Counterfeit Bicycle Parts Are Dangerous

Posted by Editor on 03/14/17
 

While we were in Salt Lake City last week attending the North American Handmade Bicycle Show (NAHBS), we also had the opportunity to visit the huge Specialized warehouse facility that services the western United States.

Andrew Love, who is in charge of brand protection for Specialized, spoke with us about the dangers of counterfeit goods. While he does agree that there is an economic cost to companies with the sale of fake goods, he made it clear that the much bigger concern is safety - counterfeit helmets, bike parts and frames may look like the real thing, but the consumer has no way of knowing if or when these products might fail.

Below we have a full interview with Andrew, including a couple of counterfeit samples he let us test - both of which failed catastrophically. While the prices may be low and, in many cases, the cosmetic appearance is a pretty good match to the real thing, these tests show you are literally taking your life in your hands if you decide to use the fake stuff.

As Andrew pointed out, "It's just not worth it".