Fat bikes, full suspension bikes and hardtails with electric motors - these clearly felt like the crowd favorites on Demo Day at Eurobike on August 26, 2014. The fat-tired bikes from scene protagonists such as Salsa or Surly were always fully booked, and there were also real queues at Scott to ride the new Fat Ed fat bike on the test track. The sensation of riding an e-mountain bike also attracted numerous Demo Day participants to the test track.

And the test tracks?
Speaking of test laps: Immediately adjacent to the Demo Day area, which for the first time is located in a parking lot next to the Eurobike exhibition halls, the bikes are set off on the test tracks. There is enough asphalt available for racing bikes and everyday e-bikes to put these vehicles through their paces in their usual habitat.

For mountain bike test rides, Messe Friedrichshafen has marked out a forest and meadow route, which has been upgraded with a discreet pump track, sandy sections, rock gardens and branches lying across the single trail. The test track therefore provided plenty of bumps - but what the track definitely lacked for the mountain bike test rides was enough vertical meters downhill to experience the potential of an off-road bike on a longer and rougher route. For the fat bikes popular with the test audience, however, the course, which was mainly designed with sand, was probably almost ideal.

Satisfied trade fair
Messe Friedrichshafen, the organizer of Eurobike, is satisfied with the Demo Day. At the eighth edition of the test event, 147 exhibitors presented their product innovations to representatives of the trade and media world from 42 nations. As mentioned, the test event took place for the first time on the day before the leading trade fair directly at the exhibition grounds in Friedrichshafen. "The prologue was a success. The move brought the hoped-for logistical simplifications into full effect and our customers are very satisfied with the new concept," summarized Exhibition Director Klaus Wellmann at the end of Demo Day. In addition to a 40 percent increase in exhibitors, the event also attracted a larger number of visitors - the largest ever - and a strong international presence.

Modest weather
Despite cloudy skies and rain showers, the diverse innovations from the international bicycle industry rolled in large numbers over the network of routes covering more than 20 kilometers. 2,642 trade visitors (2013: 2,318) completed the endurance test on road and off-road sections as well as the specially constructed mountain bike course.

International clientele
The New Products Test Day also achieved top figures in terms of media presence: 784 journalists from 42 nations (2013: 732 journalists, 37 nations) reported on the bike events in Friedrichshafen from all over the world. The press representatives came from all continents, with new guests from Korea, Indonesia, Singapore, South Africa and Portugal.

www.eurobike-show.com