What's up with KENDA tires? I recently bought a set of Blue Grooves and Nevegels. Don't get me wrong...I really like these tires. Excellent hardpack tires. Awesome on rocks and great on roots. BUT...I hate that they had to plaster their name 1" ultra white letters on my tires!!! I wouldn't mind advertising their namebrand if they were giving me the tires for free, or sending me a check each month! I'm just a weekend rider. Is anyone else tired of having their bikes, clothing, and equiptment acting as moving billboards for these companies(many of which outsource and manufacture overseas)?
Shameless Advertising and Mountain Biking!!!
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You gotta admit though... when they spin around with white stickers on the rims (mavics), or with white letters on the rubber.. it looks pretty bad-ass at speed.
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Logos are just part of sports culture.
And for the most part, I kinda like it. I'm not going to be influenced to use a part or product just because it has a cool logo, but using a good, functional product that displays their logo on the product is just not a negative issue to me. In fact if the product is really good AND has a cool or decent logo, I'm proud to let it be diplayed on the product. However, when it comes to decals and other logo issues not directly on the product, it can sometimes look a little "poseuresque" to have those plastered all over one's vehicle and such. I just plaster my tool box with all those decals that come with schwag. Here's one thing I've noticed in bicycling that I never really noticed in car or motorcycle sports. A fair number of cyclists seem to like to "ghettoize" their bikes and components by striping absoulutely all identifying logos and such off of their equipment. This is the other extreme of those who go overboard with their decals and logos.XCBob said:
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Logos are cool.
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No problem here...
Only problem I have with adverstising is 'false' advertising. I am sure if I had the ambition and know-how to create a product (which I sure as hell do not), I would put some sort of logo on it. I cant imagine not doing that. I am constantly accused of looking like a mismatching moron out on the trail with my often green tires, blue frame, or some hybrid of colors, etc....I could care less. If it were a cancer therapeutic being falsely promoted as being effective without disclosing the additional safety risks then I would take issue...
Cheers
Only problem I have with adverstising is 'false' advertising. I am sure if I had the ambition and know-how to create a product (which I sure as hell do not), I would put some sort of logo on it. I cant imagine not doing that. I am constantly accused of looking like a mismatching moron out on the trail with my often green tires, blue frame, or some hybrid of colors, etc....I could care less. If it were a cancer therapeutic being falsely promoted as being effective without disclosing the additional safety risks then I would take issue...
Cheers
That is a stupid comment..think about it!BigHit-Maniac said:You gotta admit though... when they spin around with white stickers on the rims (mavics), or with white letters on the rubber.. it looks pretty bad-ass at speed.
How many riders cruise around hanging their heads over the side of their bike to check out the "cool spinning logo"
Maybe you ride around your city checking yourself out in the reflection of office buildings..did i some that up right?
Brand name brainwashing is so un necessary..this is bike riding
can't we just enjoy riding our bikes.
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Two words:
Black sharpie™®©
problem solved
Black sharpie™®©
problem solved
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When I was a kid, I would paint a white dot on the tires of my Hot Wheels. I still think white letters on MTB tires look pretty cool. Does that make me a poser? Nothing wrong with wanting to have a nice looking ride.BigHit-Maniac said:You gotta admit though... when they spin around with white stickers on the rims (mavics), or with white letters on the rubber.. it looks pretty bad-ass at speed.
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Yes. I generally remove anything I can in the way of stickers, etc. I don't mind so much on the bike though as I do my cars. I will not ever a put a sticker on one of my vehicles that advertises for a company and I remove as much of the manufacturer's badging as possible.XCBob said:
You may be able to remove the Kenda pretty easliy with a solvent that is first tested on one of your old tires
I've gotta agree totally with this
Some people are proud consumers buying two of a thing they don't need because "it was too good to pass up". Happens all the time.
I saw a car a while ago that was covered in Nike swooshes. It was a neon so I'm pretty sure it wasn't a car driven by a company rep as they usually drive a pretty "hot" car. Making logos into stickers to SELL to consumers to advertise to others was the genius move. Putting them on you car when they are given to you with the product is slightly different.Kick_In_The_Balls said:
Some people are proud consumers buying two of a thing they don't need because "it was too good to pass up". Happens all the time.
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Yeah, I also ride dirt bikes and I can't believe how many people put big fox stickers and other MX stickers all over their box vans and enclosed trailers. They're just screaming "dirt bikes inside, please steel me!" One guy went the complete opposite way and put "Joes Cabbage Farm" or something like that on his box van, I thought that was a great idea since he had over $25,000 worth of dirt bikes, gear and tools in it.Kick_In_The_Balls said:
But doesn't Maxxis tires have orange sidewall stripes?
I wouldn't mind if all Kenda tires had a little blue sidewall stripe like Maxxis has orange stripes. To me, Maxxis made a smart decision to put an orange sidewall stripe on their tires. There are other ways to gain "product recognition" than plastering your company name all over their product. Special colors and finishes(ie. Shim XTR).
Yes, it is the quailty and performance of the product that counts. Not all products should be made to look good in pictures in mtb magazine.
Yes, the logo doesn't look as bad with a little mud on it. But, it cleans up and looks just as brite after cleaning the bike.
smelly said:
I wouldn't mind if all Kenda tires had a little blue sidewall stripe like Maxxis has orange stripes. To me, Maxxis made a smart decision to put an orange sidewall stripe on their tires. There are other ways to gain "product recognition" than plastering your company name all over their product. Special colors and finishes(ie. Shim XTR).
Yes, it is the quailty and performance of the product that counts. Not all products should be made to look good in pictures in mtb magazine.
Yes, the logo doesn't look as bad with a little mud on it. But, it cleans up and looks just as brite after cleaning the bike.
I really like that my hh100x came with stickers that i immediately removed. I totally go for the clean look. If i could id take the thomson off the stem and seatpost, but i dont worry about it too much. Some prods id definately not buy thanks to their stupid banners
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That's a good idea, lol. I want to do that to my truck now to keep those dirtbikes safe.dpdsurf said:One guy went the complete opposite way and put "Joes Cabbage Farm" or something like that on his box van, I thought that was a great idea since he had over $25,000 worth of dirt bikes, gear and tools in it.
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Rockcrusher: I don't know about using that black Sharpie. Have you seen the size of the logo on that pen? It is so ubiquitius we call it a "sharpie" instead of black felt permenant marker. Just kidding
I was actually looking at my bike a few months back and noticed there were logos for over 20 different companies on it! I don't worry about it too much (except for the tacky "weyless" logos on the headset spacers- I won't install those spacers until I find a way to remove the logo), but I don't go out of my way to advertise. For instance, I always find it funny to see people buying a team-type jersy. For example, a big specialized jersy, with all the logos of the specialized team, or a USPS team jersey. I ride with a few guys who have big "fox" jersey's with enormous logos, but don't even have fox parts on their bike. I do go out of my way to get logo-free clothes, on or off the bike (although a small, subtle logo on the chest doesn't bother me too much). I also totally agree about putting stickers on your car. I purposly got an huge roof-top box big enough to hold my bike just so it would be totally out of sight. It would completely defeat the purpose to have a Santa Cruz sticker on the car. Any thief who knew anything about bikes would know that if there is a helmet on the back seat, there may well be a few thousand dollars worth of bike in the box.
Logo clothes are also crazy- paying to advertise. I do wear logo clothes that are cheap or free though (the shirt that came with my bike, my $5 Corona t-shirt from Mexico I have etc.) I remember logo clothes were extremely popular when i was in high school. ENORMOUS logo's advertising "Vision Street Wear", or "Gotcha" or "BUM Equipment" or "Hardrock Cafe". That crap was expensive, too! I don't know how that junk became popular, but it was pure genius on the parts of the companies. Holy Profit Margins, Batman- we will charge the customer extra for the privlidge of doing our advertising! One of my favorites (in a pet-peeve sort of way), although the logo wasn't as huge as the others, was "No Fear Dangerous Sports Gear"- the only "gear" they made were hats and t-shirts that said that same thing!
Yeah...the logos all over bikes are a little anoying. I guess they are helpful in a way too though. In the shop, you would have to be VERY familier with all the latest parts to figure out what you are buying on a new bike if there were no logos. Also, some parts, like a frame or fork, often just look a little weird, or cheap, if they are stripped of their logos. I guess it just has to do with what we expect to see. I think my Blur might look a little strange if the big fat downtube had nothing on it. Right now, "SANTA CRUZ" is etched into the anodizing, and it looks pretty good (good thing, since it is unremoveable). I suppose it would be even cooler though if could have flames or some sort of pinstripe motif etched in instead though- it would definitely not look as good plain though. It would only look...I don't know...cheap and generic I guess.
I was actually looking at my bike a few months back and noticed there were logos for over 20 different companies on it! I don't worry about it too much (except for the tacky "weyless" logos on the headset spacers- I won't install those spacers until I find a way to remove the logo), but I don't go out of my way to advertise. For instance, I always find it funny to see people buying a team-type jersy. For example, a big specialized jersy, with all the logos of the specialized team, or a USPS team jersey. I ride with a few guys who have big "fox" jersey's with enormous logos, but don't even have fox parts on their bike. I do go out of my way to get logo-free clothes, on or off the bike (although a small, subtle logo on the chest doesn't bother me too much). I also totally agree about putting stickers on your car. I purposly got an huge roof-top box big enough to hold my bike just so it would be totally out of sight. It would completely defeat the purpose to have a Santa Cruz sticker on the car. Any thief who knew anything about bikes would know that if there is a helmet on the back seat, there may well be a few thousand dollars worth of bike in the box.
Logo clothes are also crazy- paying to advertise. I do wear logo clothes that are cheap or free though (the shirt that came with my bike, my $5 Corona t-shirt from Mexico I have etc.) I remember logo clothes were extremely popular when i was in high school. ENORMOUS logo's advertising "Vision Street Wear", or "Gotcha" or "BUM Equipment" or "Hardrock Cafe". That crap was expensive, too! I don't know how that junk became popular, but it was pure genius on the parts of the companies. Holy Profit Margins, Batman- we will charge the customer extra for the privlidge of doing our advertising! One of my favorites (in a pet-peeve sort of way), although the logo wasn't as huge as the others, was "No Fear Dangerous Sports Gear"- the only "gear" they made were hats and t-shirts that said that same thing!
Yeah...the logos all over bikes are a little anoying. I guess they are helpful in a way too though. In the shop, you would have to be VERY familier with all the latest parts to figure out what you are buying on a new bike if there were no logos. Also, some parts, like a frame or fork, often just look a little weird, or cheap, if they are stripped of their logos. I guess it just has to do with what we expect to see. I think my Blur might look a little strange if the big fat downtube had nothing on it. Right now, "SANTA CRUZ" is etched into the anodizing, and it looks pretty good (good thing, since it is unremoveable). I suppose it would be even cooler though if could have flames or some sort of pinstripe motif etched in instead though- it would definitely not look as good plain though. It would only look...I don't know...cheap and generic I guess.
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