There are few retailers in the world with the buying power and sway that Walmart holds. Updated, 4/9. Viathon Bikes Drop Prices & Become Available Through Walmart With that in mind, it seems appropriate that Walmart is finally sinking its teeth into producing a line of proper bikes. I set up the G1 with a quick home fit, and away I went. I pitched the idea to my management as a way to more quickly enter the market and change our perception, he said. Viathon's G.1 carbon gravel bike is Walmart's attempt to capture some of the high-end, direct-to-consumer bicycle market. Specializeds highest-end hardtailthe S-Works Epiccomes in at a whopping $8,520, whereas Viathons most expensive model starts at $6,000. If youre looking to buy a high-end carbon XC bike and would like to save $2,000which you could put towards another bikethe Viathon might be a good fit for you. And just like any other reality, outsiders ignore ours at their peril. A year later, the bikes closed out for about $1,000 apiece, and I read at the time on various online consumer groups that sharp-eyed cyclists were snapping them up as preassembled build kits and flogging the framesets online for maybe a hundred bucks a copy. Complete builds start at $2,300, and top out at $3,500 for the gravel models and around $6,000 for the road and mountain bikes. So whats not to like? Its a bike that in so many ways aligns closely to what the premium Santa Cruz Stigmata is, however, the Viathon adds a little more versatility through additional mounting options. The G1 itself, judging by its cover, looks like a tailored gravel race bike, where carbon matters in terms of stiffness and power transfer, and a more racy geometry means better aerodynamics, and less playing around. For now, they only offer a hardtail, but Spinhirne-Martin isnt opposed to someday expanding their line to include a full-suspension bike. Viathon again drives a hard bargain with the G1. 1X drivetrains feel great, if youre riding your gravel bike exclusively on the trails. M.1 | XX1 Eagle AXS; M.1 | XX1 Eagle ; M.1 | X01 Eagle ; . I weighed the M.1 later with a handheld scale. Create a personalized feed and bookmark your favorites. Almost all carbon frames come from Asia, and different brands often subcontract with the same large producers. Nope: while the bikes its offering look to be good quality and competitively priced, the reason that Viathons entry turned heads is whos behind it: Walmart. It lacks some of that impossible-to-define character that makes a climbing bike inspirational, especially when youre toiling away on a tough climb. Plan to post in the forums? Now that we know the 2023 IRONMAN WC is in Nice for men and Kona for women, reversed venues next year, which venue will you hope to qualify for? Some cyclists are extremely brand-loyal, willing to pay a premium for pride in heritage brands like Bianchi or Pinarello. Either way, its there as an intended feature. The G1 gravel bike starts at $100 more than the M1. Theyve taken notes about the shoes, style of jeans, shirt design, right down to the style of watch. Viathon Bicycles - Home | Facebook I will start by saying I am a long time bike industry employee. And when you have fun, you ride more." Everyone knows that Black Friday is this week, but Walmart and Viathon can't wait until then to. He explained, It has less setup and maintenance than a downhill bike, and as an entry point into the industry, this makes an ideal start for us to grow on.. and Zipp Service Course cockpit, the G.1 Rival gets down to business. Viathon ships high-end carbon bikes from a Walmart - Bikerumor While this might be true for the climb up, it would be a stretch for going downhill. Support Us | But when people saw these bikes here, it was like, 'Hey, these are real bikes! Managing editor Dean Yobbi told the story in BRAIN's May dead . Mountain - M.1. Viathon furthers those purchasing efficiencies by only producing the frame in a somewhat limited range of five sizes, and in many cases, even the rather simple two-tone paint is unchanged between the models. The $5,850 price tag for the Dura-Ace build is still a lot of money for many consumers. RELATED: Walmart Launches Gear Site with Moosejaw. GearJunkie may earn a small commission from affiliate links in this article. That wont set it apart in a highly competitive market or bring high-end tech to a new market of people. Gravel bikes can generally be ridden from home at a lower risk level than mountain bikes. Check Out Continue Shopping. As technical editor Dan Cavallari pointed out in our sister publication VeloNews, "Viathon ticks almost all the high-end boxes for a bike with a lower pricepoint. Tire clearance is on the narrower side, but its wide enough for 700x40c tires, or 2.1 width tires with a 650B diameter. The cable routing itself was fairly basic, too. This is a workhorse groupset that simply adds better ergonomics and a more suitable gearing range to what was the most popular road groupset on the market. transition-DOT-area-AT-slowtwitch-DOT-com. The question is, what sets it apart from other high-end bikes at this pricepoint or higher, if anything? He designed Turner and Cube bikes, the first Pivots, and Diamondbacks for 5 years. The weird stem length, set-back seatpost and bar width dont matter. Viathon Bicycles made waves at its launch earlier this year as a premium bike brand incubated under an unlikely source. New MTB Brand Hudski Bikes Launches with 3 bikes, all Based on a Single Frame, 15 Products to Make Riding Gravel Less of a Grind, Moots Updates the Routt Gravel Bike for 2021, Focus Atlas Alloy Gravel Bike Looks Equally Affordable and Well-Equipped for Adventure, Knolly Cache is the Gravel Bike Made by Mountain Bikers [Review]. This is courtesy of the SRAM XX1 Eagle drivetrain and its golden chain. Viathon is jumping out of the gate with three model families to start. Terms | Privacy. The Viathon G1 is one of the more affordable carbon, gravel bikes that's well suited to riding sketchy roads. He proposed a private-label project, and hes bringing it to fruition. But the company would not release sales data. About Us | The pre-taped tubeless-ready rims are laced with Sapim double-butted spokes to easily-serviced sealed bearing hubs, and all told, they weigh a perfectly reasonable 1,644 g (claimed). Over mostly flat and undulating terrain, the G1 can actually be a little fun on certain trails, if thats what you enjoy from a gravel bike. Well, its a lot like the Santa Cruz Stigmata it was modelled after, just not quite as refined. Calf muscle pull or tear? The M1 carbon hardtail, with a SRAM GX Ealge driveterain comes in at a bargain price of $2,200, with the top-level SRAM AXS electronic drivetrain equipped model hitting $6,500. Walmarts immense buying power and pre-existing online sales channel means that for just US$2,298 (shipped, within the United States), this new brand can offer a full-carbon gravel bike equipped with quality components, including a Shimano GRX 600 groupset, Mercury G3C tubeless wheels, and Zipp Service Course cockpit components. Slowtwitch approved IT Band rehab? And while low, Viathon pricing was at parity with any number of other name-brand carbon models, including Trek, Specialized, Cannondale and Canyon. Walmart is not just a brand of box stores that populates every U.S. state. With both, you get two great carbon bikes, that differ when you break down the components. Its worth mentioning that I myself am an enduro-style focused mountain biker, and Id be lying if I didnt say that it influenced my overall impression of the bike. While thats a noble notion, is the Viathon bike really that groundbreaking? This is the first bike weve had with Mercury wheels fitted, and the equipped G3C DISC is a quality US$799 item. Its what you want in a more race-focussed gravel bike, and in this sense, it gives up very little compared to the likes of the higher-priced Stigmata or Aspero. That would really skew the handling. Originally from Northern CA, home for me has ranged from the PNW to a teepee in Grand Teton National Park. The Shimano Dura Ace build with hydraulic disc brakes costs $5,850, and the Ultegra disc brake model is $3,575. Shop Nitrous Shop Cyclosys QUALITY WITHOUT COMPROMISE Since 1994 these are the words that continue to resonate within us. Download the app. Usually, they can change the bar width, stem length, and crank length, but Viathon hasnt been able to do this during the pandemic because of supply chain issues, and its not clear yet when theyll be able to offer this option again. Plus, Viathons graphics are a little bland, in my opinion, the pricing isnt so aggressive that its clearly better than bikes from established brands like Canyon or Giant (or Remot, for that matter), and the product marketing so far feels spare to the point that its pro forma. For anyone familiar with the beer industry, this is like Anheuser-Busch creating Shocktop, not Anheuser-Busch buying Goose Island or Elysian. The result is a bike covered in proven, quality, big-name components at a price thats approximately a third less than its more established competition, and really, not much more expensive than a bare frame. Join Outside+ to get Outside magazine, access to exclusive content, 1,000s of training plans, and more. Viathon Bicycles made waves at its launch earlier this year as a premium bike brand incubated under an unlikely source. Like Remot, Viathon debuts with three offerings: one frame each in road, gravel, and mountain, with three levels of build kit. Racers? Viathon states that a 54 cm painted frame tips the scales at 1 kg, with the matching fork an equally respectable 380 g. The result is an 8.9 kg complete bike that simply needs some pedals before its ready to have a race number attached. Viathon bikes use carbon frames and are high . Going uphill, the shifting is buttery smooth. Brand manager Spinhirne-Martin said a search of similar Trek, Specialized, or Canyon bikes will net a conclusion that they are all significantly more expensive for a similarly specced product., Spinhirne-Martin came to Walmart after 10 years working in the industry at Competitive Cyclist. Two Walmart heirs, Tom and Steuart Walton, are themselves highly enthusiastic riders who have invested in cycling companieslike Allied Cycle Works and Rapha, and they directed the trailbuilding grants that have helped transformWalmarts home base of Bentonville, Arkansas, into a world-class mountain-bikingdestination. Sports Hernia/Inguinal Disruption Surgery. Viathon expects stock on these bikes sometime this Fall. Hardtail race XC bikes seem to be going away in favor of short-travel, full-suspension options. The handlebars could have been wider, with a shallower drop, and an extra helping of bar tape would have also been welcome. GearJunkie Copyright 2013 2023. Buyers have 60 days from purchase to return the bike, and it can be new or used. Marketing strategy comes out of Sun Valley, Idaho, with the CrankTank firm. Thats a challenge. My 54cm test bike has 382.8mm of reach, coupled with a 110mm stem. I was excited to try out the G1 to get a better taste of what Viathon as a whole has to offer. Adult Mountain Bike, 21 Speed Shimano Drivetrain, 26 Inch Wheels, Aluminum Frame, Lock-Out . Currently, the bikes are not available in other markets. Viathon G1 Bike: Getting Rolling - Riding Gravel Mimicking the Stigmata, the G.1 sits more toward the road end of the gravel spectrum with angles which are closer to that of an endurance road bike than a hardtail mountain bike of a decade past. The Viathon G1 is a bike that is a high performance machine with a good set of components out of the box. Within each of these categories, there are a variety of builds to pick from all depending on how shiny you want the hardware to be. Buy Viathon G1, Rival, 56cm, Disc, 700C, Matte Black/Silver at Walmart.com . As mentioned, this is the lowest-cost complete bike in Viathons G.1 range, but that doesnt mean the parts are low-cost. The history of the bicycle business is, in one sense, a history of powerful outsiders coming in to teach us dumb yokels how things are done in the Big Leagues. Get This Deal. Add up the component costs, frame, and build, and budgeting that kind of money might make sense for the committed rider. Except none of that happened. Are modern bicycles the end of DIY maintenance. For now, no. The bike is not designed for a super short stem. Noting the stiffness, and feathery weight of the G1 again, its an excellent climber, and the Shimano GRX 600 worked flawlessly for me. As it happens, I prefer this kind of steering, which youll commonly find on aero bikes and endurance bikes with longer trail figures. The S-Works Epic only comes with an 11-speed groupsetthe Shimano XTR Di2so the Viathon wins in our books with the snazzy eagle. Vosper: House of carbon cards, chapter two: Viathon revisited The Viathon G.1 Family. And winner winner: theres a threaded bottom bracket shell. That's a lot to love. Performance or race-ready bikes are not a part of the stock in most Walmart stores or online. Probably will be a while before I get out on it again :(. So, what does Viathon say that the G1 is? In an interview last week at Sea Otter, a bicycling industry gathering in Monterey, Calif. I came to Walmart to grow the bike industry. For those riders hoping for a super-reactive bike that follows your every twitch, I suggest you look elsewhere. I lifted the bike from its box, the staff leaning in for a first look. In other words, it was in the business of making inexpensive bikes made for the mass market. The bikes graphics are understated, which is fitting to the overall narrative of this bike. Quan was with Cervelo from 2004 to 2008. Walmart Says Its High-End Viathon Bikes Will Grow Cycling A torque wrench is included to help the customer tighten screws appropriately. Canyons Exceed CF is $6,500 and has a comparable spec. Viathon G.1 105 First Ride Review | Road Bike, Cycling Forums GearJunkie may earn a small commission from affiliate links in this article. Walmart isnt currently targeting the kind of customer who wants the latest carbon layup or the greatest new geometry, nor is it targeting customers who self-identify as cyclists. Viathon Launches New Direct-to-Consumer G1 Carbon Gravel Bike And 2 years ago, the company hired Zach Spinhirne-Martin, a senior buyer at CompetitiveCyclist.com. Ten minutes of testing was enough for me to spin around and swap in my preferred Specialized Phenom. I didnt expect much from the Bokens, but they were predictable on dirt with a fast rolling speed. Its a private brand being managed within the e-commerce merchandising team based in San Bruno, California. When everyones selling a $3,500-ish Shimano Ultegra disc-equipped carbon gravel bike with an oversize headtube, asymmetric rear triangle, and scads of tire clearance, its a little hard to stand apart from the crowdeven when there are real differences. Managing editor Dean Yobbi told the story in BRAIN's May dead-trees issue and online as well. Amazon Pick. The company cited industry data. Join Outside+ to get complete access to exclusive content on VeloNews, training plans for road and gravel, and more. However, what cant be argued with is that the law of diminishing returns certainly plays a large role in premium products, and Viathon has done a damn good job of showing that. August. According to the designer and engineer, Kevin Quan of Kevin Quan Studios, Viathon manufactures frames at the factory, making the best bikes you can think of.. Equipped with a SRAM XO1 Eagle drivetrain that shifts seamlessly, Stans 29 carbon wheels, and an FSA K-force carbon handlebar, this thing was designed to climb. Considering the Walmart shopper and what bike theyre on now, the answer is probably yes. All three are made of carbon fiber,. As we continue to build out the platform, we welcome other brands, said Spinhirne-Martin. Lets be honest. For the last update and a link to the introductions, Click Here. The cables just felt like they were being dragged through molasses, and the full-length housing runs meant there was a fair bit of compression leading to a mushy feel at the lever. Viathon Bikes On Sale | Best Walmart Bikes All Viathon bikes come with a 2-year warranty. 3 for online traffic after Google and Amazon. Viathon Bikes Walmart's proprietary bicycle line offers high-quality road, mountain, and gravel bikes that have totally negated the cheap "Walmart Bike" stigma. The question is, does a bikes soul matter more than its value and performance? I ride over ladder bridges and into dense trees. A First Look at Viathon, Walmart's new Mountain Bike Walmart.com brings on bike brand called Viathon that is - Reddit Its also worth noting that Viathon designs their own frames, as opposed to using open molds. And while its far from a silky-smooth ride (Ill come back to this), frame compliance was a design factor. But does it have enough soul and personality to compete with more established brands offering quality bikes at a similarly low price?". And that really summarises the G.1 quite nicely. But the move that really set the cat among the industry pigeons was the Viathon sales strategy, which at least strongly hinted at distribution via Walmart.com. Even more interesting was Jordan's underlying premise that at least some of those hundreds of millions of Walmart customers would for reasons unknown and perhaps unknowable leap at the opportunity to purchase a full-dress carbon bike with a price tag northward of $3,000 precisely because they didn't have to go into a brick-and-mortar bike shop to purchase it. A similarly specced Specialized Epic S-Works hardtail goes for about $3,000 more. Walmart Viathon Bikes - New Walmart Bikes 2019 - Bicycling Walmarts top-of-the-line M.1 hardtail mountain bike has 120mm travel with RockShox components, Stans wheels, Level Ultimate brakes, and Continental tires. Viathon's prices include shipping within the United States. In this case, carbon doesnt work entirely to its benefit, and the G1 is a little overly stiff, and calls at least for a more compliant set of handlebars. But Quan is the only person mentioned in a team of top bicycle industry veterans with decades of collective experience. The only other real face behind Viathon is brand manager Zach Spinhirne-Martin, who spent nine years with the online retailer Competitive Cyclist before joining Walmart as its bike category manager. Sure, its no Evil Chamois Hagar, and its perhaps even a tad smoother than the Cervelo Aspero, but only just, and certainly not through the front end. To find out, I snagged a Viathon M.1 | XO1 for a ride while out at Sun Valley. The RockShox SID RLC 120mm fork was a great choice, and I appreciated that Viathon opted for more travel in comparison to the S-Works Epics 100m fork. Certainly, Walmart has the resources to overcome that, if it chooses, and it also has a reach like few other companiesWalmart sells more bicycles in North America than any other retailer, according to industry analyst Jay Townley. While so many of the established brands offer anything from a five-year to lifetime warranty on their frames, Viathons come with just two years of coverage. For the hardtail mountain bike, thats a $2,000 frame, $2,400 GX Eagle build, $3,500 X01 build (which comes without a dropper), or a $6,000 XX1 option. The IRC Boken tires and Mercury wheels were a good match for the Viathon as well. Viathon R.1 Red eTap AXS review: Great performance, but with Walmart I am a professional mechanic, and have a hand built over 175 custom frames from steel or Ti. Best Bike Trails | Certainly, there are many Walmart shoppers among us, though likely few who have bought a bike there. Does spending more get you a faster gravel race bike? Why Ultralight People Need to Chill Already, Kershaw Iridium Review: A Great Flipping Knife Under $100. They seem to offer a solid value for a full carbon bike. And its partnering with shops, mobile shops, and more, as well as creating an online fit calculator. The frame features are exactly what youd expect of a modern frame. Many of their arguments I can support, like lower costs and lighter frames, but claiming that full-suspension is often just overkill is a bit bold. [Eroc43] Should brick-and-mortar or other online retailers worry? Viathon G1, Rival, 56cm, Disc, 700C, Matte Black/Silver - Walmart Its also important to note whats not in the current lineup: womens bikes, utility bikes, and e-bikes. A. Yee / Cyclocross Magazine The Best Black Friday Deals for Cyclists - Bicycling For cycling-specific recommendations, check out our favorite tech deals at Walmart too. Watch to get professional road cyclist Joe Dombrowskis view. The Viathon adds mounts at the fork, mounts for a rear rack, and space for an additional bottle cage beneath the down tube. Terms of Use To be fair, that latter element is fairly common on a number of high-end bikes and isnt much of an issue, but it does point to a simpler frame construction. As is so common with gravel bikes fitted with decently big-volume rubber, there was a small amount of toe overlap present on our 54 cm sample. This bike has character, like all bikes do. We tested the brands top-end M.1 Mountain Bike for 6 weeks to gain an understanding and some first-person perspective on singletrack trails. At the beginning of the pandemic, governments and mountain bike organizations made it clear to all of us that we should be sticking close to home, and refraining from unnecessary risks. To get a full carbon gravel bike with a Shimano GRX600 groupset for $2,300 is a pretty sweet deal, although there are still other great deals on gravel bikes, for those who like steel or aluminum. The Rival G1 is spec'ed with a 111 Rival drive train, Mercury G3 wheels, and Zipp Service Course cockpit. Kev has 43,000 subscribers. But the collaboration shouldnt come as a surprise. Copper Harbor grants massive descents on rocky hills. Viathon G.1 GRX 800 review - VeloNews.com Red digits displaying 22.7 pounds blinked alive, quantifying the size-large bike as bona fide feathery for its class. Geometry on the G1, like the M1, is fairly conservative. As it is, other brands are becoming wise to consumer demands for affordable, high-end bikes, so Viathon has enough competition to make one wonder whether this new brand can stick with the big boys. Not because its not important, but because Viathons business model is to swap out these components to your preference upon ordering the bike, all with no additional cost. Others are concerned about how this will undercut bike shops. My final complaint is the comment about the 70mm stem feeling twitchy and switching it out to a short stem. For the M.1 XX1 Eagle, Viathon dropped its original $6,000 price recently to $4,998. Further, a hardtail is a great entry point for a new rider looking for high-quality performance, Spinhirne-Martin said. Official Giant Trinity Advanced Owners Thread, New Giant Trinity Advanced Hydration and Bento, 2016 Giant Trinity Advanced Pro Cable Issues, Official 12th Annual 2018/19 Slowtwitch 100/100 Run Challenge Thread, 2018/19 100 Runs in 100 Days Airing of the Grievances Thread, 100 Runs 100 Days 2017-2018 Challenge Thread: Dec 15-Mar 23. Theres a low 69mm of bottom bracket drop, making for increased stability and cornering, and a 74 seat tube angle and a 71.5 head tube angle. If theres a model for how to build a mountain bike community from next to nothing, Bentonville is it. When spending upwards of $5,000 on a bike, a decision matrix includes variables from aesthetics to brand affinity. Viathon G1 Bike: At The Finish - Riding Gravel I also grabbed a G1. With a trendy 25 mm internal width, the welded alloy rims are wider than they are deep. By July, barely 90 days from its glitzy premiere, Viathon had announced via direct mail and on its website that it was dropping prices on all models by as much as $1,000 per bike, to as low as $1,998. Photo by Josh Patterson . That bit of information, incidentally, is not something youll find on Viathons website. ), while James wasnt stoked by the lack of a cable access hatch at the bottom bracket if you want to reroute or replace gear housing. Widgets, Explore Its difficult to separate the Viathon from its business connection to the retail giant Walmart. Their $18 million investment went a long way for the areas trail infrastructure, making it an unsuspecting cycling mecca nestled into the Ozark Mountains. With Walmart backing this brand, we can engage in a bike segment other brands wont touch..
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