Progress in 2022
I posted in social media about our progress highlights for 2022 and folks seemed to enjoy that kind of summary, so I’m including the same highlights here but with more details:
1. I scouted out where to move to in coastal BC. After an earlier trip, the candidates had boiled down to Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast. In early 2022, I stayed a week on the Coast. After meeting locals, doing some riding, and finding an industrial space to rent, I chose the Coast.
2. I visited Nicolai in Germany, met Kalle Nicolai and others, and saw their aluminum bike frame manufacturing operation. It was great to meet the team at Nicolai.
3. With the help of the folks at Nicolai and UT, the efficiency of the Supre Drive was measured. We made the discovery that it’s more efficient than other high pivot drivetrains.
4. Funds were raised from a number of angel investors. We’re lucky to have such great investors – all are keen about the vision for Lal Bikes.
5. I moved from my parents’ place in Chelsea, Quebec to the Sunshine Coast in British Columbia.
6. With my dad’s help, we set up a workspace. This included setting up machines, doing electrical work, upgrading lights, and a ton of other things.
7. I went to Eurobike in Frankfurt, where I met some amazing folks in the bike industry and where the Nicolai Nucleon 16 was revealed. The whole thing was a wild experience and like drinking from a firehose of exciting information and people.
8. I was joined by Eric Simon, a manufacturing engineer who moved from Vancouver. Eric’s enjoying the fabrication work that’s part of the job. I appreciate the help, and I appreciate Eric’s patience while I figure out how to build a business.
9. I went to Crankworx Whistler, where Mike Levy from Pinkbike tried the Supre Drive and gave a positive first ride review.
10. I made progress with prototyping and improving drivetrain parts.
11. We revealed the DAGR handlebar alignment tool. A good number of folks showed interest, so we’re planning to offer it for sale.
12. We met lots of locals, mountain biked lots, and built a first trail near Lal HQ.
13. We continued to collaborate with Nicolai for frame and drivetrain development.
14. We started building our manufacturing operation in Canada. We collaborated with local CNC machines shops including JS Foster, Mantech Enterprise, and North Shore Billet.
15. We made a batch of five sets of prototype drivetrain parts for Nicolai, and we’re working on a first production order for early 2023. The photo below is the five sets of drivetrains parts.
16. We continued to get support and encouragement from folks like you. Thank you so much. We wish you the absolute best in 2023!