Founded in 2017, Switchback Sports distributes a range of premium cycling products to over 200 South African bicycle stores. From April 2022 the Cape Town-based outfit will add Factor Bikes to its portfolio. The prestigious British bicycle brand joins a stable of products which include the Swedish outdoor brand, POC, Easton components and wheels, Rondo bikes, Panaracer tyres, Wheels Manufacturing hangers and bottom brackets, and Geosmina bikepacking bags.
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Founded in Great Britain in 2007, Factor Bikes began as a leading design and engineering firm and offshoot of bf1systems: working for cutting-edge brands like Ferrari, Aston Martin, Lamborghini, Maserati and other F1, Moto GP, and WRC teams. Its first carbon bike, the FACTOR001, was launched in 2009 and was ground-breaking in terms of performance, technology, and aesthetics: setting the precedent and DNA for all future Factor Bikes.
Today Factor Bikes owns and operates its own carbon production facility and is the only premium bike brand in the world overseeing and controlling every step of carbon bike production, from concept to final assembly.
Factor bikes can be seen proving its pedigree at the highest-level of racing, piloted by Chris Froome and the UCI World Tour professional cycling team Israel–Premier Tech and the UCI women’s continental professional cycling team, Parkhotel Valkenburg.
Best known for its cutting-edge road bikes, Factor has recently made a move into the realm of mountain-biking with the launch of the Lando XC and ultra-light Lando hardtail.
The Lando XC is a progressive dual-suspension cross-country bike, sporting 115mm rear travel paired with a 120mm fork. This hits the sweet spot for many South African riders dabbling in marathon stage races, who also want to get the most out of weekend rides on their local trails.
“We’re excited to be able to bring a premium brand like Factor to South African customers. We aim to be able to showcase the full Factor Bikes product range and meet market demand. We believe in supplying the best quality cycling products to our customers, and Factor is an incredible addition to our portfolio” said Charles Keey, founder of Switchback Sports.
“The fact that it owns its factories and controls every step of the R&D and manufacturing process means that Factor can innovate quickly and produce truly outstanding bicycles with unmatched build quality. For me, the Ostro VAM is a quiver-killer and I can’t wait to lay hands on mine,” added Keey.
In addition to Factor Bikes, Switchback Sports will be bringing in Black Inc wheels and components including the popular Black Inc Integrated Barstem.
Like Factor Bikes, Black Inc wheels and components are produced and tested in-house, allowing for rapid iterations and total control of the manufacturing and quality control process. Thanks to this approach, the Black Inc product line only has one level: the highest, making it the first choice for discerning riders.
Switchback Sports will initially be bringing a range of Factor Bikes framesets and Black Inc wheels to market, allowing customers the flexibility of a custom build to create their dream bike.
While availability of stock has been limited by the supply chain crisis currently affecting most of the cycling industry, framesets and Black Inc wheels will be available in South Africa from June 2022. To view the range of Factor Bikes bicycles and framesets, as well as Black Inc wheels and components sold by Switchback Sports please visit www.switchbacksports.co.za.
SWITCHBACK SPORTS
Switchback Sports was founded in 2017 by, ex-pro cyclist, Charles Keey. From its offices in Cape Town Switchback Sports distributes POC, Easton, Rondo, Panaracer, Wheels Manufacturing, Geosmina, and soon to be Factor to over 200 bicycle shops across South Africa. To view the full product range please visit www.switchbacksports.co.za.
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FACTOR BIKES
Founded with a commitment to innovation, speed, and performance using advanced engineering, Factor Bikes represents the union of technology and integration. With a heritage deep in the world of motorsport and aviation, the brand constantly searches for ways to innovate in its designs and products. The motorsport technology that helped define the earliest creations from Factor, like the bf1systems-developed power meter and the data logging system featured on early Factors, have helped push the industry further. These design initiatives continue to seep into Factor bikes. They’re not afraid to do things differently to push the technology forward.
Find out more at www.factorbikes.com.
