Race Day Wheel Rental IM Special - From R999

[JGR]

i guess it will come down to what the individual is willing to pay! if you take the general athlete at IM is a working class citizen i for one feel like you are being screwed on everything race related, from the day you enter to the plane ticket, then the charge for getting your bike there, then the accommodation, then the race memorabilia etc etc i am just not sure if Joe Soap is going to spend R1500 extra to rent a set of wheels. i love the idea of having that option but just not sure about the affordability of the average athlete

I would rather use the money and do another race like Midmar, Rockman, Buffelsport ect

[T.XTERRA]

Just in case we want to tell other peeps can you advise on the following.

 

How far in advance do you get the wheels.

What if you crash and the wheel is damaged?

[Red Zone]

I like the idea, I agree however than R3k is a bit steep, but its just about supply and demand, not sure if the demand is there when people can afford close on R7k for a both race entries, probably R30k to R50k bikes and all sorts of other kit. My opinion is that the serious athletes who want these sorts of wheels have made spending on their sport a priority already and have the wheels. The more recreational athlete with clip on bars on a R5k - R10k road bike are almost certainly not going to shell out R3k for wheel rental. But there is probably a group in the middle with an ok TT bike and rubbish wheels that has a bit of Xmas bonus to blow, so why not.

 

My R3k is going on coaching, far better bang for your buck IMO, but all the best hope it does well for you.

 

What happens if someone crashes and totals the wheels? or they are stolen?

[Wayne Potgieter]

 

 

What happens if someone crashes and totals the wheels? or they are stolen?

very good question.

[jcza]

I think its a great idea and I'm sure all sets will be rented.

 

PS: On another note there are HED Stingers on special at Bike Basement

[Red Zone]

Just in case we want to tell other peeps can you advise on the following.

 

How far in advance do you get the wheels.

What if you crash and the wheel is damaged?

Hey Terry, for my edification, and apologies for the hijack, what is the policy on hired wetsuits that may get torn, lost in transition etc...?

[davem]

I think the logic that this supplier should discount his price because the the rest of the event is expensive is a little silly.

 

A new set of wheels will cost you R20k+. Use of them for the only two events some/most triathletes will likely need them for the whole year at R3k is probably not unrealistic.

 

Only getting use of the wheels for race weekend is a bit silly on the vendor's part particularly because the wheels are probably sitting doing nothing the previous weekend. A three weekend rental deal would be more appealing to me personally.

 

He has set a price. use it, don't use it.

Edited December 4, 2013 by davem

[Shebeen]

That type of money in those currencies is not the same as R1500 or R3000/2 in Randelas.

 

The Wheel rental cant be the same as the entry? Surely?

 

Consider the hourly rate if I rented for a Olympic or 70.3 distance

[thick sarcasm]

A little birdie once told me it is poor form to query pricing of expensive items. If you can't afford it, then too bad, don't spoil it for those who can.

 

tweet tweet.

[/thick sarcasm]

[gummibear]

Great idea and seen it at many races here especially CX events where wheels often break.

 

Renting a set of 90mm deep wheels for PE could be pretty dangerous if you never ridden ds wheels before

[Li Mu Bai]

Excellent idea, I hope it goes well.

[SwissVan]

 

What if you crash and the wheel is damaged?

 

 

Normally (here in switz) you have to return the wheel in the same condition that you received it and are responsible for "insuring" them yourself.

 

Its quite common to be able to rent special race wheels and even Tri bikes here from various shops.

I know 2 shops that also rent Tri wet suites (Sfr 15 per day for 2 weeks or more and Sfr 190 for Fri, Sa, Su)

 

Its a good idea as not everyone does enough races to justify buying their own race wheels, but the rental price needs to be affordable for the local target market.

[Zatek]

If I only knew about you guys before the 94.7. Bought a wheelset just for 94.7 and took R3000 knock to sale them again.

Edited December 4, 2013 by Zatek

[JGR]

[thick sarcasm]

A little birdie once told me it is poor form to query pricing of expensive items. If you can't afford it, then too bad, don't spoil it for those who can.

 

tweet tweet.

[/thick sarcasm]

I own a set of my own mate

 

Perhaps try and read and understand before getting all excited about trolling. I said it is not a comparison to compare pricing in the US/EU and directly convert it - in the US a beer might cost $7 (R70) and in SA about R20. In SA a graduate salary might be R12k per month and in the US say $4k (R40k) .... is it making sense yet or do I need to explain further.

 

The point of the other thread was a discussion about a race - this is an advert for a service/item.

 

Even someone of your intellect could understand the difference?

 

I apologize to the customers of this service who formed this thread to talk about the wheels (just for She-been)

Edited December 4, 2013 by JGR

[JGR]

I think the logic that this supplier should discount his price because the the rest of the event is expensive is a little silly.

 

A new set of wheels will cost you R20k+. Use of them for the only two events some/most triathletes will likely need them for the whole year at R3k is probably not unrealistic.

 

Only getting use of the wheels for race weekend is a bit silly on the vendor's part particularly because the wheels are probably sitting doing nothing the previous weekend. A three weekend rental deal would be more appealing to me personally.

 

He has set a price. use it, don't use it.

Hi DaveM,

 

Is it fair to compare the rental wheels to brand new R20k+ wheels? There are many many options for wheels that are well below R20k

 

 

 

At the per day rate - what happens when you have to check your bike in the day before. The price excludes cassette and tyres (which wouldn't necessarily cost more)

 

I think this would be a good option for people who damage goods in transit to the race but I don't see how the back to mid contenders would rent wheels for a day that cost the same as their bikes?

 

There are a lot of what if's that haven't been clarified ....

Edited December 4, 2013 by JGR

[OnTheFly Wheel Hire]

Hi Guys

 

Thanks for all the feedback and comments (Negative and Positive).

Remember this is the very first time a service of this kind is offered in South Africa. It is a well proven concept in leading Tri markets of the world. So surely the business will adapt to the local market as time goes on.

 

BUT we have to start somewhere.

 

Here are some facts to keep in mind.

 

1) Think of car rental. Why would a Group A car be cheaper than a Group C car. Well its because the one offeres "more" than the other. Both will get you from point A to B (which is the main idea right)

 

2) Insurance. in RSA no insurance company will insure "Rental Products". Even Car rental companies are self insured.

So the onus is on you to either add them to your insurance for that weekend or to take this risk that if they are damaged or stollen, you will be billed for the value.

The wheels will be shipped in a padded wheel bag to help protect them.

 

3) As much as i would love to make these wheels less than R500 for a rental, it would not be feasible. I need to cover the cost of High end market wheels + still make some money. As much as i love the sport i'm not a charity Org.

The question is, if i make it R500 bucks, all those who negatively comment will have a negative comment about R500.

if it was Free, they would have a negative thing to say about Free product.

 

4) If we have to compare pricing 1 to 1 with the US rental, i would have to ask a higher price than them, because i still need to pay import freight and Taxes on them. So they actually cost more here than in the US. But alas i charge less - due to our market.

 

5) Tires and cassettes are not included as standard purely because there are such a big variety of ratios that we just can't cater for everyone.

 

6) The Duration of rental.

Usually this is a 4 day rental. so delivery will be made to you on the Thursday/Friday and collected again on the Monday/ Tuesday. but because with IM and 70.3 many travel a few days before and return few days after, i brought out this 2 x race special. so you will actually receive the wheels 1 week before. It gives you time to set up and test ride the wheels the weekend before. 2-3 week rentals just don't financial / business sense for my part. we only have SO many weeks in a year.

 

7) Wheel options

lastly, most athletes will have a really good idea of what wheels will work best for them. They will know if they can handle certain conditions or not. thats why we have so many options to chose from. the stronger guys will rent deeper wheels and those looking for a faster shallower set up can then chose that option.

 

I take all comments in consideration, so thank you for the feedback.

The price may not be right for everyone, then again i don't think i will ever have the right price and also the amount of stock for everyone.

Cheers

[OnTheFly Wheel Hire]

Great idea and seen it at many races here especially CX events where wheels often break.

 

Renting a set of 90mm deep wheels for PE could be pretty dangerous if you never ridden ds wheels before

 

Fortunately we offer a 54mm, 60mm, 75mm and 90mm deep rims.

It is always good to go for a combo too.

Wind will affect the front wheel more than the back.

 

I did Im 2012 on a set of 85mm wheels. the descent was quite ........ interesting to say the least