May 23rd, 2005
New Electric Version of the Schwinn Sting-Ray Bicycle
Schwinn the company was known mostly in business school circles for blowing it when it missed the whole mountain biking trend. It went from being THE bike maker, to something quaint and retro at a time when that wasn’t what people wanted, and it made a great case study on what not to do. This past year though, I noticed kids in Sonoma riding around on these cool bikes with huge fat rear tires. At Costco I finally saw them up close - Schwinn was taking the bike in a new direction and it looks like the product was a hit. Today I found out that Schwinn is taking the new Sting-Ray and adding an electric motor, making it the coolest moped I’ve ever seen. Too bad it can only do 14mph - too wimpy for serious commuting, but I can sure see this being a hit. Price: about $400.
“The original Sting-Ray, widely considered the most popular bicycle of all time, was first introduced in 1963 during the muscle car craze and remained on the market until 1982. More than 1 million bikes were sold in 1968 alone resulting in teenagers on every corner tricking out their banana seat Sting-Rays with headlights, mirrors, wheelie bars and other accessories to make each bike unique. Any kid not lucky enough to have a Sting-Ray certainly dreamed of owning one
“Special features of the electric model include: variable pedal, electric or dual power mode; an on-board computer to make best use of energy; LED throttle indicator of battery condition; removable rechargeable battery; and rear wheel motor mount eliminating chain or belt breaks. Most importantly, the battery pack has been designed to look like the traditional V-twin motor that powers the world’s choppers. In February 2005, the 20″ Street Series Sting-Ray was named the 2004 Outdoor Toy of the Year by the Toy Industry Association, Inc. That Sting-Ray model had sold nearly 600,000 units in less than a year, making it what Schwinn claims to be the fastest selling bicycle in history.
“When Schwinn Bicycles launched the new Schwinn Sting-Ray “Street Series” juvenile chopper bike in April 2004, the company knew it was on to something special. The first retailer to receive the bicycles sold what was thought to be a three-month allocation in one weekend. Soon, every retailer selling the new Schwinn Sting-Ray was asking for more Sting-Rays to meet unprecedented consumer demand.” Source: Gizmag
Cheese Toast says:
The electric bike - - Because we wouldn’t want the fat kids to get some exercise. Coming soon with a soda dispenser! And yes it is insensitive, I was a skinny kid, but now I’m a fat guy so it’s ok.
May 23rd, 2005 at 5:27 pm
David says:
It does have the option to pedal it too or pedal in addition to the electical power I think. I think even a fat, lazy person could get *some* kind of a workout from it.
May 23rd, 2005 at 5:56 pm
Cheese Toast says:
That’s what they used to say about mopeds too, but if you have the Schwinn or a moped are you going to pedal it or use the motor?
May 24th, 2005 at 12:08 am
CrapDetector says:
The StingRay bikes were the ultimate cool, with the smoothest-pedal action possible.
I saw some of the Schwinn boxes in Costco and went over to look..the picture on the box looked excellent….and I was glad to see the re-emergence of the brand.
Of course, in small print: Made In China
May 24th, 2005 at 4:00 am
EarthSurfer says:
Schwinn is only a name brand these days. It died a painful death several years ago. Someone bought the rights to the brands as part of the bankdruptcy (me thinks).
I work with a crew of mechanical engineers who would object to the assertion that Schwinn totally missed the mountain bike craze! These guys worked in the high end bike design center in Boulder, Colorado. They still have some cool rides to kick around town. The company also was successful with a line of consumer oriented mountain bikes.
Alas, poor corporate governance, not poor marketing, probably lead to the death of Schwinn.
cheers,
earthsurfer
May 24th, 2005 at 10:11 am
Charles says:
Agreed…
The first mountain bike I bought was a Schwinn Pro about 15 years ago. It was a good deal and a quality bike. I can’t see how they missed the mountain bike boom when they had bikes out well over 15 years ago.
Their demise can probably be attributed to the usual stuff… lack of control on costs, and a product offering/marketing campaign that just missed the mark.
May 24th, 2005 at 2:11 pm
Alice says:
I think they missed the original move to moutain bikes.Remember thay were THE brand and had huge marketshare, and they lost a ton of ground they never really got back.
May 24th, 2005 at 2:52 pm
Charles says:
I can see missing out for a couple years, and losing the sales from those years. But near as I can tell, there isn’t a whole lot of brand loyalty when purchasing a second or third bike. So even if Schwinn lost ground for a few years, it’s nothing they couldn’t regain by offering a solid product and marketing campaign later on.
So I realize I’m splitting hairs here, but I think there’s a difference in coming to the party late, as opposed to being a dud once you get there.
May 24th, 2005 at 5:32 pm
Dan Ralston says:
I know that Schwinn was the best bike ever made. From the first year they made them till 1993 and they did make the best mountain bike and they proved that over and over again.But they quit making Schwinns in 1993 because they were to good to make Schwinn in America. For now that is all i can say.
October 22nd, 2005 at 2:52 pm
Dan Ralston says:
I know that Schwinn was the best bike ever made. From the first year they made them till 1993 and they did make the best mountain bike and they proved that over and over again.But they quit making Schwinns in 1993 because they were to good to make Schwinn in America. For now that is all i can say.
October 22nd, 2005 at 2:53 pm
Jimmy says:
I bought my boy one of those pocket bikes instead of a new bike, but he lost the key, so now he’s riding his old bike again and actually having to do something to get around.
May 2nd, 2006 at 5:53 am
ClapekDodki says:
bizarro
July 17th, 2007 at 3:59 am