Since 1991, Eurobike has been held at the exhibition centre in Friedrichshafen, Baden-Württemberg, a small town in southern Germany, except for last year (2020) when the new COVID epidemic forced its cancellation. This year the show is back, but it is the last time that Friedrichshafen will host Eurobike, and next year the show will move to Frankfurt as a whole.

This year we Rinasclta bike had the pleasure of attending the 29th edition of Eurosatory 2021, which reopened after the epidemic, as a visitor. It was also my first time attending a European show myself, so here's what I saw on the spot about the show. Also a good news is that, as a Chinese carbon bike frame manufacturer, we are launching our new customise painting program, from where you can pick up any colours and designs you like on the frame, we also introduced metallic painting with affordable price, below is one sample picture you could take a look.

It was so remote!

As soon as I set out on the road, it became clear to me why the organisers had chosen to move to Frankfurt: Friedrichshafen was too remote! It took me seven hours: an early morning trip to Amsterdam airport, a flight to Zurich, Switzerland, a train to Romanshorn on the southern shore of Lake Constance, a ferry to Friedrichshafen and a train to the exhibition centre. Fortunately, the journey was scenic and could slightly compensate for the boredom of the journey.

Arriving at the entrance to the exhibition centre at 9am sharp on 1 September, I found that there was not a large queue of visitors. At the entrance you had to check your ticket and EU vaccination certificate, and you had to wear a mask the whole time you were there. 

Upon entering, there was the stand of Velobiz.de, Germany's largest bike trade press. Markus, the managing director, is a veteran of the industry, having attended as many editions of Eurosatory as he can remember. "I'm actually sad to leave Friedrichshafen," he says when talking about the show's move, "but the organisers are right - after all, Frankfurt is much better, the place is bigger and the transport is easier."

Then I started to walk around the venue. Unlike other shows I've been to before, Europe is not divided into pavilions by category and there is a certain mix of companies in the same room.

The biggest and busiest stand was undoubtedly Shimano's. The day before the show the latest DURA-ACE R9200 and ULTEGRA R8100 kits were launched to the world.

And I focused my trip on the Chinese companies attending the European show. Sadly, due to the epidemic, a number of companies were unable to send their staff in person and had to hire third party staff to collect business cards on site. Several exhibits and promotional materials were even stuck in customs, resulting in the embarrassing situation of having neither goods nor people on hand, which was fortunately replenished one by one the next day.

Most commendable were the Chinese companies in Hall A1, including Bafang Electric, Xingheng Power, Max Power, Hongji Travel and Delannen Electronics. Not only did they have all the exhibits, but they also overcame the difficulties of flying their staff from China to Germany to participate in the exhibition. Well-prepared, the booth was also inundated with visitors.

By the afternoon, there were more and more visitors and the café was bustling with activity, and the test ride area, BMX show area and dining area in the middle of the exhibition hall were getting crowded.

After about four rounds, I have come to the conclusion that the electric-assisted ebike is the absolute star of the European show. The traditional human-powered bike, which is limited to the sports sector, seems to have gone out of fashion. Even equipment accessories are starting to be designed around the electric-assisted scenario.

The electric-assist boom has created a whole new market opportunity, allowing some companies to "overtake" the competition. Many of these Chinese companies have surged ahead in the field of motors, batteries and controllers, gaining a voice on a par with the top tier manufacturers.

Some people may wonder whether this wave of electric power opportunity has passed and whether the market has been divided up. My view is no. In addition to core areas such as spare parts and bikes, there are still many peripheral areas worth exploring, such as maintenance, transportation, security, recycling and application.

The corridor between Hall A and Hall B is dedicated to a start-up area, where I saw all kinds of incredible ideas, including a mackintosh that wraps the whole ebike, a multi-purpose three-wheeled ebike with a suspension system, an electric-assisted trailer that hangs on the back of the ebike, and an enhanced version of the ebike parking rack.

Perhaps the ebike is not just a partial technological advancement for the two-wheeled industry, but like the car, it signifies the birth of a new lifestyle that will permeate every aspect of life. This is the signal I caught at the Eurobike.