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Ridley headquarters tour: Building
We visited the Ridley headquarters in Beringen, Belgium on the Friday before Liège-Bastogne-Liège, the season’s final spring classic. Photo: Spencer Powlison | VeloNews.com
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Ridley headquarters tour: Ring belll
"Ring bell for service" … or at least that’s what we assume the translation would be. Photo: Spencer Powlison | VeloNews.com
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Ridley headquarters tour: Aerts
Ridley founder Jochim Aerts greeted us in the showroom. He founded the company in 1997 after building his reputation as a frame painter for Bio-Racer when that Belgian apparel company made frames. Photo: Spencer Powlison | VeloNews.com
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Ridley headquarters tour: Boonen jersey
We were greeted with coffee and an impressive wall of fame with jerseys from champions who rode Ridley bikes. This Belgian champion’s jersey was won by a promising under-23 rider named Tom Boonen at the 2001 national championships. Boonen's father is a longtime employee at Ridley. Photo: Spencer Powlison | VeloNews.com
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Ridley headquarters tour: Gaerne
Gaerne is one of Ridley’s partners, providing shoes to the Ridley-sponsored Lotto-Soudal team. On the left is a special-edition shoe for André Griepel (note the gorilla beneath the first Boa lace), and the shoe on the right is designed for Belgian champion Jens Debusschere. Photo: Spencer Powlison | VeloNews.com
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Ridley headquarters tour: Frames
Ridley’s frames are not produced in this facility, but they are assembled by hand here in Belgium. Photo: Spencer Powlison | VeloNews.com
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Ridley headquarters tour: Belgian pride
It’s more than just a motto. Ride around Belgium on any given Saturday and you’ll see many riders astride these bikes. Photo: Spencer Powlison | VeloNews.com
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Ridley headquarters tour: Sunweb camper
The Sunweb-Napoleon Games camper is stored at the Ridley factory during the offseason, when it is not required by such riders as Belgian cyclocross hero Kevin Pauwels. Photo: Spencer Powlison | VeloNews.com
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Ridley headquarters tour: Custom paint
Although the frames are not built here, they are custom-painted in Belgium, if a customer chooses that option. Here, a designer walks us through the early stages of the process. Photo: Spencer Powlison | VeloNews.com
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Ridley headquarters tour: Blank frames
Blank frames are delivered for the custom paint option. Photo: Spencer Powlison | VeloNews.com
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Ridley headquarters tour: Fast turn-around
Like most WorldTour team sponsors, Ridley was ready with a custom-painted yellow bike at the start of last year’s Tour de France. Greipel didn’t earn the jersey on the first sprint stage. However, his Lotto-Soudal teammate, Tony Gallopin claimed the lead on stage 9. Ridley staff scrambled to the office at 6 p.m. over the weekend and had a frame on its way to France, five hours later, for Gallopin to ride the next day. Photo: Spencer Powlison | VeloNews.com
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Ridley headquarters tour: Patterns
They look like decals, but they are actually patterns that Ridley uses to paint the graphics onto the frame before clear-coat is applied. Photo: Spencer Powlison | VeloNews.com
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Ridley headquarters tour: Future wind tunnel
Out behind the headquarters, construction is underway on a cycling-specific wind tunnel, the first of its kind in Belgium. The wind tunnel is expected to be completed in 2016. Photo: Spencer Powlison | VeloNews.com
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Ridley headquarters tour: Hand-polished
Frames are finished by hand before they are painted. Photo: Spencer Powlison | VeloNews.com
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Ridley headquarters tour: Colors
It’s evident that Ridley’s customers have diverse preferences when it comes to bike color. Photo: Spencer Powlison | VeloNews.com
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Ridley headquarters tour: Textured finish
Ridley’s Noah aero road frame is finished by hand with special textured material, applied in strategic areas, to create micro turbulence, acting much like the dimples on a golf ball to smooth out airflow. Photo: Spencer Powlison | VeloNews.com
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Ridley headquarters tour: Mechanics
Whether they’ve been custom-painted or just pulled from the crate sent from the factory, Ridley bikes are assembled by these men in an immaculately organized and clean workshop. Photo: Spencer Powlison | VeloNews.com
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Ridley headquarters tour: Coming soon
We had the privilege of riding part of the Liège course aboard a new Ridley bike that is expected to be announced at the start of the Tour. Stay tuned for a first ride report and more details. Photo: Spencer Powlison | VeloNews.com
The post Gallery: Ridley Bikes headquarters tour appeared first on VeloNews.com.
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