1.  "Who is Fort?"

   Fort Frames, sro was formed in 1992 by a group of young bike enthusiasts and recent engineering grads at about the same time as the Soviet empire crumbled, prompting a surge of new business enterprises throughout Eastern Europe. The core founders included 4-time Czech National cross country Champion Radovan Fort, whose name was adopted for the brand. Fort has since dedicated itself to becoming a major European frame-maker. The company has grown rapidly, and now occupies a complex 4 times the size of their original factory site. Currently, Fort Frames employs almost 30 persons and builds over 5,000 frames per year, including frame production for other European bike brands.
   While Eastern Europe languished in obscurity during the Soviet years, and manufacturing in those countries often left a lot to be desired, cycling and bike racing was always a passion there, proven by the remarkable success of Eastern Bloc racers in European Pro racing in recent years. These strong riders emerging from Kazakstan, Russia, Lithuania, East Germany and CZ, etc, were nurtured in a culture that adores cycling heroes. This whole region is undergoing an amazing technological and economic renaissance, in which new products--such as Fort Frames--are busily making a name for themselves.
   Fort Bicycles is the North American distributor of Fort Frames, since 1999. Our company is based in Fresno, in California's central valley. We're a small company focused only on providing service and support for our product and customers.

2.  "Why haven't I heard of you guys?"

   Until Fort Bicycles and our British and Aussie distributors began selling Fort Frames in English-speaking markets, over 90% of Fort Frames were sold in Germany. We're working hard to get the word out about the fantastic performance and value of Fort Frames, but we're also very prudent about squandering our resources on advertizing. We believe that reputations have to be earned, and that this doesn't happen overnight.
   We're in this business for the long haul, and we frankly prefer to keep our prices affordable rather than raise them to pay for marketing. It has been calculated that for the average big bike company, 31% of the cost of a new bicycle is due to marketing expense. We prefer to trust the power of good word-of-mouth, and to let you keep that 31% for other purposes. We enjoy being able to chat with our customers free of high-pressure environments, and are determined to build our reputation and our company opon a solid foundation of great service to our customers rather than on slick ads, schwag and spamming.

3.  "What is your warranty policy?"

   Fort warranties are based on the frame material, generally as dictated by the tubing manufacturers. The owners card attached to each new Fort Frame lists the various warranty terms--from 2 to 10 years--according to model. This is standard European practice, although it may seem like a limited warranty period in comparison to some American products.
   While a lot of companies these days are claiming "Lifetime Warranty," buyers should be aware that there are usually a lot of catches to these policies, including requirements that the bike be returned to the original dealer, by the original owner, or numerous other small-print exemptions. Worse yet is the process of making a warranty claim: most people who have waded into these waters have found that they must wait an unbelieveable amount of time to get a replacement or repair, and in most cases must pay a bike shop for all shipping, handling, and expensive re-assembly. Some Italian companies are notorious for taking over 6 months to fix frame problems.
   We believe that a shorter-term warranty is more than made up for by our streamlined and prompt action on warranty claims. Although we have only handled a few warranty claims in the 10 years we have imported Fort Frames to the North America, we are proud of the fact that most of these customers were able to get replacement frames within one week of their claim. We're small enough to make a decision and act on your claim instantly, you don't have to wait several weeks for "the guy" (nobody at the big companies ever seems to know who to check with) to determine whether it's a warrantiable defect. We are here to take care of our customers and to back our bikes, and we get it done.

4.  "How can you have such low prices?"

   Ironically, we're always asking about our competitors, "How can they have such high prices?". In fact, despite the fact that East European labor costs are lower than in Western Europe, the actual cost of producing a high-end hand-made racing frame is about the same everywhere (robot welding in Taiwan is another story). The old guard of Europe is fond of perpetuating the myth of the master framebuilder who slowly crafts each racing frame from start to finish, or teams of monkish artisans working under his close supervision. This is mostly bunk, but we're all succeptible to paying extra for this comforting thought. The high cost of many European bikes has very little to do with production costs, it is almost entirely a matter of distribution and marketing.
Our "Dark Star" carbon fiber road frame is a case in point. With the monocoque carbon main frame and stays made by the same Italian company that supplies carbon frames to several Italian bike companies, approximately 75% of this frame's construction is done in Italy. It is practically identical to many other Italian brands' carbon framesets that come from the same source, yet we sell ours for at least $1,000 less. The price difference clearly is not related to production costs.

   Fort Bicycles receives our frames direct from the factory, without the extra markup of middle-men. We have held our prices to a minimum in order to get a foot in the door of the American market. Perhaps most importantly, we're small and frugal and don't splurge on infrastruture or schwag for the purpose of making an impression. We remind ourselves to serve the needs of cyclists, not ourselves; service is more important than branding. We invested more in a bike we gave to a promising young rider last year than we did on advertising for the entire year.

Inevitably, when it comes to bikes, a lot of people believe that price = value ("if it costs more, it must be better"). We all make this assumption almost daily in the marketplace, sometimes it's true. For some, their chief joy is telling others about how much they spent on a bike, or on a legendary brand name. If pride of ownership is what gets you on your bike and makes riding fun, more power to you! But the truth is that whatever our brand name may lack in media status is more than made up for in performance, and once you ride Fort Frames you'll know about real pride of ownership.

5.  "Do you offer sponsorships?"

   Yes, definitely. However, sponsoring is more complicated than most people realize. And we have some expectations of sponsorees. You should carefully consider what exactly you are seeking when you contact us or any company about sponsorships, and be honest about your qualifications. Believe it or not, your racing results are not the determining factor in most cases. We are more impressed by the number of events in which you participate and the way you present yourself and represent our product.
   But in recent years, we have been more interested in sponsoring clubs and teams than individuals. This is a trend thoughout the sport. Some teams out there do an excellent job of preparing a sponsorship prospectus, describing their team's organization in detail: the bottom line seems to be that when you present yourself well, your club or team sponsorship request carries a lot more weight. An amateur team which demonstates professionalism in their organization and their activities is most attractive to sponsors.
Please email to "info@fortbicycles.com" for more information about sponsoring.

6.  "Can you build up a complete bike?"

   Yes-But. The main problem with this idea for custom bikes is that to fit a standard bike box for shipping, a bike must be largely disassembled. The bar/stem must be removed and cables disconnected, and often the fork has to be removed, as well as the post and saddle. So all of the major headset, brake and shifting adjustments must be done with final reassembly anyway. If a mail order company promises that you can just ride away on their pre-assembled bike, don't believe it!
Furthermore, custom bike fitting is something that should be done with the rider present. We are most reluctant to cut a new carbon fork steerer to an arbitrary length, which may turn out to be too short for a given rider regardless of measurements (which never account for flexibility). Matching the steerer length of another bike that fits well is usually reliable, but many riders have difficulty measuring this accurately, or they may simply have been riding a less than perfect position without realizing it. Although we are happy to offer advice on bit fit in general, we prefer to recommend seeking the help of a local mechanic or fit expert before cutting an expensive carbon fork. See our web page about dealing with your local bike shop.
   We do, however, frequently install headsets and bottom brackets in frames for customers, and can provide a great deal of advice about assembling your bike. We'll do most everything for you at this end if you simply can't get it done locally. We're hoping to collect a database of excellent private mechanics in various regions, and we're also working on a complete instruction program (CD) to guide our customers through the very rewarding process of building up a bike.

7.  "Can you do custom geometry?"

   Sorry, we can't. That is, we won't. Custom geometry requires a great deal of extra time to diagram, configure and cut, so the frame-making process is over twice as long as when using standardized geometry. Hence, if we did custom geometry our prices would have to be doubled. For that amount, you can find some excellent custom frame makers in the USA who will help you out. We could even recommend some. But frankly, another issue is that too often custom builders are presented with impractical requests. We know our geometry works very well; we don't have so much confidence in your design. We have been known to make revisions to our standard geometry based upon feedback and recommendations from our customers over time, however.

8.  "Are Fort Frames available at any local bike shops?"

   Not very likely. After working to get a foot in the door at some good independent bike shops for many years, we have been compelled--like many companies--to resort to direct sales in most areas. This is not an easy decision, from the start our goal has been to work with dealer partners at building a brand that out-performed the bigger companies in customer satisfaction and service. But the industry has been growing in another direction, towards greater accommodation of the big bike companies and even franchising, as seen in so-called "concept stores." The tradition of Independent bike dealers carrying multiple brands is in jeapordy, and the small fish like ourselves are being aggressively chased out of the pond by the biggies who increasingly control bicycle dealers.
   Furthermore, a lot of bike shops these days are simply not interested in dealing with custom bikes. There's not so many with mechanics who are up to it, either. Generally, if you don't see an assortment of frames on the wall at your local bike shop (aside from their employees sell-offs), you can assume that this shop is not interested in handling custom bikes.
   Although we will continue some favored dealer relationships and remain open to new ones, especially with smaller independents, Fort Bicycles is gradually revamping our marketing plan towards direct sales. The good news for you is that our prices are now lower than ever, due to shrunken dealer margins. Fort Frames are already known for being an outstanding value, and now the deals are even better as everyone gets wholesale pricing. With the help of our customer base, who have got us this far on good word of mouth, we will continue to serve our customers and provide them with incomparable value.

9.  "Should I buy this Fort bike on eBay?"

   That may not be exactly the question, but we keep track of eBay listings of our products and do frequently get enquiries about frame models that are currently being auctioned. So we can read between the lines. We don't mind advising on this: we figure we owe it to our customers to help them sell their Fort frames, too. And we don't want new owners of Fort frames to be dissatisfied. But eBay shoppers should beware of some realities of the cyber-marketplace.
   To start with the most obvious (and outrageous), if you bid on a Fort frame or bike on eBay you may receive an email offering you the "same" product at a discounted price. This is ALWAYS a fraud. Nobody has a warehouse full of Forts ready to ship from Africa or Manila or anywhere else. Secondly, we often suspect that frames for sale on eBay may be stolen, due to the seller's ignorance of the frame or bikes in general. You might get a great deal on a stolen bike, but are you going to trust a thief to follow through on the transaction?
   A surprising lot of sellers list frames in sizes that never existed. A 2nd or 3rd owner might not know our measuring system, and these vary in the industry, but it seems really odd when they don't even bother to look up sizing on our website, or read it on the warranty card. Or don't know how bike frames are measured at all. Sometimes we can tell from a photo that the size of a frame is definitely not what the seller is claiming. So the buyer may not get what he's expecting, and recourse is difficult in a "how-you-measure-it, how-I-measure-it" sort of dispute.
   It's also surprising how often we see frames selling at prices that are close to what we have on our Clearance List for a new frame. Or more than a good used frame that we have in our stock. If you're really looking for a deal, give us a call first. We have referred several people to current eBay items, and have even arranged contact with other Fort owners whom we know have a used frame for sale.

10.  "How much does it weigh?"

  To put it bluntly, there is nothing more symbolic of the insanity of the bicycle market right now than the obsession with weight. When was the last time you saw an advertisement for a cycling product that emphasized--or even mentioned--durability? It's all about weight these days, and if you can manufacture any bicycle part that is lighter than the competition's, there's people out there who will pay anything to have it. And it needn't last long--another new product that's even lighter will replace it soon enough. Most of us are weight-weenies to some degree. Most of us could stand to lose some body weight. And still, most of us will throw money at anything to make us faster.

The problem is that, while the question about frame weight may be legitimate, the answer is usually not. Manufacturers publish weights of frames that are raw--without any seat post clamps, bottle boss bolts, derailleur hangers, or paint. Usually in a small size. Of course, you can't reduce it to that condition again to verify their weight claim, just as you can't claim your scale is certifiably more accurate than theirs. It's simply foolish to trust any advertized weight claim. And yet, that's what a lot of cyclists do. Consequently, the bottom line is that most bike companies are so terrified that their competitors will cheat at the weight game that they feel they have to do so as well. At Fort Bicycles, we are not ashamed of our frame weights. But honestly, there is always the temptation there to fudge a little when asked, because we assume the other companies are doing it and we don't want to be "beaten" by any dubious weight claim. Nobody wants to lose a sale to "those liars."

But aside from the credibility problem, we're fighting some nonsense about weight being the crux of performance. Lighter is not invariably better. Consider that two frames of the same size and material may be 100 grams different in weight. Major tubing suppliers, such as Columbus, offer numerous varieties of tubing shapes and weights within the same set. For example, the Altec2+ tubeset is available with 4 different downtubes: one is triple-butted to 1.8/0.8/1.1mm, another is 1.9/1.0/1.3mm, another is 2.2/1.0/1.4mm, and the fourth choice is 1.4/0.9/1.3mm. Framebuilders have such choices from which to decide whether to make a frame stronger or lighter, even in a specific area. Usually, they have sound reasons for chosing specific frame tubes: heavier tubes will be chosen for larger sized frames, for example. The fact that one framemaker may choose the lightest tubing available down the line--and consequently have somewhat lighter frames of the same material--is not in itself an endorsement. Any idiot can choose to build with the lightest materials, but the art is in picking the optimal, the appropriate, the right frame tube for a specific size, purpose, or rider. So, although we're tempted to say, "It weighs the same as everyone else's Altec2+ frame," in fact it may not.
Is any new material a better performing frame tube than another simply by virtue of being lighter? Never. Developments in aluminum alloys for bicycle frames in recent years have stressed improved resilience to welding heat and functional stresses, along with weight reduction. The recent renaissance of carbon fiber construction is based primarily on the perfomance of such parts in damping vibration and overall comfort, rather than just weight. Quality of ride counts, too. While bicycle design has always been a quest to develop improved performance from lighter weight, bicycle riding has always been about the thrill of riding steady at high speed, about riding comfortably over long distances, and making it to the finish without breakdowns.