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In the early days of freestyle BMX if you weren’t rocking Skyway wheels then your bike just wasn’t cool. Mark Sutton asks Coyote Sports’ Iain Pollitt-Walmsley, with a resurgence in 20-inch freestyle, can the Skyway be a hit with the new generation?
Can you give us a brief history of Skyways and Coyote Sport’s involvement with the brand?
Skyway has been manufacturing wheels since the late ‘70s and produces product for a variety of market places. For example, the firm has a very strong presence in the medical sector (wheelchair wheels) and also in the agricultural market (they produce wheels for garden machinery).
Coyote Sports has been dealing with Skyway over the past four years. We started off with the 20-inch Tuff II’S in black and white, and since then we have extended the offering of the Tuff II’s into blue, green, yellow, pink and orange in 20-inch, as well as the Graphite version.
We also carry 16-inch and 24-inch Crusier wheels in black and white. We have worked closely with the Skyway team in developing new products, and bringing about the reintroduction of some old products too.
The firm is known for its roots in freestyle BMX wheels, but Skyway now offers much more – what can Coyote offer dealers?
We have just had our first shipment of colour coded brake blocks, BMX grips and locking grips, the response to which has been fantastic.
We have quite a few new lines in development for next year, including tyres, saddles, handlebars. There will also be new wheel options, including different colours and hub specifications. One such development is the coaster brake and nine tooth cassette versions due early next year.
Has the design of the wheels remained true to its roots?
Skyway has kept to the same specification, with sealed bearings and the wheel being made from a dupont material, meaning that they are as strong as ever and stay true.
Is the myth that ‘freezing’ a buckled Skyway can true the wheel infact true?
To be truthful, I would think it a myth, but I would be happy to know of anyone who has been successful in doing this…
Skyway now offers a carbon-fibre composite ‘Graphite Tuff’ – do you hold this wheel?
We do stock the Graphite version of the 20-inch Tuff II. The golden hub finish really makes the wheels stand out from anything else on the market.
Wheels for the mobility market are also manufactured by Skyway, can dealers obtain these through Coyote?
We work closely with Skyways and are more than happy to supply any wheel that they produce for any market.
We can also offer a ‘unique’ colour option if the quantities ordered by the customer are high enough.
Can replacement parts/bearings be ordered via Coyote?
Yes. We do have in stock bearing kits and axles, we are also waiting for our first shipment of POS material including t-shirts, stick sets and posters.
How are sales of Skyway components going to date?
The sales of all Skyway products has exceeded our initial estimates. We have more stock arriving very shortly and it’s nice to see repeat orders for the products coming in thick and fast. We hope that the rest of the range has the same response and to continue to build on the portfolio going forwards.
Is a typical end-user a BMX old-schooler, or are today’s BMX generation taking an interest?
We see that the old school BMX riders love the fact that they can buy the products and the fact that the range is expanding, but we are also seeing a huge market for today’s generation wanting to ride with Skyway products. Then there’s the dads who used to ride on them wanting their kids to have a pair.
What margin can a dealer typically achieve from selling Skyway wheels and components?
Dealers can make very healthy margins on the wheels and even larger margins on the brake pads and grips.
Does Skyway do OEM business with any brands?
We have several ranges of bikes that have the skyway wheels on them, the most popular is the Rooster brand of Big Daddy and Big Momma bikes, but we also have the Piranha range, which carry Skyway wheels on some bikes.
