Kona Bikes

Kona Bikes is best known for their mountain, cross country and downhill bikes. They also make a handful of road and city bikes. The company was founded in 1988, the heyday of the West Coast mountain biking scene.

• address: 2455 Salashan, Ferndale, WA 98248
• telephone: 800-566-2872
• fax: (800) 654-0519
• website: http://www.konaworld.com
• e-mail: [email protected]

Description

Kona designs all of their bikes, which have a reputation for being a good value for the money, never the priciest bikes in their respective categories. That’s especially the case in their newer lines, where Kona is making non-mountain bike models. Konas are known to be capable, hard working machines with a good deal of comfort. Starting in 2000, Kona’s top-of-the-line frames were made with Scandium. It’s a fancy metal that is mixed with aluminum resulting in a light, durable bicycle frame.

Loyalty runs deep among owners of Kona mountain bikes. It’s not unusual for riders to say, “This is my 3rd Kona,” or “my 4th.” They’re built to withstand vigorous use by daredevil riders, yet some owners never see dirt beneath their tires, and even hard core racers rave about the smooth commute the very same bike provides. Several mountain bike championships have been won on Kona bikes.

Today, in addition to making every type of mountain bike, Kona has expanded to include freeride and dirt jump bikes, classic road bikes, asphalt and utility/cargo models, and a line of bicycles designed for women, including triathlon bikes. They also sell, what they call “real” mountain bikes for kids. One Kona model is the AfricaBike. For every two of them sold, one is donated to a good cause somewhere in the world, including AIDs workers in Africa. The company also partners with city bike parks, where riders can rent Konas, and get involved with building bike trails. This makes sense from an organization whose founder has been involved in bicycle advocacy for years.

The company is located in Ferndale, WA and Vancouver, British Columbia, 50% U.S. and 50% Canadian owned. The bikes are put together in Taiwan from parts and materials made in places like Canada, China, France, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, and the U.S. All three founders, Jacob Heilbron, Dan Gerhard and Joe Murray, are Mountain Bike Hall inductees. In the early days, the owners named bike models after Hawaiian words and volcanoes. The word, Kona, itself is a district on the Big Island of Hawaii.

Hours of work

Monday – Friday

9 am to 5 pm

Additional Information

• Standard Frames: Yes
• Custom Frames: No
• Retrofitting old bikes: No
• Year Established: 1988
• Products Made In: Designed in US and Canada, manufactured in Taiwan
• Availability: Independent bicycle dealers worldwide
• Types of Bicycles: mountain, downhill, road, city, kids
• Construction Methods: Tigg welding
• Frame Materials: aluminum, scandium alloy, steel