In a mix of grassroots rider support and just putting some enthusiastic amateur riders out in the world to get more eyes on their newest products, Endura has announced the roll out of their first group of Ground Division brand ambassadors. Made up of a group of 18 riders from a mix of road and mountain bike disciplines across Europe, the cyclists got a giant kit bag of gear to usher them through the changing seasons. They say that the Ground Division concept was intended to fuel raw riding talent outside of the normal pro sponsorship channels. For this first go around Endura looks to have made the selection of the lucky riders mostly internally, out of a pool of shop rats and up-and-coming riders already known to their own sales managers, but maybe you’ll get a shot next season…
Endura say they started out with a mix of picking promising cyclists riding on the edges of their extended Endura family, but riding ability had to get balanced with a passion for cycling and the ability to spread the word. That amateur ambassadorship is a trend we see more and more in the industry and Endura thinks that the Ground Division program can also help them develop products further.
The brand ambassadors are able to get away from the product development cycle, or even the demands or racing and sponsorship deals, and just ride in the gear and provide their own feedback. Endura already gets pro feedback from their world number one ranked Movistar Team o the road, led by double Grand Tour winner Nairo Quintana and at the other end of the spectrum by trialsin’ wizard Danny MacAskill. That helps develop big international coverage and real world feedback at some extreme edges of cycling, but the Ground Division aims to hit more in the middle how the bulk of us normal humans actually ride.
Endura like to think they have what they call a ‘Renegade Progress’ – something of an outsider’s look at the cycling apparel industry and a perspective that has helped them to develop some new and fairly innovative products from slippery skinsuits to honeycomb helmets & pads to trail riding backpacks over the past couple years. The Ground Division concept aims to try to continue to support that type of alternative approach with a goal “to create a movement that fans of the Endura brand aspire to join and to represent.” That sounds like they’ll be looking to have more riders join their grassroots approach next time around.
