J dub
Bronze member
Alright, I thought this was pretty good. Not knocking rider owned companies (heck, I own one myself!), but a decent read that Phoenix just put on their FB.
RIDERS:
I am getting so tired of all this "Rider Owned" bullshit going on out there in the industry. No, I can't flair or bri or backflip. But i DO ride! Just because a kid who rides scooters designs a part does not mean that design is automatically good. AND, it does not mean that kid knows anything about, design, material use, manufacturing, customer service or any other function of running a business.
There ARE riders who are intelligent and educated enough to run a solid business and make decent parts, my friend Collin Snoek from TILT is a great example. But go ahead and ask Collin if being in the scooter business is easy. I bet he would tell you that he works his ass off.
Collin is one of the exceptions in the Scooter Industry. I became very passionate about the scooter scene when I saw what riders were able to do with the scooter. I never saw it as an opportunity to make money. When I saw edits put out by some of todays biggest names, I couldn’t believe they were riding bolted Razors and risking everything to pull off amazing tricks. I was talking with a close friend of mine Pistol Pete Loncarevich who was the Razor Team manager about 11 years ago. He was telling me to check out video of Jarret Reid from back in the day and I was hooked.
My son Kyle and I went to an Action Sports show here in Portland and we saw the TSI team there. I had seen some pics of the new Razor Ultra Pro and i liked what TSI was doing too. Watching riders like Cooper Klaar and Alex Dorantes in person was like a dream come true. I just knew i could make a scooter WAY better.
I have always been a rider, maybe not scooters but a rider is a rider. I raced BMX as a kid, helped build a halfpipe and rode skateboards, competed in Semi-Pro Downhill Mountain Bikes, been a snowboarder for almost 20 years, road raced motorcycles, tried Supermoto, ridden Motocross and am still a BMX rider. I also ride scooters. In my career I have worked on cars, owned a bike shop, started a clothing company, worked as a professional bike mechanic on the World Cup circuit, worked for one of the world’s largest suspension companies (FOX Racing Shox)and built houses. As a mechanic for a World Champion Downhill racer I learned to understand rider feedback and apply my own experiences as a rider to find solutions for better setups.
As the owner of Phoenix Pro Scooters, I take so much pride in our scooter decks and parts. I want to offer the scene the highest quality and best engineered parts in the world. Our team of riders has a say in everything we build, they are riders, I am a rider….we can relate to each other and make Phoenix parts the best.
On top of that, my business background has allowed Phoenix to also become one of the best in Customer Service as well. We treat you with the greatest respect and take all your feedback seriously. We offer the best warranties on our parts and take care of any problems without treating you like you are stupid. We are creating solid relationships with our dealers too. Phoenix dealers are knowledgeable and considered to be the best in the Scooter Industry. We make ALL our parts right here in Portland, Oregon, USA and we are proud to contribute to our local economy and employ many scooter riders in our shop.
I don’t think that just because a company is “Rider Owned” that it automatically means they what it takes to be successful. I applaud anyone who has the passion for our sport and loves all things Scooters! If you have the passion, do it. But please don’t act like just because you are “Rider Owned”, you have a better handle on what the Scooter Community needs or wants. Our scene has a ways to go and we ALL need to work together to step up our game. I for one will continue to do what I love and that is designing the best parts to help push the limits of what is possible on a scooter.
Peace,
Tom Floyd
Proprietor
Phoenix Pro Scooters
RIDERS:
I am getting so tired of all this "Rider Owned" bullshit going on out there in the industry. No, I can't flair or bri or backflip. But i DO ride! Just because a kid who rides scooters designs a part does not mean that design is automatically good. AND, it does not mean that kid knows anything about, design, material use, manufacturing, customer service or any other function of running a business.
There ARE riders who are intelligent and educated enough to run a solid business and make decent parts, my friend Collin Snoek from TILT is a great example. But go ahead and ask Collin if being in the scooter business is easy. I bet he would tell you that he works his ass off.
Collin is one of the exceptions in the Scooter Industry. I became very passionate about the scooter scene when I saw what riders were able to do with the scooter. I never saw it as an opportunity to make money. When I saw edits put out by some of todays biggest names, I couldn’t believe they were riding bolted Razors and risking everything to pull off amazing tricks. I was talking with a close friend of mine Pistol Pete Loncarevich who was the Razor Team manager about 11 years ago. He was telling me to check out video of Jarret Reid from back in the day and I was hooked.
My son Kyle and I went to an Action Sports show here in Portland and we saw the TSI team there. I had seen some pics of the new Razor Ultra Pro and i liked what TSI was doing too. Watching riders like Cooper Klaar and Alex Dorantes in person was like a dream come true. I just knew i could make a scooter WAY better.
I have always been a rider, maybe not scooters but a rider is a rider. I raced BMX as a kid, helped build a halfpipe and rode skateboards, competed in Semi-Pro Downhill Mountain Bikes, been a snowboarder for almost 20 years, road raced motorcycles, tried Supermoto, ridden Motocross and am still a BMX rider. I also ride scooters. In my career I have worked on cars, owned a bike shop, started a clothing company, worked as a professional bike mechanic on the World Cup circuit, worked for one of the world’s largest suspension companies (FOX Racing Shox)and built houses. As a mechanic for a World Champion Downhill racer I learned to understand rider feedback and apply my own experiences as a rider to find solutions for better setups.
As the owner of Phoenix Pro Scooters, I take so much pride in our scooter decks and parts. I want to offer the scene the highest quality and best engineered parts in the world. Our team of riders has a say in everything we build, they are riders, I am a rider….we can relate to each other and make Phoenix parts the best.
On top of that, my business background has allowed Phoenix to also become one of the best in Customer Service as well. We treat you with the greatest respect and take all your feedback seriously. We offer the best warranties on our parts and take care of any problems without treating you like you are stupid. We are creating solid relationships with our dealers too. Phoenix dealers are knowledgeable and considered to be the best in the Scooter Industry. We make ALL our parts right here in Portland, Oregon, USA and we are proud to contribute to our local economy and employ many scooter riders in our shop.
I don’t think that just because a company is “Rider Owned” that it automatically means they what it takes to be successful. I applaud anyone who has the passion for our sport and loves all things Scooters! If you have the passion, do it. But please don’t act like just because you are “Rider Owned”, you have a better handle on what the Scooter Community needs or wants. Our scene has a ways to go and we ALL need to work together to step up our game. I for one will continue to do what I love and that is designing the best parts to help push the limits of what is possible on a scooter.
Peace,
Tom Floyd
Proprietor
Phoenix Pro Scooters
