EVENT: POLYGON CYCLING TOUR

Building strong bond and instilling confidence with loyal supporters

Polygon had came a long way since its introduction in 1989. From building only steel and aluminum frames back then to their newly launched Collosus carbon mountain bikes, the brand had made tremendous progress in the past 2 decades. With their acquired experience in bicycle manufacturing and design, they are more than ready to impress the world with their bikes through the performances of the Polygon UR Team. Their progress came with little surprise to us though, as we found out how hard they worked and rode. The Polygon Cycling Tour was the brand’s way of saying they appreciate their loyal supporters. A lucky group of Polygon riders from Singapore and Malaysia were treated to some exclusive programs that warrant some bragging rights. Read on for the story.

THE POLYGON FACTORY VISIT

The inaugural Polygon Cycling Tour, organized by Polygon International was held from the 22nd to 24th of May at Mount Bromo, Indonesia. The event was arranged to show Polygon’s appreciation and gratitude to their trusting customers from Malaysia and Singapore.

“This was our first international cycling tour event for our customers, through this event we wanted to show our gratitude for everything our customers have done for us, this is also one of our customer experience strategies for international customers. Through this event we also wanted to give customers a chance to witness how beautiful Indonesia is ” Fendi Widhiatmoko, Polygon Bromo Cycling Tour Event Coordinator.

All of the participants arrived in Indonesia on May 22nd 2015 and headed straight to the Polygon factory based in Sidoarjo, East Java. The event started with a tour around the Polygon manufacturing facility. The tour followed the production path and all of the participants got to see every step in the production process. The lucky customers also got the chance to ride Polygon’s product at the Polygon Bike Park, which is just a stone’s throw from the factory. The tour then headed to Mount Bromo to prepare for the 40km ride in the morning of the following day.

THE BROMO SUNRISE AND THE BROMO ENDURO RIDE

The Singapore / Malaysian group of riders woke up at 2 am to a 3 degree chill in the air to catch the jeep convoy up to Mount Panajakan to catch one of the most amazing sunrise in Indonesia. Even the jeep ride up to the view point is a unique experience for the visiting group as the jeep convoy raced through the Sea of Sand. After everyone got their fill from taking photos of the beautiful sunrise, it’s time to return back to the hotel and get ready for the epic ride!

The ride started at 8 am from Jemplang with a fast and flowy gravel trail followed by a roller coaster downhill to Tutur. After taking a short break at Nongko Jajar, all of the participants continued their ride to Welang. The road to Welang is a technically challenging trail with several climbs and descents with an amazing backdrop to accompany riders to the finish line.

“I have never done an overseas ride, so I had to make use of this chance, it was too good of an opportunity for me to miss. Overall the event was great, its an amazing eye opener for me. I really appreciate the effort of the Polygon team in organizing this amazing event. They have awesome bikes too!! Looking forward to the upcoming trip” said Koi Yihao from Singapore.

“I always wanted to ride Mount Bromo, now even more so because it was organized by Polygon which manufactures the bike that I own. The ride itself is awesome!! Also the ground crew, mechanics, riders and organizers are very helpful and friendly. Everything starting from airport pickup to sendoff is good!” said Joshua Liew, Malaysia.

AN MEMORABLE AND CHERISHED TRIP

While this is no 5-star luxury trip, it is a trip that brought people together. It brought fellow Polygon riders closer. It brought the Polygon supporters closer to the folks behind the brand. It was through the factory visit that we discover just how much effort was put into the manufacturing of these bicycles. And it is through riding with the Polygon factory crew down Mount Bromo that we know how hard these guys rode and why Polygon bikes are designed they way they are. While Polygon marketing team stated that this trip was part of their customer experience strategy, we see this as an effort to put more soul into the brand. Brands that offered customer experience or outreach programs for Asian customers are few to come by. And meeting the folks behind the team definitely proved that we were right to say that this brand does have a heart and a soul.