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Specialized

Owner

snowboardermale

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www.specialized.com/nz/en/bc/home.jsp

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Specialized was founded in 1974 by Mike Sinyard, a cycling enthusiast who sold his VW van for the $1500 startup capital. Sinyard started out importing hard-to-find bike components, but the company began to produce its own bike parts by 1976. Specialized introduced the first major production mountain bike in the world, the Stumpjumper, in 1980. In 2001 49% of shares were bought by Merida Bikes of Taiwan for a reported sum of 30 million US$. However Mike Sinyard remained majority owner and CEO of the company.

Specialized created the first professional mountain bike racing team, a dedicated BMX program, and an elite road racing program.

The company produces a variety of gear, including clothing, helmets, and parts, in addition to over 25 lines of bikes. Specialized is distinctively known for placing many of their own parts on their bikes as stock, which is not a common practice among mountain bike companies. They range from less expensive models such as the Hardrock, P series, and the children's Hotrock, up to the expensive S-Works models for road and cross-country riding, and the Demo for freeride and downhill mountain biking.

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