BRIM Brothers – Spark ! Rise ! Fall :-( Aftermath :-(

“One of the most highly anticipated cycling products in recent memory was the intriguing Brim Brothers Zone DPMX power meter, a clever cleat-based system that promised the ultimate in portability. After eight years in development, a highly successful crowdfunding campaign, and more than a little bit of media coverage, CEO Barry Redmond announced last week that Brim Brothers was shuttering its doors, citing insurmountable challenges with putting the power meter into production.” writes James Huang on cyclingtips.com.

Many of us have bought a powermeter in a box but, probably, never ‘in a shoe’. That’s what BRIM Brothers were hoping to do. Great idea…super easy moving it from bike-to-bike.

Read the link below to cyclingtips.com for the full story of the €200,000 raised on Kickstarter, it’s an interesting read and not too long.

Here are a few juicy quotes to whet the appetite.

Perhaps the biggest mistake that we made was that we were probably overly optimistic about moving into production

Then there were the pesky shoes themselves

it turned out that the force sensor is affected by the flexing of a cycling shoe

hmmm.

And, of course, the disappointed backers who will get nothing back

I have supported several Kickstarters in the past, but this is by far the most expensive that I have chosen to support, and the only one that successfully funded and did not deliver.

The article finishes by pointing out the other side of the story where the CEO, Barry Redmond, also lost his investment and many years of unpaid time.

Sometimes, “The credit belongs to the man who is in the arena…“. you’ve just got to try these things or regret forever on what might have been.

It’s a shame that these were relatively expensive items that the backers risked their monies on but at least it seems like a genuine attempt to deliver a great idea.

Full article <here>

Image source: BRIM Brothers/Cyclingtips.com