SN Designs - an exhibitor on Cyclorama, the online guide to outstanding and specialised cycles

Individually hand made to order, SN Design's Rattlebone side-hack is great fun and demands good team work between pilot and 'monkey'.

Exhibitor Profile: SN Designs

SN Designs is a small start up business run by Steve and Nick, two qualified Mechanical engineers based in Bristol in the South West of England.

The sidecar business all started when Steve made one for the school run for his son. It attracted so much positive attention that we thought there may be a market for such a device.

Sidehack racing is an extension of BMX racing.

Standard BMX bikes are equipped with chariot style sidecars and two riders work as a team to get the most performance from the outfit.
The bike rider, known as the Pilot, is responsible for steering, pedalling and braking. The sidecar rider, known as the Monkey, has a key role to play in transferring their weight to keep the outfit stable in the corners; they also help to push the bike by scooting when needed and pushing at the start. Keen teamwork between the two riders is essential to gaining a fast lap time.

Sidehack racing is not new. It was popular in the 1980’s and late 1970’s particularly in the USA. However as BMX riders migrated from the track to the skate park, sidehacks had little to offer in terms of tricks and stunts and since about 1983, they have been none seen on the circuit.

SN-Designs are dedicated to re-introducing sidehacks to the racetrack. The Rattlebone product is ready to go and sales are beginning to take off, but the sport requires more publicity and adoption on the BMX race calendar is the next step to it being recognised as an official sport. We are working with British Cycling to get it recognised as an official event.

Although we are currently focused on producing them as a racing and sport product, but the possibilities are much wider. SN-Designs also make one-off design and build projects for customers around the globe. Recent examples include a tandem ice-cream dispensing side-car, a dog carrying side-car, a cargo variant of the Rattlebone and new luggage rack alternatives.

The business culture contains two key principles. The first is listening to the customer to ensure we get the build right and also accommodate any specific requests.

The second is that build days always include a coffee break with doughnuts. Yum!

Read Mick's interview with Steve and Nick in the Cyclorama blog.

Visit this exhibitor's website: http://www.sn-designs.co.uk/