TIME - Competition is in our DNA

The date was March 22, 2003, and Rolland Cattin was celebrating perhaps TIME’s biggest victory to date: Paolo Bettini had just won Milan San Remo in a two-up sprint against Mirko Celestino while his teammate Luca Paolini took the final podium position two seconds later. It would be among the victories that would lead to Bettini’s being the #1 ranked rider in the world at the end of 2003. That was only the beginning of a string of huge successes TIME Bicycles would enjoy under riders like Bettini, Tom Boonen, Michael Rogers, Thomas Voeckler, and Sylvain Chavanel. 

Cattin had founded TIME in 1987, along with his father-in-law Jean Beyl who had founded LOOK in 1948. LOOK was originally focused on ski binding, but by 1984, Beyl had invented the first clipless pedal and helped revolutionize the industry. He and Cattin joined forces with TIME in order to further clipless pedal development and shortly thereafter, they decided to dedicate much of their efforts to advance composite development of bicycle frames and forks.  

The goal from the outset was to make carbon bikes that could help the greatest athletes in the world win the biggest bike races. That’s why sponsoring top teams has always been a priority for TIME. Starting with Jean-René Bernaudeau’s teams in 2000 and then Patrick Lefevere’s various iterations with Quick-Step in 2003, TIME Bicycles featured in some of the most iconic victories in the modern era. In 2003 alone, in addition to victory at Milan San Remo, TIME had its first Tour de France stage win and the King of the Mountains jersey with French climbing ace Richard Virenque, and added rainbow stripes to the collection with Michael Rogers’ win at the World Championships in the individual time trial. 

In 2004 TIME celebrated multiple days in the yellow jersey with Thomas Voeckler’s first great run at the Tour de France where he stayed in the lead beyond everyone’s expectations. The images of him keeping the lead ahead of a charging Lance Armstrong at the top of Plateau de Beille are iconic and a special illustration of the type of passion and perseverance that is at the very root of the TIME brand. The icing on the cake for 2004 came with Paolo Bettini’s victory in the Olympic Road Race in Athens. 

Even with this success, greater triumphs with exceptional rides would continue to stimulate the imagination of every cycling fan. For instance, Tom Boonen took an impressive victory at Paris-Roubaix in 2005 only to follow that up with a powerful sprint to win at the World Championships in Madrid. In 2006, Paolo Bettini would keep the rainbow stripes in the family with a win at Worlds in Salzburg outsprinting Erik Zabel and Alejandro Valverde. These high profile victories cemented the reputation of TIME Bicycles as the best in the peloton, capable of winning everything from the cobbled classics, to high mountain stages and World Championships.

TIME’s success on the road with the pros provided the designers with the type of valuable feedback that resulted in top end bikes for all TIME’s customers. As Roland Cattin once said: “The bottom line is the feel of the ride.” All the victories in the world would be worth nothing if the product didn’t also bring joy and pleasure to everyone riding a TIME Bicycle. And that will certainly be the attitude we will take forward with TIME as we take the reins of TIME product development. We look forward to adding many more iconic images to the collection of TIME victories. 

It’s no coincidence that TIME has such a deep race-winning heritage. Races are won with passion, fearless innovation, and a willingness to reach beyond the ordinary. TIME's RTM manufacturing has made it possible for many champions to find success, and even more cycling enthusiasts to enjoy their weekend rides. Now we share that commitment to exciting new product development with the goal of returning TIME to its podium position in the world of cycling. We invite all of you along for the ride.

Tony Karklins / Co-CEO TIME Bicycles