Intense Cycles

Jeff Steber launched Intense Cycles in 1990 out of his garage in California. The 1990s were a heyday of mountain biking, and Intense Cycles found their way into the market quickly thanks to a commitment to innovation. From his very first ride on a mountain bike, he started scheming of ways to improve the experience.

While his initial design used existing frames and simple construction, Jeff deployed one small quirk: sealed bearing pivots. For a sport with intense forces and impacts, providing a sealed bearing meant his bikes could go harder without issues than his competitors. Just like that, a company blossomed.

Today, Intense Cycles provide some of the highest quality adventure bikes out there. Steber continues to head the company and continues to innovate. Their product line includes a full suite of downhill, enduro, trail, cross country, and e-bikes specifically geared towards riders seeking the ultimate performance machine.

In a testament to their bikes’ quality, Intense counts among its ambassadors some of the best mountain bikers in the world. For over 20 years, Chris Kovarik from Australia has spearheaded the Intense Cycles racing team.

Kovarik set the record for the widest gap between 1st and 2nd place on the World Stage. Since then, he has relaxed on racing a bit to focus on coaching and mentoring with his own company Kovarik Racing.

Claire Buchar, another icon of the sport, also makes her mark using Intense Cycles. Claire has a bronze medal in the World Championships under her belt and numerous Canadian national titles and twelve appearances on the Canadian national team.

In other words, Intense builds fantastic bikes, and those bikes get the attention of amazing riders.

Featured Intense Cycles Bikes Made in the USA

Downhill: Intense Cycles’ range of downhill bikes, the ‘M-Series’ is where race heritage meets innovation. The original M1 was created in 1994 and has evolved through the years to the latest offering, the M29. Each year, the latest innovations contribute to regular testing, tweaking, and honing to continuously create upgraded models. The M-Series is a solid downhill bike for both racing and riding. 

eBike: If you’re looking for a mountain bike experience that’s playful and fun, then Intense Cycles’ eBike range, the ‘Tazer’ will help you ride farther, faster, and climb higher. All about helping you ride almost anywhere, the Tazer range is all about providing you with more opportunities to do the fun stuff and get out there. 

Trail: Dubbed their most versatile bike model, Intense Cycles’ trail bike ‘Primer’ range will help you stay true to the trail. These bikes are designed for all types of cycling, from multi-day adventures to all-day rides to racing around in your local woods. It’s a trail bike combined with balance and stability but is also nimble and fun, perfect for most adventures.  

Cross Country: Intense Cycle’s cross country bike range is called the ‘Sniper’ for a reason. These bikes are all about speed, both up and down. With lots of options like a super-lightweight carbon frame and pure full suspension, the Sniper bikes are fast, fiery, and truly innovative. Ideal for marathons, cross-country racing, or hitting up your local loop, the Sniper will help you do it quickly. 

Manufacturing Notes

To this day, Intense Cycles still manufactures its bikes in an industrial park off the I-15 freeway in Southern California. Though the company has grown to become international, it still ships its bikes from its US headquarters. 

Intense Cycles now has a global network of INTENSE international headquarters with dedicated teams in the UK and Barcelona, Spain. It has inventories in the USA and Europe as well as demo and service centers across the UK and Europe, where customers are able to demo a bike, have warranties issued, or shop for spare parts.

Whilst Intense Cycles has the USA at its heart and has most of its bikes manufactured there, they’ve expanded into a global company with offices and sites across the UK and Europe too.