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Tested On Ice
Since the inception of the ICEBIKE site and the ICEBIKE mailing list there
has been a dearth of reliable products and information there-on for winter cycling.
Due to this, winter cyclists have turned to other areas for products and pressed
these into service in winter cycling.
While this has had quite satisfactory results in the past and has added
markets for these products that they might not otherwise enjoy, it does leave a void of
reliable avenues to market for products that are designed specifically for winter cycling,
as well as a lack of information on items useful to ICEBIKING which originated out side
the cycling industry.
Not all products used by winter cyclists need be designed for winter
cycling, they need simply be useful for winter cycling. Some manufacturers never
conceived that their products would work for ICEBIKING, and quite frankly, many have never
even heard of the concept of ICEBIKING. Be that as it may, sales are sales, and an
independent review can have significant sales potential. Products that are well
received and appear on ICEBIKE carry a large advertising advantage in the form of an
independent testimonial from the very people involved in the activity for which the
product is marketed.
To assist ICEBIKERS in finding useful products by separating the marketing
claims from the true winter performance, on bikes, on ice, in temperatures most marketing
executives never venture out in, the ICEBIKE site has devised it's TESTED
ON ICE program.
Tested On Ice
 Tested On Ice works like this.
Parties with products to sell into the winter cycling market, or merely
with products that might sell in the winter cycling market may supply
samples to the ICEBIKE site.
These simples will be tested by qualified winter cyclists in cold
weather environments. The tester will write a review of the product, stating good
and bad points, suitability for winter cycling, and general impression of quality.
This write up will appear on the ICEBIKE site on our Tested On Ice pages, one set
for Clothing, another for Equipment.
The product submitter will not be able to change the review, or request
its deletion if they do not like the outcome. They may request a re-test in another
environment, and may challenge statements that are clearly false. Submitter indemnifies
the reviewer and the ICEBIKE site against all claim by submitter or its agents arising
from the appearance of the review.
Reviewers who take products and fail to review them, or fail to return
them will have their names and addresses published, and be dropped from the review program
entirely.
Products will be returned (at the end of testing) at the submitters
request and expense. Clothing items are not considered returnable, whereas bicycle
parts or equipment are.
Reviewers will be chosen by the Webmaster of this site in consultation
with long time participants of the ICEBIKE mailing list. More than one reviewer is
desirable, especially for inexpensive products, and even more so for clothing items, as
personal opinions vary widely with physiology. Therefore more than one sample may be
needed.
Gullibility is not one of our reviewer selection criterion.
Reviews are carried out in winter conditions, extreme at times, but not
outside of the environment specified by the submitter. Most tests will take place in
the Northern United States, Canada, and for European products, Scandinavian countries
where cold, snow, and ice can be counted on. Items suitable for cold wet
environments may be tested in Great Britian, the Canadian Maritimes, east coast USA, or
other suitable areas.
If a submitter offers an article and suggests it is useful down to a
certain temperature or condition, it will be reviewed down to that temperature (and
perhaps colder/warmer), but unsuitability outside the specified environment will not be
allowed to appear in the review. In other words, the tests will be fair.
The Webmaster does not keep items to be tested. Reviewers may keep items
unless the submitter asks that they be returned and pays return shipping.
All items will be shipped (at submitters expense) directly to the
selected reviewer. Submitters interested in our most rigorous testing may ship items
to this webmaster or a mutually agree upon third party and these will be shipped to the
reviewer, without contact between submitter and reviewer. This blind review process
can alleviate any hint of collusion.
No money changes hands.
Products found exceptionally useful may have entire pages devoted to
them, such as our studded tires pages.
How to Participate
Submitters of items for review should contact the webmaster of this site
by Email, and we will discuss terms and
conditions. Reviewers will then be found from among the ICEBIKE Mailing list, and
tests can begin.
People wanting to review items need only be members of the ICEBIKE Mailing
list. Requests for reviewers will be posted there.
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