Ritte

Description

Ritte Bicycles is a Los Angeles-based cycling brand founded on the belief that the culture of cycling had grown stale and needed a jolt of personality, fun, and irreverence. Producing titanium, carbon, and steel road and gravel bikes—alongside wheels and branded apparel—Ritte quickly earned a cult-like following among cyclists drawn to its distinctive aesthetic, playful storytelling, and refusal to conform to the conventions of the mainstream cycling industry. The brand combines serious engineering with a creative sensibility inspired as much by art and design as by racing.

History

The Namesake

Ritte takes its name from Henri “Ritte” Van Lerberghe, a Belgian cyclist who rode in one of cycling’s great early races around a century ago. According to legend, Van Lerberghe took the lead so early and built such an enormous margin that he stopped at a pub for a beer during the race, then got back on his bike and still crossed the finish line first. This story of audacity, joy, and devil-may-care confidence became the founding narrative of the brand.

Founding

Ritte Cycles was founded in 2010 by Spencer Canon in Los Angeles, California. Canon started the brand with a mission to “change cycling culture for the better,” creating a company that would appeal to the true fundamentals of the sport—fun, youthfulness, belonging, and a sense of adventure. With no budget and boundless energy, Canon built the brand through sheer creative force, crafting a visual identity and brand voice that stood in stark contrast to the serious, corporate tone of most cycling companies.

Design and Influence

Ritte’s approach to bicycle design blends high-end frame engineering with bold graphic design and art-world sensibility. The brand’s tone, visual language, and ethos were quickly noticed and adopted—sometimes directly imitated—by other companies in the cycling industry, a testament to the cultural impact Ritte achieved from a position of relative obscurity. Limited runs, striking colourways, and carefully curated collaborations reinforced the brand’s identity as something genuinely different.

Product Range

Today, Ritte produces a focused range of titanium, carbon, and steel frames for road and gravel riding, builds its own wheels, and sells a line of cycling apparel and accessories that extends the brand’s aesthetic beyond the bike itself.

Source

• Website: ritte.cc