At the cash register: 2008 a good vintage?

"We've got strong and precise data on this, but in the absence of that, I can factually tell you we're up." So reports Landry's Bicycle's Boston store manager Mark Vautour. Ask the A+ triathlon bike retailers around the country, and you'll hear a consistent message: triathlon is healthier than ever at the cash register.

Even in economically depressed areas, triathlon-specific bike sales remain strong. "I'm not ready to say that the economy has not affected us," says Bikesport Michigan's Tom Demerly. But the Dearborn-based store, smack in the heart of Ford country, says, "Triathlon hovers one level above the general demographic." Triathlon's strength of category, and the power of its strong demographic, seems to be universally lifting sales across the country.

Retailers are notoriously honest, at least to this reporter, when asked about sales figures. They're not shy to admit when sales are in a slump. They assume, usually correctly, that it's not their store, but the industry in general that's down.

But that's not the case in 2008. Jim Hoyt, owner of Dallas powerhouse Richardson Bike Mart, says it's a "very good year, good solid growth." Stores universally report prosperity in their tri-specific sales.

In some cases, though triathlon sales are up, customers were later to the party than usual. "We're up single digits [year over year]," says Gear West's Kevin O'Connor of his Twin City powerhouse retail store. "We started really slow, because it was really cold, but the weather broke first of May and since then it's been gangbusters."

This accounting is echoed by Seattle's Reed Sillers, owner of Speedy Reedy. "We had a little slowdown at the beginning of the season, but we've rebounded. Sales are increasing. Maybe it was the economy that slowed us early, or maybe the weather. We had a lot of cold weather early."

Nationwide, triathlon sales are strong. Part of this largesse is certainly due to the positioning of the stores we polled. These are among the nation's best stores and, like the best race directors, their numbers are often up at the expense of those who haven't reached the top tier. Plus, these retailers are recognized as such by the best manufacturers, so these stores have the best brands. Every store polled for this article is a Cervelo retailer, and the uptick in sales is largely off the back of this anchor line. With one exception, every store we polled that carries Cervelo listed this brand as its top-selling triathlon bike brand.

Felt has emerged as a solid second in bike bike brand sales. It's the number-2 tri bike brand in Landry's 5-store Boston-area chain. Felt has replaced the historic second brand Quintana Roo in Demerly's Michigan store. It's number-2 at Speedy Reedy. And so it goes across the country.

Bikesport Michigan's sad commentary on the dip in Quintana Roo's tri bike sales is not universal. Jim Hoyt of Richardson Bike Mart singles out QR as "Coming back strong," in his shop. It's his solid second line in triathlon, behind Cervelo and ahead of Trek and Guru.

The "other" Canadian brand, Guru, is listed as the third brand in a variety of stores, specifically those that have embraced the idea of custom geometries for their customers.

In some cases, Felt is the top tri bike line. This is so at Gear West. In this store, it's Cervelo and QR that duel for the number-2 spot.

Nytro Multisports is one of Cervelo's top-3 retailers worldwide, with Felt again in second place. The third line is a four-way tie between QR, Scott, Cannondale and Kuota. This latter brand is an oft-mentioned third, with Demerly reporting that Kuota is his number-3 in Dearborn.

Still, Cannondale is picking up steam. Nytro's owner, Skip McDowell, is impressed with the fit of the Cannondale Slice, specifically for those who are not easily positioned on Cervelo or Felt tri bikes, two brands that closely parallel each other in geometric styles. Three shop owners to whom we spoke identified Orbea as the third brand for a similar reason: Orbea fits those who aren't a good fit on Cervelo or Felt. But each of these three shop owners also spoke to Orbea's lack of seat angle adjustability, and this seems an edge Cannondale enjoys when a shop considers its best option for that number-3 tri bike line.

Several retailers mentioned Trek and Specialized as good tri brands in theory, but delivery has been an issue. Specialized did not deliver the S Works Transition until recent weeks, according to two stores polled, well after the ultra-important Spring selling months.

The most talked-about wetsuit brand among most of these retailers is 2XU. This is certainly the hot brand. But it's not necessarily the top-selling brand. One retailer was asked which brand is his store's top seller and blurted out, "2XU. No doubt. Well, let me just run a report." The numbers told a different story. "What do you know?" he said. "QR is our top seller year-to-date. In fact, Blue Seventy is second, and 2XU is third." This is a story typical of the triathlon retail environment. When a new brand sells, its numbers appear outsized when in fact it's the reliable, if boring, staple that actually pays the bills.

Still, 2XU is impressive in its run-up over the short term. Atlanta's All3Sports, Chicagoland's EndureIt!, SBR Multisports in New York City, Austin Tri Cyclist, all report robust 2XU wetsuit sales.

Still, Quintana Roo is often the top seller. So reports Bonzai Sport's Mark Smith about his Washington, D.C. store's wetsuits sales. Likewise Gear West. Even Bikesport's Demerly, who reported a drop-off in his QR bike sales, says this is still his store's top selling wetsuit brand.

Blue Seventy is always on the list among those retailers we mentioned, usually as the strong number-2. It's Richardson Bike Mart's second line, but it's Hoyt's top entry level wetsuit. Sometimes this brand, formerly Ironman Wetsuits, is the store's top seller. That's the case in Seattle's Speedy Reedy, where this brand outsells everything. Likewise North Carolina's famous Inside Out Sports.

Two shops polled specifically mentioned Highway Nineteen wetsuits as an important brand, especially at the entry level. Speedy Reedy's Reed Sillers singled out Nineteen as his shops number-2 wetsuit line.

Zoot and De Soto's T1 wetsuits were often mentioned as well, but each appears an acquired taste. Richardson Bike Mart sells Zoot wetsuits over all brands. Chris Wiggins, owner of A1 Cyclery in Indianapolis, says De Soto's T1 is his shop's top wetsuit brand. Bikesport Michigan's Demerly says the T1 is his third line, but, "We love this suit, for most people it's a great option. I'm surprised more companies haven't caught on, it may be the best wetsuit out there."

Aquaman wetsuits makes the cut as well in some stores. Demerly says this is his number-3 line, but not the Aquaman Aquaman, rather the Profile Design branded Aquaman.

In apparel, again 2XU is the hot newcomer. This brand, along with Zoot and De Soto, are the most oft-mentioned tri-specific apparel brands by retailers we polled. Sugoi and Pearl izumi appear to be doing the best job of all the cycling apparel manufacturers who've got a strong line in the tri category.

Zoot is Speedy Reedy's biggest apparel brand, with De Soto second and Sugoi third. But 2XU is the number-one brand in metro Boston's Landry's, and in Bikesport Michigan. Pearl is the second brand in Landry's, with De Soto the next brand at Bikesport. Pearl and Sugoi are the top brands in Gear West. These same brands are mentioned at shops throughout the country. Richardson's Bike Mart says it's Zoot first, then Pearl.

Other brands receiving mention are Louis Garneau, and several stores singled out Shebeest, as a popular brand among the women.