Howdy Neighbor!

I’m reaching through the computer screen right now to shake your hand. You may not have noticed any moving trucks or cardboard boxes but there’s a new kid on the street. You may know us from some of the local Southeast NICA races, or maybe you’ve seen Ben Hobbs at an EWS race barreling towards a finish line or hanging out under the Factor tent. Perhaps you seen some of our colorful hubs on a local shredder’s bike as they float through the air at your local trails. If you don’t know us, we hope that soon you will. Everyone seems to have a story these days and rather than just tell that story we’d like to invite you to be a part of it. Factor Components is an emerging components company that dreams big but is still a small operation and we like it when people come say “Hello.”

 

Factor Components makes it’s home in the North Georgia mountains just outside the small town of Clayton. At first glance, it might seem like a strange place to have a bicycle components company but once you’re on a bike it begins to make sense. Most of the trails are word-of-mouth and run all across Rabun county on forest service trails, hiking trails, and even old hunters’ paths. To new comers, the riding terrain is often difficult and unpredictable. The high rain-fall keeps the trails moist and the underbrush thick. Brushing back rhododendron is always apart of a good ride. Most of the trail upkeep is done by the few local mountain bikers and some of the hardcore riders that have made Rabun County their mountain bike destination over the last twenty years. These guys are some of the pioneers of the local riding in Rabun county and consistently have under ground gatherings and rowdy rides. Many of this crew makes it a part of their life to connect, maintain, and blaze new undiscovered trail. While there’s only a handful of local riders, the scene is growing more and more each year. New faces are becoming more frequent and once we’ve taken them on a couple rides, there’s new smiles. There couldn’t be a more perfect location for bike company.

Who makes the gears turn at Factor Components? Factor Components is currently a team of four individuals. Jake Scott leads the machine while Ben Hobbs, Emily Cox, and Charlie Bennett make everything move. All have left different lives to transplant to the hills and get Factor running. Jake, having been apart of the school system, a bike shop owner as well as in the industry, choose to return to his family’s vacation spot in Rabun county and call it home. Ben has always made the mountains a frequent training ground for his Euduro racing and decided to nestle in closer moving from Athens, Georgia. Emily’s love for the area originates from her early mountain biking experiences on Rabun county trails that have fueled her love of the back country and an increased draw to the mountains. Charlie, like Jake, spent numerous summers visiting the mountains with his family from a young age. Recently starting his own family, he has relocated from the hustle and bustle of the city in Atlanta. When we’re not smuggling half pipes into the warehouse, blaring punk music, or designing a breakroom-climbing gym we’re ensuring Factor Components represents a little bit of each us through the work we put into making the company run and producing a quality product. With such a minimal crew it’s hard to keep blood and sweat out of what we do. 

At Factor components we focus on clean design, durability, and high performance. In an age where everyone is trying to do something drastically different, we feel that keeping it simple is a much better method of achieving something pleasing to the eye yet able to hold up to the brutal nature of mountain biking. When you look at a Factor hub, there aren’t any strange angles or excessive cutouts. Instead, our flashiness is achieved through numerous color options because almost everybody loves options (unless you’re trying to find something to watch on Netflix). Coming in Blue, Red, Purple, Green, Pink, Gold, and of course black, there will always be something for every rider that wants to make their bike unique and a little more personal. When it comes to durability and performance, we feel that we have found a healthy balance. With three degrees of engagement and one hundred and twenty points, performance exceeds many of the hubs on the market. The high engagement also makes for an incredibly durable hub and holds up against wet weather, steep abrupt climbs, and gnarly long descents all which the North Georgia Mountains provide. Before being sent out, each hub is inspected by us to make sure grease levels are sufficient, axles are tight, bearings are pressed and the hub is ready to be laced up and put through the ringer. They are also ridden by all of us. We have a wide range of riding styles so we know they hold up no matter what type of rider you are.

  So, don’t be a stranger. It can be tough being the new kid so, if you’ve got room in your crew, we’re always down to hang. Come say “hey”, to us whenever you see our tent at an invent. Keep your eyes peeled for our young Factor racers as they rocket into their racing careers. Introduce yourself to our family when you meet someone riding our hubs or stems. Ask them how they like the product or if they picked a pretty color to match their eyes. And when you roll through Clayton Georgia, look us up. We’ve told you a little bit of our story so don’t be afraid to come tell us your story. We always have time to free up an ear or two.

With a new year in front of us, we’d like introduce ourselves a little further. We’ve had a promising 2019 and look forward to new relationships and developments with Factor Components. We’d like to let you know, where we’re located and why, who we are, and what Factor means to us. 

So we’d like to wish everyone a happy new year and are looking forward to a great 2020. I know we’ll be keeping the music blaring and trails clear and we hope to see some of you out there. There’s plans for a pump track behind the office, new clothing designs, and the release of the Factor stem. Don’t worry, just like the hubs there will be plenty of color. Anytime you want to visit, come and see what makes Factor stand alone.