When my high-end electrical bike was stolen final 12 months, the extreme mixture of emotions starting from violation to anger was arduous to explain. However that’s nothing in comparison with what one revolutionary electrical bike maker goes by means of after $1M price of unreleased new e-bikes was stolen in a single fell swoop.

Biktrix, the Canadian e-bike maker behind a number of impressively designed, high-power fashions, shared the devastating information {that a} container of recent Juggernaut FS ST e-bikes was stolen from the corporate’s Delta, BC warehouse. There have been additionally a number of prototype fashions Biktrix is growing for launch subsequent 12 months within the container.

It’s an enormous setback for Biktrix, which has grown from humble beginnings a decade in the past as a storage startup into a serious e-bike maker with a 20,000-strong buyer base.

The brand new Juggernaut FS ST e-bike mannequin was just lately introduced, with Biktrix making ready to start shipments to meet pre-orders. This was the primary batch of those new e-bikes produced.

In contrast to many white-labeled electrical bikes that use a mixture of à la carte parts and frames chosen from a catalog of OEM elements, the Juggernaut FS ST is Biktrix’s personal in-house design. It additionally incorporates a distinctive body with a hidden rear shock meeting, making it simple to determine.

The bike features a highly effective mid-drive motor that places out 1,200 watts of energy, in addition to an industry-leading 1,300 Wh battery. That’s roughly twice the dimensions of the common e-bike battery on most fashions as of late.

With a mixture cadence and torque sensor for pedal help in addition to throttle management, it’s fairly distinctive amongst at this time’s high-powered full-suspension e-bikes, particularly for an easy-to-mount step-through e-bike.

Its eye-catching design ought to make the bike simply identifiable. To additional assist determine the bikes, ought to they make it onto the secondary market, Biktrix shared that they embrace serial numbers within the vary from BK2CE30001 to BK2CE30140.

Biktrix additionally shared safety footage exhibiting the suspected thieves arriving on the warehouse with a Ryder semi-truck used to tug the container. The container seems to have been mounted on a container chassis, probably from its latest supply on the warehouse. The thieves broke the lock securing the container chassis, linked it to the semi-truck, and drove off into the evening with a million {dollars} price of unreleased new e-bikes in tow. They have been on website for simply seven minutes.

What probably would have been a reasonably easy case for the police in a rustic with stronger public surveillance turned out to be a nightmare for Biktrix. The corporate found after speaking to police that site visitors cameras in Canada don’t really report video until a automotive is rushing or runs a pink gentle. The corporate additionally supplied the license plate variety of the thieves, however the police may legally solely surveil them for 2 days. As the corporate’s CEO defined, the automobile didn’t go close to the bikes in these two days, and so the police needed to finish the surveillance and successfully launch the thieves.

“This container wasn’t simply metallic and contents, this container was like a treasure chest of our goals, our complete workforce’s arduous work, and appreciable market worth price $1M—comprising all of our financial savings,” defined Biktrix Founder and CEO Roshan Thomas.

The container was insured with a regular ship to shore coverage, commonplace within the ocean freight {industry}. Nevertheless, the container had already reached Biktrix’s receiving warehouse, which means it might sometimes not be coated beneath the coverage.

Whereas it’s trying more and more unlikely, the corporate hopes that the Canadian police will be capable to find the container earlier than the bikes are misplaced. In addition they urge anybody who sees the container or the Juggernaut FS ST bikes to contact their native authorities. These are the one Juggernaut FS ST bikes in North America.

Within the meantime, Thomas and the remainder of the corporate are attempting to maintain their spirits up, explaining “We’re decided to not let this set us again. As a substitute, we’re utilizing it as gas to push more durable, innovate extra, and maintain believing in what we do.”