IN THE NEWS

Cambridge, MA – Owning a new Hummer may be a bummer as gasoline prices hit record levels.

But at Montague Corporation, sky-high gas prices might entice more Hummer owners to add a mountain bike to an already lengthy list of options available on these military wannabes.

Sara Clampitt, Montague’s director of marketing and business development, said the company struck a deal with General Motors to sell the automaker folding mountain bikes that tuck neatly into the back of the new H2s.

The top-of-the-line model carries a price tag almost as steep as the sticker price on a well-optioned Hummer. The Hummer XT sells for $1,795; a lesser version, the Hummer LX, sells for $795.

Hummer dealers, some 366 across the United States, sell the bikes as “Hummer Tactical Mountain Bikes,” all part of an effort by GM to encourage Hummer owners to personalize their vehicles.

While the H2 can plow through streams or claw its way over 16-inch rocks, having a 30-pound mountain bike spec’d to military standards tucked in the rear will get drivers back to civilization if the gas tank runs dry.

“The Hummer Tactical Mountain Bike is a good example of how we plan to leverage the brand,” said Mark Hernandez, Hummer’s marketing director. “It compliments the H2’s military origins, capabilities and the premium nature of the vehicle.”

Clampitt said GM’s “vehicle personalization” program is an attempt to grab market share in the $27 billion-a-year auto accessory market. “ GM is looking to provide accessories they believe that their customers want. It also plays to lifestyle demographics,” she said.

GM’s interest in Montague was sparked, in part, by the company’s success at providing the military with a folding mountain bike for airborne units. The bike is aptly named the “Paratrooper.”

That military connection ties in nicely with the gung-ho military look of the H2. Over the years, Montague Corporation has sold its folding bikes through non-traditional markets. It partnered with BMW at the 1996 Summer Olympics and sold them through the Shaper Image, Neiman Marcus and Hammacher Schlemmer. And in 1997, the company won a two-year grant from the Defense Department to develop a folding bicycle for military use. It also sells bikes in the private airplane, RV and boating markets.

“Product Review”

The Hummer XT is a folding bike with a monocoque 7005 aluminum top tube and a double-butted rear triangle. It has a Shimano Deore XT drive train and brakes with a RockShox Psylo XC Enduro fork. It folds into a 3-x-3-x-1-foot package. Suggested retail: $1,795