About This Manual - Kona bicycle Owner's Manual

THANK YOU for buying a Kona. A bicycle is a wonderful
tool for transportation and recreation. We hope that you
will ride it often and have a great deal of use and enjoy-
ment from your purchase. This manual contains important
safety, performance and maintenance information.
IMPORTANT: Read this manual before taking your first
ride on your new bicycle, and keep this manual handy
for future reference.
NOTE: This manual is not intended as a comprehensive
use, service repair or service manual. Please see your
dealer for all service, repairs or maintenance. Your dealer
may also be able to refer you to classes, clinics or books
on bicycle use, service or maintenance.
ABOUT THIS MANUAL: This owner's manual was prepared
with your safety as our first consideration. A great deal
of the text was prepared by a group of US-based bicycle
manufacturers and distributors. Those sections are copy-
righted by Kona Bicycle Company and the other companies
using the same text, and may not be reproduced without
the written consent of Kona Bicycle Company.
In addition to safety, many bicycle manufacturers and dis-
tributors are concerned with the alarming number of product
liability cases brought forwards over the last 5 years. Because
American and Canadian attorneys are entitled to mount these
cases on a contingency basis, many larger manufacturers
and distributors have been marked as deep pocket targets for
what in many cases, turn out to have been the responsibility
of the bicycle rider. Even the most frivolous cases are costly
to the manufacturer and distributor, which additionally result
in higher insurance premiums, and eventually, higher bicycle
prices. The Consumer Product and Safety Commission has
undertaken a variety of studies that find that, for the most
part, bicycles are well-made and safe vehicles.
These studies conclude that many serious and minor ac-
cidents could be prevented by the use of helmets. It should
also be noted that ACCIDENTS CAN ALSO BE PREVENTED
BY PROPER INSTRUCTION OF BICYCLE USE AND MAINTE-
NANCE. Your Kona dealer will provide you with basic instruc-
tions to get you safely started. In addition, we strongly
recommend that YOU READ THIS ENTIRE MANUAL PAYING
PARTICULAR ATTENTION TO WARNINGS AND CAUTIONS.
So hang in there while you wade through the legalese.
Yes we are trying to protect ourselves against unreasonable
lawsuits, but we are concerned about your safety. That is
why we add a great deal of general and Kona-specific
information about safe and enjoyable cycling instead of
blandly reproducing a generic owner's manual.
Kona was started in 1988 by a group of cyclists dedicated
to producing high-quality custom bikes based on our long-
time experience in the sport and business of cycling. Kona's
headquarters are located in the temperate rain forest of the
Pacific Northwest region of the United States and Canada
— an area that is ideal for developing and testing durable
bicycles that provide superior performance. The Kona
Design Group within our company, is responsible on a
day-to-day basis for testing new frames and components
that are worthy of being incorporated into our bicycles.
We believe in constantly improving and refining our
bicycles and components and welcome your comments
and complaints. We believe that giving good service to our
customers is just as important as designing and making
good bicycles. It is our mission to help make your cycling
experiences safe and enjoyable and part of that mission
is to make it possible for you to do that as frequently as
possible. If for any reason you are not satisfied with the
quality of any part of your bicycle or the service given to
you by Kona or one of our dealers, please let us know.
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