Nice RIH, silentsparky
RIHs were raced to 63 Worlds and Olympic titles and a trillion National titles. When Bustraan quit in 1972 the shop was sold to employee Willem van der Kaaij and the valuable RIH brand to Cove in Limburg. In kind of similar fashion as Vickers sold Rolls-Royce brand to BMW and the Crewe factory to VW. I don't know whether Vd Kaaij were aware or could have been aware. Anyway, till today you can buy bikes from the original A'dam shop and from Cove and they both carry the name RIH :roll: From a legal perpective it is quite clear Cove is the only legitimate owner of the name, but as Cove never built a single frame in a way you would reasonably expect from a RIH, while Vd Kaaij is doing still the same as the Bustraan bros always did, it is easy to see who the sympathy of the bike aficionado enjoys.
It is a bit bummer both are often confused. I do not have a problem with one or the other, but I do have a problem with the confusion. For example on our largest classified site I spot multiple examples of which sellers claim it is from Vd Kaaij, while it actually isn't. For me it is easy to tackle, but without any doubt many buyers are misled and many owners reside in a kind of false believe.
I've heard dark clouds are now really gathering above Vd Kaaij’s Amsterdam shop. I think Cove fears a possible new owner could start bizz that is not in the interest of Cove in case Vd Kaaij sells. Vd Kaaij is not the youngest anymore.
