March 12, 2008 (Quebec City, QC) – The massive snowstorm this weekend in Quebec City caused a drop in attendance numbers at the 22nd annual Salon Info-Vélo Show, but it didn’t dampen enthusiasm for the event. A total of 7,676 people attended the show at the Terminal de croisières in the city’s Old Port versus about 15,000 in 2007, but Friday’s (March 7) attendance was up over last year’s .

“Attendance wasn’t too bad considering the storm. On Sunday there was no traffic on the roads here until the afternoon,” commented event organizer, Jean-Yves Labonté. “So we had just under 1,000 visitors that day but you can rest assured they were all very passionate about cycling!”

Among the exhibitors were Velo Quebec (with three kiosks), Shimano, SDV*Ti (titanium bikes), the Peak Centre, Drummondville’s Dauphin Hotel, the Auberge Harris, the Magdelan Islands Tourism Office, and the Petit Train du Nord bike path (north of Montreal). Labonté says that local bike retailers rented many of the kiosks and some of them told him of increased sales by as early as Saturday. Show guidelines prohibit price tags on merchandise on display.

Raphaël Gagné (Rocky Mountain), the recent winner of Quebec City’s Pentathlon des Neiges, handed out over 300 autographed photos. “Everyone wanted to talk to Raphaël,” said Labonté. Katy St. Laurent, the cyclist turned clothing designer, was also present.

In total, 144 booths were set up on two floors including some 40 exhibitors dedicated to cyclotourism and cycling holidays on the second floor.

Labonté claims that booths at the show are very reasonably priced and that there are no “isolated” spots for exhibitors. Admittance to the show was free and in 2009, the Salon Info-Vélo Show will take place from March 13-15.