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R. Cunningham
The big question was who wasn’t at the really big bicycle show in Las Vegas? Trek, Gary Fisher Bikes and Cannondale did their own gigs outside of the big hall. Santa Cruz, Yeti, Turner and a few other luminous brands all opted to show at “Outerbike” (Dirt Demo), where industry folks could ride almost any bicycle that will be sold in 2008 on Bootleg Canyon’s decidedly aggressive desert trail network.
Inside the Sands Convention Center, the mood this year was less than ecstatic, but certainly not somber, as the story was more about big-brand innovation and refinements than the more raw and exciting small-company inventiveness that normally drives the juices of the sport. However, there were a few surprises. The following is a quick run through of the show’s hightlights. There will be a lot more in the upcoming print issue of MBA.
Chris Cocalis (Founder and former head and designer of Titus fame) reemerged with a new company called Pivot. The Mach Five is a departure from Cocalis’ long history of Horst-link suspension designs. The 140 millimeter-travel trailbike employs a host of innovative design features that revolve around Chris’ take on the dual-link suspension patented by Dave Weagle. The new design exceeded our expectations in early tests. It should be one juicy ride.
Pivot’s Mach Five
Valentino Campagnolo, the heir to the most famous name in racing components, was on hand at Campy’s latest endeavor; Fulcrum, that makes a line of pro-level cross-country wheels which happened to win the world championships this year. You will be hearing a lot more about Fulcrum in the future.
Valentino Campagnolo at Fulcrum
Rocky Mountain squeezed their premier cross-country racer down to a 13-inch frame size, which should be good news for anyone who has been pounding around the trails on a too-large, too-heavy bike and wants to feel what a true competition machine feels like.
13-inch Rocky Mountain Element
And just in case you thought that all lightweight mountain bikes came in Carbon; Jamis had a Ti-frame Dragon Team on a scale—the specially-built hardtail weighed 18.34 pounds. Jamis also offered a line of nearly-as-lightweight carbon hardtails and dual-suspension designs too.
18.34-pound Jamis Dragon Team
Road bike makers are encroaching on traditional mountain bike brands—and for good reason: light is right—and carbon fiber and lightweight aluminum construction is old hat to these guys. Colnago showed a carbon hardtail called the Ibex, which features parallel ribs alongside the top tube which continue to the seatstays for lateral stiffness.
Colnago’s Ibex Hardtail
And BMC, another road-oriented firm, had a line of aluminum trailbikes with dual-link suspension called “Virtual Pivot.” Where have we heard that before? In spite of the fact that their design overlaps other proven systems, BMC’s bikes look pretty darn good.
BMC Virtual Pivot Suspension
This saddle forms the inspiration for a caption contest. E-mail your entries to tomh@hi-torque.com
Caption Contest
Dave Weagle was on hand to visit his children (he licenses the DW-Link to various brands and sells e-Thirteen chain guides) and to show off a working pre-production version of his Concentric Pivot rear suspension concept. The pivot location increases braking performance. Trek has a similar system.
Dave Weagle’s Concentric-Pivot dropouts
Tony Ellsworth has been working hard on a 29er dual-suspension bike. The Evolve is heavily reinforced around the seat tube to allow for a radically-sloping top tube. Ellsworth massaged the Evolve’s geometry to keep it agile on the trail.
Ellsworth’s Evolve 29er
Ergon grips—you know; the bulbous molded grips that win all the ultra-marathon events. Well, they work and now, the most popular models have been redesigned with carbon fiber bar ends to make them wicked climbing aids in addition to the most comfortable grips made.
Ergon grips get carbon fiber bar ends
Floyd clothing is a one-woman show that continues to impress us with a balance between playful styling and take-me-serious performance.
Floyd’s tasteful girl clothes
Every now and then an old idea meets a new reason to live. Flypaper Pedals are thin enough to flip burgers with and use oversized bearings which are housed inside the crank arm. Shimano tried the concept on the road (Dynadrive cranks, circa 1970) with limited success, but inventor Dean Williamson says the lower pedal surface increases the effectiveness of the pedal circle and helps to keep your foot on the platform.
Flypaper pedal system.
Kona’s novel magic Link suspension system is in production. Pedaling and coasting modes alter the suspension rates and deliver firm pedaling while going up and smooth suspension while going down--without fussing with lockout or platform adjustments.
Kona's Magic Link suspension
Race Face has developed a different method to mold carbon fiber components under extremely high pressure. The secret technique can be used to produce shapes that were once relegated to aluminum forging and casting techniques. The first product to use the new process is the Next Carbon Crankset 750 grams for everything—bottom bracket, bearings and crankset. The arms are hollow, the spider is all carbon and all threaded parts use aluminum inserts. That is about 50 grams less than XTR.
Race Face 750-gram carbon crankset
Marzocchi has been hard at work too. All of its trailbike and gravity forks use new lowers with a stiffer flat-top arch profile. The air-spring and damping units are cartridge inserts that can be replaced or removed in seconds. The upgrade reduces weight and better maintains manufacturing tolerances for the suspension’s most critical functions.
Marzocchi 88’s new arch
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