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I know, I know, I was going to build up the hardtail. I will still do that, but I’ve been sidetracked by a new ride.
A couple of weeks back, I picked up the Haro Sonix S and I’ve been grinding out some miles as I get the bike dialled in and get used to running a shorter travel fork up front. The Sonix rolls nicely on gravel and it climbs well on steeps but I think I need to spend some more time with the Reba. I’ll do a more complete writeup after I’ve spent more time on the trails.
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Norco is big out here on the west coast of British Columbia, partly because it’s a homegrown company but also because its bikes have generally proven to be solid rides that give great value to consumers. And, while the company doesn’t introduce re-vamped models every year or two like many of the other manufacturers in the industry, Norco spends a good amount of time tweaking and revising its bikes each season. For 2007, Norco continues down a well trodden path, cranking out a bike lineup that looks set to give fans plenty of ways to make it up and down the mountain (and to rip along the road, if that suits your fancy).
Now that I’ve got the cheesy introduction out of the way, let’s have a look at some of the Norco bikes that’ll be out there next year.
Note: I’ll get some time on a number of these bikes as next season progresses, so you’ll likely get some feedback on their real-world performance. Read the rest of this entry »
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Interbike Wrapup
Well, I’m back from Vegas and after resting for a week or so I can finally get back to the grind here. Once again the show was incredible with literally thousands of new products from hundreds of companies.
Every year there seems to be some sort of theme that emerges from the. Last year was the year of carbon, where every manufacturer seemed the need to make multiple items out of the weave. This year there seems to be a few emerging trends which was quickly evident by walking around a few booths. The first is sort of a continuation of a theme from last year, which is 29” mountain bikes. More manufacturers have added 29” bikes to their lineups, but many have started playing with the mix from going to a single-speed model to using the 69-er style, which is a 26” wheel on the back and a 29” wheel up front.
The second theme is cyclocross. With the road bike segment starting to cool off a little bit, it seems retailers are spreading their buying dollars around. Cyclocross is a growing segment and the options at Interbike range from basic models with alloy frames and low-end groupsets to full carbon fibre frames with SRAM Force and Shimano Dura-Ace grouppos.
Here are some of the bigger companies with some interesting new products to show. In the next few weeks, we’ll have a few reviews of some of the funkier new products that were on display. Read the rest of this entry »
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There are three seasons in a cyclist’s calendar – riding season, off-season and trade show season. There are hundreds of bike shows across North America each year, but only a handful register on the radars of nearly every rider out there.
With Eurobike already out of the way and Interbike less than two weeks away, the Canadian cycling industry held its annual ExpoCycle trade show in Montreal Sept. 10-12. Most of the 3,000 bike shops across the country sent some sort of representation to the show, which gives dealers and media the chance to see some of the new products that will be on the market for the upcoming riding season. I had a chance to cover the show once again for Pedal Magazine (see the stories at www.pedalmag.com) and it was as bling-blingy and fun as ever.
Where the 2005 shows seemed to be the year of the all-carbon-all-the-time attitude, 2006 seems to have manufacturers classing up their use of carbon with more dramatic and artistic molding, more paint-covered designs and mixing the weave with exotic materials such as carbon and magnesium.
The show this year also showed the increased popularity in triathlons, with dozens of manufacturers making components, bikes or clothing specifically designed for tri events. Triathlons are a fun alternative to just biking, and you’ll read more about these here on TheBikingHub in the future.
Anyway, after hours and hours of walking around the ExpoCycle show at Place Bonaventure in downtown Montreal, I’ve come up with a list of companies with products that really blew me away. Here’s my top 10 list of favourite items found at this year’s show. Read the rest of this entry »
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Rumours and conjecture have been swirling around the proposed ‘07 Giant lineup for the past couple of months, with pictures of a carbon Trance showing up online (and on the race course) and more info about a beefed up version of the Reign. Mountain Bike Action is the first major site that’s posted up pics of the full 2007 Giant product lineup, and I must say that it looks pretty darn nice.
More pics after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »
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It looks like Kona is one of the first companies to slip their 2007 bike lineup online. Not much new, groundbreaking stuff, although the Stab receives an overhauled design and the Unit 2-9 and Unit look set to move further into some increasingly competitive markets.
I guess it’s one of those if-it-ain’t-broke kind of things. Check it out!
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For most of this week, I’ve been trying to organize my thoughts over the announcement that Specialized’s is moving into the oem suspension marketplace.
The decision could be seen as a way for the company to move further into the top-to-bottom ‘customer experience’ thing that goes along with the dozen or so Specialized ‘concept stores’ currently in operation around North America. The move could also be an attempt by Specialized to foster the kind of brand loyalty that Cannondale established with its Lefty and Headshock lines of front suspension products.
There’s also the whole ‘integration’ thing, which is in full swing at companies like SRAM, whose Avid brakes, SRAM shifters, and RockShox are designed to work best with one another, something that market veterans Shimano learned was a key strategy years ago.
Whatever the reasons for the decision, the fact that Specialized looks ready to release its own set of forks and its own rear shocks means that the mountain bike market will look a little different starting in 2007. Specialized isn’t the largest manufacturer out there but I’m sure that the ‘biggies’ are watching this foray carefully. Similarly, it’ll be interesting to see how the major suspension manufacturers react to this shift — unless the product features Fox or Manitou internals (like Cannondale’s Leftys), at least one company might take a hit on its bottom line.
2007 Specialized Enduro SL, Stumpjumper FSR, Epic S-Works
Some of the the short travel mountain bikes in the 2007 Specialized lineup were revealed overseas this past week.
Aside from the shocking news mentioned above, the company’s short travel bikes for ‘07 look great. According to the UK mountain bike mag Singletrack, Specialized brought Mike McAndrews (who’s worked for Fox, RockShox, and Maverick, and designed the ‘Brain’ shock used on the Epic) back into the fold to “help them with their suspension and, inevitably, to produce Specialized-brand rear shocks and a new fork”.
Enduro SL. The company’s frame development team was busy too, completely redesigning the Enduro and using a set of rocker arms to connect to the rear shock. That, and the fact that the bike will be spec’d with a lightweight dual-crown fork with a non-standard 25mm thru-axle, and you’ve got a sub-28lb. rocket of a trail bike.
Epic and Stumpy. You can check out the details and some good pics over at the Singletrack and BikeMagic websites, but know that the bikes look great, with nice swoopy lines and lots of shiny bits.
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Okay, okay, the title is a little tongue in cheek, especially since Trek did release the downhill and freeride-oriented Session series and the All-mountain Remedy lineup over the past couple of years. So the company hasn’t exactly ignored its mountain bike lineup over the past few seasons, but with the insane degree of success it’s had with Lance Armstrong and the rest of the Disco-boys, mountain bikers have definitely played second fiddle to the roadies for some time.
CyclingNews.com has a good two-part writeup detailing Trek’s upcoming plans for some of the key parts of its 2007 mountain bike lineup and, while they certainly won’t light the world on fire, there are some changes in store for next season.
Fisher. Starting with the Fisher brand, the article looks closely at the frames built around the company’s new version of its long-standing Genesis geometry — aptly named Genesis 2.0 — and provides plenty of photos to back it up. The new designs revolve around tweaked angles and a custom-built Manitou fork that are meant to bring out the strengths of the system. Of course, this means that if you’re not a fan of the fork that’s spec’d on the bike, you’re s.o.l. and, as a consumer, I’d be more than a little wary of throwing all of my eggs in a single basket.
The article also features an image gallery with a close look at the Fisher HiFi, the successor to the company’s soon-to-be-history Cake line.
Trek. The second part of the article focuses mostly on Trek’s Fuel models, the company’s tried and true racer, and the longer travel Fuel EX trail bike. Other than some new carbon frame elements on the OCLV 110 carbon frames and increased tire clearance on the EX models, the rest of the changes for ‘07 seem to be relatively minor.
Bontrager. Bontrager has been pumping out some solid components for the mother company for years, and next season looks to be no different. Along with a new 29″er wheelset (the Race X Lite), Bontrager will be introducing the Rhythm rim for next year, a new design intended to work with the larger tires that have gained a solid foothold in the market over the past few years.
Related articles
- Singletrack Magazine serves up an alternate take on the Fisher HiFi, and pokes a few holes in the press-release style writeup offered by CyclingNews.com.
- Guitar Ted offers his thoughts on the new Bontrager stuff and the fork that’ll be spec’d on the Genesis 2.0 bikes.
- Mountain Bike Action provides a pictorial breakdown outlining the differences between a ‘regular’ mountain bike’s offset and Fisher’s G2 system.
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After a couple of images of Magura’s new carbon studded Louise disc brakes filtered onto the ‘net during this year’s Sea Otter Classic, BikeMagic has released some basic information about the newest Magura disc brakes. Check out the writeup for some pics of the Marta Gold (available with, you guessed it, a gold finish) and the Louise.
Other Magura brake reviews
Ed. note: These reviews are for earlier versions of Magura brakes. I added them to this writeup so you can take a look at how these things perform on the trail.
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Shimano let ’slip’ news of the 2007 XTR lineup at this year’s Sea Otter Classic. The group released at Sea Otter was missing brakes, which were slated to be unveiled a few weeks after the rest of the items. Pictures and specs have made their way onto the ‘net and the 2007 XTR brakes look like a nice addition to the rest of the group.
The lever body, which is now available on its own, has its reservoir located between the lever blade and the handlebar clamp, creating a look reminiscent of Magura brakes. Brake rotors will be available in 203mm, 180mm, and 160mm. For the weight conscious riders out there, Shimano is offering a 140mm rotor, and it looks svelte and trim. The calipers are the nicest piece in the bunch and will be available in International Standard or post mount formats.
Other information on the 2007 XTR lineup
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