Zap's Final Vegas Review
So there I was driving back to Schmegville from the Interbike show. Happy that it was over, but still grumbling in the inevitable awareness of how much I missed despite four days of running the aisles. The Interbike show continues to be the best tribal gathering of the cycling industry in America. There are those who whine about the show; being in Vegas, the glitz, the long hours & such, but they're just losers who are incapable of seeing the big picture. This is the bicycle industry, we love bicycles, we love the sport - yeah, it's in Las Vegas, get over it and go tell someone that they need to ride a bike! Interbike is all of us. From the shop groms having dinner at the Krispy Kreme stand at Treasure Island to the two-wheeled elitists who titillate themselves with their exclusive fresh croissant & Parma ham breakfasts away from all us low-lifers standing in the buffet line - still, cyclists one and all.
After five days of Interbike I pulled outta dodge at sunset knowing that within 50 minutes of leaving the city limits I'd be dropping into that oasis of love and Joe that is Baker, CA....until I realized that my good friend Howard Schultz decided to put the Starbucks franchise there on the dead & gone list...Howie, what were you thinking?? As my radio made the rounds in Scan mode it finally picked up a classic rock station somewhere outside of Needles. Now pardon the 70's parlance, but after listening to "Dig A Pony" by the Beatles I could only think of two things, my daughter and my bike. Since none of you are lucky enough to call my daughter your own you're stuck with the bike. So dig it!! Don't just ride it or even idolize it, Dig it.Get into it. No matter what it is, how old it is, or what frame material it is - dig it! Know what I mean?
INTERBIKE-A-PALOOZA REVIEW
Pearl Izumi has another big booth filled with all kinds of cycling and running performance wear. New for 2009 is their Pro Series of clothing that is made in Italy and which, as I was told, "has great hand" which is clothing industry talk for a soft feel. For more info, Click Here.
Besides their awesome carbon frames, Time was also showing off a new line of wheels that use a high tension spoke design that they've licensed by French wheel builder, Guy Frullani. Of the two they were showing the higher end Hi-Tense runs with a carbon hubset and RTM carbon front axle. Spoke count is 20f/24r. For more info, Click Here.
Blue was showing off a whole line of impressive grown-up bikes, but the 2Four kid's bike was especially sweet. The 24 inch wheeled bike is available with either drop or flat bar options and Shimano 105 or Sram Rival (respectively) component choice. For more info, Click Here.
There seems to be a growing number of single pivot brakes on the market. Some of the best we've ridden are the Feather brakes that hit the scale at just under 200 grams per set with five color accent kits. For more info, Click Here.
George Hincapie probably won't be riding for too much longer and he is already paving the way for his post-bike career.
While the guys at Lightweight certainly know a thing or two about saving weight, they could hardly have chosen a more gaudy paint scheme for their show bike. Beyond their proven wheels, Lightweight was also making waves with their carbon rear derailleur that weighs 120 grams. For more info, Click Here.
One of the up & coming bike companies on the horizon is Edge Composites. Based out of Ogden, Utah, these guys have really got it going with the production of their carbon frame tubes, wheels, forks and handlebars. The Edge booth was cool because they threw most of the presentation on the small bike builders that use their carbon. This Vanilla SS was a sight to behold. For more info, Click Here.
Eddy Merckx is running a new X head badge on the series of bikes that he shared some design and manufacturing prowess on with Italian counterpart, Fausto Pinarello. For more info, Click Here.
It was kinda surprising to A. see the "Lion of Flanders" himself, Johan Museeuw at the show and B. still so animated and enthusiastic at the end of the show. Johan has a small, but sharp looking line of bikes that tout the use of a carbon/flax matrix. Look for a test in an upcoming issue. For more info, Click Here.
Van Dessel was showing of a smart looking track bike that had one of the coolest names in the hall - Drag Strip Courage - and it featured the equally smart looking Cane Creek track wheels.For more info, Click Here.
The list of good things that come from a big burrito company being involved in cycling is that they'll supply an over-abundance of tortilla chips to the Felt booth.
Former world champ Maurizio Fondriest was showing off an expanded line of carbon bikes with swoopy curves. The TF1 frame and fork sells for $4900 and is available in seven sizes. For more info, Click Here.
Check out this prototype of what's called the BioFloat Seatpost. The unique design isolates the saddle rails in a pair of elastomer clamshells which allows the saddle to conform to the rotation your pelvis while you pedal. Instead of the saddle being a fixed transition point between the rider and the bike, the connection becomes more organic. Besides the biomechanic advantage, the post helps dampen road buzz. The elastomers are replaceable and available in different degrees of firmness to allow riders to tune the clamp for body weight, or desired float. For more info, Click Here.
By far one of the wildest bikes at Interbike was the see-thru Ascend built by Delta 7 Sports.. At ( a claimed) 1.8 pounds for the frame alone (817 grams), the Ascend is the first road bike to feature the patented IsoTruss carbon fiber and Kevlar spider web-like open lattice tube design. The Ascend frame has a suggested retail price of $5,995 and is immediately available for dealer orders in five sizes. For more info, Click Here.
But wait, there's more....
Two days after the Vegas show closed, we were summoned to Marina del Rey by Colnago for a special gig that included the local Ferarri owners group. Besides the Colnago line of bikes, there was some fancy cars, finger food and a trio of women who, after hearing that I knew Brad Roe, followed me everywhere!
MY FAVORITE FOOT IN MOUTH MOMENT
It's inevitable that it happens and this year it occurred as I was making my through the aisles and ran into my old friend Dean Bradley. Dean is the product manager at Electra bikes and one of the king of cool guys in the industry. After exhanging a few pleasantries of old friends, I asked him what was up with the burly security guards he had posted at his booth. Dean said that he was following in the footsteps of other companies who had previously used guards to control who go into the booth and who who didn't. Dean also said it gave the dealer who could get in a sense of privilege. He asked me what I thought and I said, "It's stupid. We're just talking bicycles here, we're a family and these guys have the whole intimidation thing going. It also reminds me of the separatist mentality that promotes stupid things like gated communities."
Dean looked at me for a second before informing me, "I live in a gated community."
BTW: For an exclusive Lance Armstrong training video, be sure to check it out on Zap's "Not a Vegas Blog" blog. This is where you'll also find your chance to win my very own glad bag of Vegas schwag in an easy contest that virtually anyone can win - it's up to you!
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