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New Gear/ Expo |
The Experience |
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Racing |
Sea Otter 2008
words and pictures by Jason Van Horn
The Expo
As a major bike geek, one of the my favorite things about the expo is seeing the new gear. And while there haven't been any "major" innovations that rocked the cycling world this year, there was lots of cool new stuff to drool over. My first stop upon arriving was to stop in with Brad at Nemesis Project. If you haven't heard of them, then check them out.
Brad poses with the Kidrobot project track bike
Based in Sacramento, these guys churn out dirt jump hardtails and track frames, as well as handlebars and stems. Also on display was his new four cross frame that was equiped with a innovative suspension fork from Kowa. The fork had the coolest adjustable travel feature I've seen yet- with a twist of the switch you could lower (or raise it) to any height and reset the amount of fork travel. According to Brad it worked well.
Nemesis Project 4X bike equiped with Kowa Suspension
They also had a new 26" dirt jump hardtail and a 16" mini on display. They were sharing a booth with another outfit that had some cool ano pedal offerings. I don't know how durable they are, but they were definitely lightweight.
Purple ano pedals. Just what you need for that "pink bike." From Twenty6 Components
Continuing our march through the expo, we stopped in to check out new offerings from Answer products and Hayes Brakes. Once the brake to have, they have redone their offerings and have released a new line platform called the "Stroker."
the new brake offering from Hayes- the Stroker.
Hopefully this brake performs better than the El Camino. Billed as a lightweight disc brake that performed, it did not live up to expectations. In fact it was the brake that made me switch ALL my bikes to something else. Hopefully for them, this new design turns things around for them.
Speaking of upgrading to aftermarket brakes, Shimano Saint has been redesigned for this year.
