If you’re like us, you’re always wondering what the pros ride and how they make their bikes lightweight yet capable of performing at their level.  Here’s one answer: Pua Sawicki’s 21.1 lb full suspension Ellsworth Truth mountain bike.  This is the bike she uses to win things like the NORBA Marathon and 24 Hour Solo National Championships, Baja Ultra Endurance 100K, Dirt, Sweat & Gears, etc.  (She races a 19lb Ellsworth hardtail for regular XC events).  Here’s the spec:

 

BIKERUMOR.com 2009 SEA OTTER CLASSIC COVERAGE: Dirty Dog MTB’s custom cut rotors aren’t new, but they’re cool, and these are a few of the latest designs.  Available in 160, 185 and 203mm diameters, they’ll work with any disc brake system using the standard 6-bolt pattern.  The rotors are laser cut from stainless steel for exact tolerances without stressing the material in ways that could lead to warping or other issues later on.  Weight and performance are on par with standard brake rotors from other manufacturers…but the style points are huge.  Prices range $65 to $79.

  

The Reaper Skull Stem is another style accessory.  It’s a 31.8 clamp with 8mm rise and 50mm length, and it weighs 506g and comes in anodized red or black.  MSRP $199.

The little plastic skulls are cable guides.  The cable runs under the skull but above the zip tie, so you can cinch it down really tight without pinching your cable.  MSRP is $9.95/pair and they come in white, red and black.

Dahon is currently conducting a voluntary recall for handlebar posts fitted to certain numbers of selected 2008 model year bikes. This recall is only for UK dealers at this stage. Dahon Global will be making an announcement within a few days relating to other territories, to ensure legal requirements are met, after due process has been followed.

The models affected are:

-Speed TR 2008 model
-Speed D7 2008 model
-Jetstream P8 2008 model

Dahon’s statement reads:

“Issue – A combination of inaccurate machining and inconsistent quality of material can cause the radius handlebar post to crack and break, posing a fall hazard (2008 models only).

Solution – Dahon will be supplying new handlebar posts for all affected bikes via your point of purchase.

Read “more” to see what to do if your bike is affected…

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Adventure Sports Weekly published a little story comtemplating the different reactions to actual drug use versus “potential” drug use in cycling.

It seems people like to look the other way in some instances and raise a real stink in others…guess it just depends on who you’re rootin’ for.

Read the story here.

BIKERUMOR.com 2009 SEA OTTER CLASSIC COVERAGE: Where Fox moved to fully enclosed FIT dampers in their forks, Marzocchi is reintroducing their open bath systems for 2010.  That change, combined with additional coil spring internals, was made with the goal of increasing ease of use.  That’s not to say they’re moving away from air forks…quite the contrary, many of their new models have Air Assist preloads to help ease the fork into its travel.  They have a lot of new stuff in their 2010 line in forks ranging from XC to monstrous DH…here we go:

The first thing I noticed when their rep had all the new forks lined up was the beefy appearance.  Marzocchi’s long been known for strong, stiff forks, and judging by the looks of these, they don’t seem likely to flex or deflect easily.  Then, there’s the color schemes…rich, dark hues of purple, black and gray with red and gold knob accents.  These forks are unique looking to be sure.  But what about the tech?

 The Corsa and 44 suspension forks will have their new TST Micro Adjust, which allows for infinite control of compression damping, from full open to full lockout.  That’s the red lever on the left side.  The gold knob is the new threshold adjustment to control the end of stroke damping. The gray knob is the cover for the air valve, and the red perimeter knob is for their Air Volume Adjust, which allows you control the compression curve by altering the volume of air in the chamber.

Marzocchi also offers ATA (Internally Adjustable Travel) models without the TST Micro. In fact, the only difference between the Corsa and the 44 is the travel.

The Corsa TST has 100mm travel, and the Corsa ATA adjusts from 80mm to 100mm.  The 44 TST Micro has 120mm travel, and the ATA models range from 100mm to 140mm.  Forks are either/or, they’re not offering TST compression adjustment with the ATA models.

There’s a lot more to cover, hit “more” for a full rundown of their other new features, forks and technology, including the monstrous new 888 Downhill fork…

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BIKERUMOR.com 2009 SEA OTTER CLASSIC COVERAGE: Clif Bar had several new flavors and packages on demo at Sea Otter, but the coolest thing was their change in packaging materials that let the wrappers be reused to make bags and other things.  Most bars’ wrappers are now compliant, but the “blocks” and gels aren’t using the recyclable material, and you can get your company or bike shop set up to collect and recycle wrappers with their Terracycle partnership.

Speaking of Clif’s Blocks, the big news on those is new packaging to make them easier to dispense while riding, and a new flavor: Mountain Berry (below, left).  It joins their Lemon-Lime and CranRazz flavors.  Each pack is the equivalent of two gel packs. The new “tube” wrapper lets you tooth open one end and squeeze them out one at a time versus the old package that opened wide and had the potential to spill all your precious Bloks on the ground.

   

The other two newbies are Clif Kids Twisted Fruit organic real fruit wraps (easier to eat than Fruit Rollups and organic) and a new White Chocolate Macadamia Nut flavor Clif Bar. It is delicious.

Danny MacAskill is my new hero.  It’s like Parkour on a bicycle.

Speed Studio Design just posted their new Zoomla Concept.  With just a single pivot, it takes literally two seconds to fold up and put away.  Weighing in at 5 kg (11 lbs), it eschews a standard crank and pedals for a Pedaldeck that you simply mash down, presumably in alternating “pedals” to drive the rear wheel.  The “TorqSteer” helps turn the bike by guiding it around a turn, similar to a skateboard.  It can be fitted with an optional backpack to make errands and commuting easier.

  

Click here for a previous post of other Speed Studio Design concept bicycles.

BIKERUMOR.com 2009 SEA OTTER CLASSIC COVERAGE: Continental was showing three new aggressive freeride / downhill mountain bike tires that use their Black Chili compound.  The Kaiser (1000g) and Rain (950g) are both 26×2.50 and are intended for extreme freeride with huge, widely spaced knobs and reinforced edge knobs.  An angled view of their knob profile is below (left).

The Rubber Queen is their slightly less aggro knobby that comes in a 2.2 and 2.4 width (850g and 1050g, respectively) and in both folding and wire bead.

 

Another new tire is the Race King (above, left).  It’s an XC racing tire and is available in a wide variety of models, including wire and folding bead, regular and UST tubeless, and in a special SuperSonic iteration that’s intended for race day only, weighing in at 430g (26×2.0) to 480g (26×2.2).  UST versions weigh in at 650g and 700g for the same sizes.

They have a new version of their Continental Grand Prix road bicycle tire, too, with technology borrowed from their car and motorcycle tires.  Hit “more” to see that and learn what their Black Chili compound is all about…

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Schwalbe had some new DH and Freeride treads on display.  The Dirty Dan, above, is their Downhill Mud tire.  It, and the Wicked Will (thumbnails, below) utilize their dual carcass, snake bite protection, Snakeskin sidewall and Curve Claws.  The Dirty Dan is a 26×2.35.

The Wicked Will is a “very fast dry condition downhill” tire in a 26×2.50 size.  The Racing Ralph, below left, is a 29er Racing Tire with a 2.25 (580g) and 2.40 width.  It uses their Triple Nano Compound and Evolution Carcass.

   

From left to right: Dirty Dan tread profile / Wicked Will side profile / Wicked Will tread profile / Racing Ralph side profile.

What else?  The Furious Fred, now in a 29er…a sick light 335g race-only tire.  That’s right.  335g for a 29er tire. No, it won’t last long, but if every gram counts for your race rig, here’s your tire.  Hit “more” to see it and a sweet White 29er Cruiser tire...

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BIKERUMOR.com 2009 SEA OTTER CLASSIC COVERAGE: TwoWheelogic was showing off several brands at Sea Otter, including Nokon.  Famous for their aluminum cable housing, they’ve launched a new carbon fiber segment housing.  Where the alloy housing kits typically shave about 30% of the weight of standard housing, the carbon fiber version saves about 40%.  It offers the same compressionless performance and ability to handle tight bends as their original system.  MSRP is 266.99 for a shift set, and $77.99 for an extension (versus 101.99 and 20.99, respectively, for their original alloy set).

BIKERUMOR.com 2009 SEA OTTER CLASSIC COVERAGE: Niner shows you how to build up a 17.4 lb mountain bike…with gears.  Start with their Air 9 frame, then get down with the lightweight goodies, such as:

• SRAM XO with twist shifters
• Foam grips
• Egg Beater Quad Ti pedals
• FSA Carbon 2×9 crankset
• Formula R1 hydraulic disc brakes
• ProLogo carbon seat
• Syntace carbon handlebar and seatpost
• Syntace alloy stem
• Stans NoTubes tires
• Nokon shift cable housing

   

…and they had just received some Furious Fred tires from Schwalbe (post on that coming soon) that will drop more weight, and they could make it even lighter with Nokon’s new carbon cable housing (see them here).  Cost be damned…

Oh, and they had their new Eccentric Bottom Bracket shell on display, which replaces the old style with set screws that face fore/aft with two screws that tighten from the side.  This prevents slipping and stripping, and you can see it and their new polished frame finish when you hit “more”…

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