– updated 4/24/09 –

BIKERUMOR.com 2009 SEA OTTER CLASSIC COVERAGE: Easton released a 50/34 compact version of their EC90 carbon crankset.  It uses the same carbon nanotube Dual Core Composite construction (ie. Internal spine) and Taperwall arms as the regular crankset, which Easton claims has one of the highest strength-to-weight ratios of any crankset.  It uses their Ceramic-Teflon coated chainrings and CrMo spindle.

They offer two bottom bracket options, regular (105g) and ceramic (100g) bearings and come with a five year warranty.  Hit “more” for full details and specs, and to see their new EC90 SL Carbon Road Wheel, which they claim are “light enough for climbers, tough enough for cyclocross…”

 

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The following is from Tomac and does not represent Bikerumor.com’s aesthetic opinion on interior design:

Tomac Bikes announces today the completion of a limited edition John Tomac painting commissioned over two years ago. The painting is based off a 1995 photo by Tom Moran, which features Johnny drifting through a corner at the Kamikaze, and was painted by Tomac graphic artist Randy Rigg.

“The Kamikaze has always been a very special event in US downhill racing history,” says Tomac owner Joel Smith. “And I think Johnny style and aggressiveness epitomized the racing at the time. The painting really captures the race’s essence of speed, and for those of you who attended those events, it will surely evoke the majesty of racing back then.”

Tomac will do a limited run of 20 John Tomac autographed giclee prints on canvas, which will also be hand signed by the artist. The prints will cost $250 with $50 of each print going to the Tara Llanas Road to Recovery Fund. 

“My goal was to create a realistic portrayal of Johnny’s racing” says artist Randy Rigg. “The painting is just snapshot of a moment, but there is this inherent movement that I hope was captured in it.”

The giclee prints are produced by the artist himself on museum quality acid-free, canvas using a high-end archival printing process. They measure 15 inches by 20 inches by 1.25 inch deep and can be hung as-is or framed.

Click Image to enlarge.

FROM IMBA: The 160-bill Public Lands Omnibus Management Act, has been signed into law. Many of the bills – including those in Oregon, Virginia and Colorado – were shaped with mountain bikers’ interests in mind. One of the Omnibus Act’s biggest benefits is the use of creative solutions to protect bicycle access and the environment. In particular, companion land designations that IMBA favors — like National Scenic Area and National Recreation Area — are giving land managers new options for bicycle-friendly land protection. Unfortunately, though, prized riding opportunities were lost in West Virginia (Wild Monongahela Wilderness) and California (Eastern Sierra and Northern San Gabriel Wilderness).

Carlton Reid of BikeBiz recently interviewed Gary Fisher about urban riding, development wastes just to accommodate cars and the joy he finds in the growing trend of people riding bikes to run errands.

“I made myself a promise, I’m going to pick up everything on a bike. I’m going to run all my errands from the saddle,” Fisher said in the interview.

Fisher often buys bikes he likes as inspiration when working with the designers at Trek, and he says, after years of mountain bike growth that moved bikes off the street, that urban bikes and the brands that supply them are seeing growth.  Read the full interview here.

RELATED: Bikerumor.com Podcast Interview with Gary Fisher about his 2010 road bikes

If you’re in the general area of Wilkesboro, NC, here’s your cycling news…courtesy of the BMCC:

April 24 – The 24 Hour Ride Against Crime. Captain Dennis James of the Taylorsville PD and BMCC member is riding his bike for 24 hours around the track at Alexander Central High School. Why would he do such a thing? He’s raising funds for the Alexander County Crime Stoppers. Dennis is taking pledges for donations per mile or just one lump sum. All donations are tax deductable. If you would like a pledge sheet, reply to this email. The BMCC has pledged to help out, so should you.

May 2 – Don’t forget about the 16th Annual RAW (Ride Around Wilkesboro). We’ve moved it back to our traditional date. There’s also a new and improved metric century route. For the second year in a row, we’re combining with the Wilkes County Safe Kids and the Seth Teague Memorial Bicycle Rodeo. There should be something for everyone young and not so young. Rumor has it the Governor of NC may even be there.

May 9 – Cycle to Serve Challenge in Lenoir, NC. The ride is a fundraiser for the Lenoir Rotary Club. There are two options, a 40 miler and a metric century. I know some people who did this one last year and thoroughly enjoyed the event. The ride is fully supported with SAG and rest stops. Afterwards, there’s food and beer. If you’re one of the top finishers, you get your shot a free cake! Not a piece of cake, the whole thing. Check out their website for more information.

May 16 – Get off your bike and run! Stay on your bike and chase the runners! You’ve got two options here. The Communities in Schools Headed to College Fun Run & Road Race is in its sixth year. The BMCC usually provides support by riding at the back of the pack and providing encouragement to those who need it. If you would like to volunteer, contact Bill Sebastian.

May 23 & 24 – The 9th Annual BURN 24 Hour Challenge hits the shores of W Kerr Scott. The BMCC needs volunteers desperately for this event. We’ve taken ownership of the race for 2009 and we need volunteers around the clock to pull it off. If you can help on Friday, Saturday or Sunday, please contact me as soon as possible.  (Editor’s Note:  Bikerumor.com is fielding a team, and we’ve got some great schwag coming from our demo pile for the prize pool…)

Claiming to be the World’s Lightest Production Road Bike, Everti has released the Eagle.  Weighing just 5.17kg (11.4 lbs) for a size Medium complete bike, it’s spec’d responsibly and completely…in other words, it has a complete gear range, full bar tape and a padded seat.  You know, things you like to have on a bike.  Some of the lightest bikes floating around out there cut out some of those amenities.

In a BikeBiz article, Everti Bicycles owner Kurt Knock had this to say: “We have spent the past year refining the details and product testing to ensure everything will stand up to real-world riding.  The only limitations of this bike are teh legs that are going to be pushing the pedals.”

The frame is 3/2.5 double butted titanium front triangle with straight gauge tubing in the rear triangle.  It has a 25 year warranty!

Sooo…as with any bike, the frame can only contribute so much to the diet.  Wanna see how this bike is spec’d?  Hit “more”…

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About 14,000 Specialized 2009 model bicycles, made in China and imported by Specialized Bicycle Components Inc., of Morgan Hill, Calif., because the handlebars can break, posing a fall hazard to the rider. The company has received two reports of the handlebar breaking during use. This includes one instance of a rider suffering head trauma which resulted in unconsciousness and a puncture wound to the arm. This recall involves HL handlebars on these 2009 Specialized bicycles: Cross Trail Comp, Myka HT Comp, Myka HT Elite, Rockhopper, Rockhopper Comp and Rockhopper Comp 29. The model number of the HL handlebar is ALR-13 NTFOV. The recalled products were sold at authorized dealers nationwide from June 2008 through February this year. Details: by phone at 877-808-8154; by Web at http://www.specialized.com orhttp://www.cpsc.gov. Download this Recall Notice as a PDF. 

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About 3,000 Roubaix Comp and Roubaix Pro 2004 bicycles, made in Taiwan and imported by Specialized Bicycle Components Inc., of Morgan Hill, Calif., because the cable stop on the bicycle can loosen, which can cause the rider to lose control and fall from the bike. The company received reports of two falls that resulted in fractures requiring medical attention and surgery.

The recalled bicycles include: 2004 Roubaix Comp 18; 2004 Roubaix Comp 27; 2004 Roubaix Pro 18; and 2004 Roubaix Pro frameset models. Only bicycles with a single rivet fastening the cable stop to the frame are subject to recall. The recalled products were sold at Specialized authorized dealers nationwide from September 2003 through August 2004. Details: by Web athttp://www.cpsc.gov.

BIKERUMOR.com 2009 SEA OTTER CLASSIC COVERAGE: We posted a phone pic last week directly from Answer’s booth…here’s the good versions.  Answer is debuting some heavily machined direct mount stems.  They’ll have a couple of color options, all of which will be shinier than these prototypes.  The red, above, will match the shiny red on Manitou’s forks’ adjustment levers.

 

The Gold stem cap will match the gold on the fork legs at left.  The base of the stem is just as heavily machined out as the cap, and has about 10mm of adjustment fore/aft.

Besides the SuperLogic carbon mountain bike wheels in the previous post, Ritchey had a LOT of other stuff on display…some new, some not, but plenty worth showing.

Above is a collection of their new “wet white” components, including their Single Bolt seatpost clamp design (detail below).  One of the neatest things was their Carbon Rigid Mountain Bike Fork.  It had some beefy round legs with carbon dropouts, but the steerer tube was aluminum.  Click the pics of it below to enlarge.

   

There’s lots more to see…hit “more” to come inside…

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BIKERUMOR.com 2009 SEA OTTER CLASSIC COVERAGE: Tom Ritchey weighs in on his new SuperLogic carbon-rimmed mountain bike wheels and how they held up during the Cape Epic, a South Africa mtb stage race that is notorious for destroying bikes, parts and riders alike.  With a 308g rim and only 28 spokes, a lot of people thought he was crazy for bringing such a lightweight wheelset to a grueling event.

  

How’d they work out?  Flawlessly.  Check the video for Tom’s story about the event and the wheels, then hit “more” for additional photos and specs on the wheels…

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BIKERUMOR.com 2009 SEA OTTER CLASSIC COVERAGE: At long last, Industry Nine has started building complete wheels with their own rims.  Available with Downhill / Freeride, All Mountain, Enduro and XC builds, plus some Ultra Lite race builds, I9 has you covered.  Of course, you can still have them built to any rim you want, but with these options, why would you:

• Ultralite Race: 1320g – I9 XC hub and spokes, Stans ZTR 7000 Race rim
• Ultralite: 1460g – I9 XC hub and spokes, Stans ZTR 355 rim
• Cross Country: 1610g – I9 XC hub, spokes and rim (23mm width rim)
• All Mountain: 1750g – I9 Enduro hub and spokes, I9 AM rim (25mm width)
• Enduro: 1860g – I9 Enduro hub, spokes and rim (28mm width)
• DH / FR: 2150g – I9 DH hub, spokes and rim (30mm width)
• Ultralite 29″: 1620g – I9 XC hub, EN spokes, Stans 355 29er rim
• Cross Country 29″: 1740g – I9 XC hub, EN spokes, Stans ZTR Arch 29er rim
• Enduro 29″: 1840g – I9 EN hub and spokes, Stan’s Flow 29er rim

All I9 rims come in black or white.  The white adds 30g.  As you’ll see in the rest of the pics, they offer every axle configuration out there, including the Specialized 25mm, and they’ll be adding the upcoming X12 standard that you probably don’t know about yet.  They even have an option to run the DT Swiss 9mm bolt, which adds tremendous stiffness to a normal fork by replacing the normal, tiny QR skewer.

The previous post has a video run through of all their new goodies. Hit “more” to see all the pics and details, including their new DH flange hub and single speed hub…

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BIKERUMOR.com 2009 SEA OTTER CLASSIC COVERAGE: Industry Nine, known for their signature mountain bike hubs and spokes (and their notoriously long lead times!) introduced a new line of road hubs, rims and complete wheels that look every bit as polished and sharp as their off road predecessors.  I9′s Jeff Baucom shows them off in the video above, and you can click the images below to enlarge (NOTE: Video includes mountain bike wheels and all hubs, which will be detailed in the next post).

 

 

Shown here is the Ego wheelset. At 1450 grams, they’re pretty darn light, and the cornucopia of color options will let you match just about any bike or team color combo.  Rim colors are white or black, and MSRP is $1,100, which includes ceramic bearings.

Read “more” for additional photos of these and their ID and SuperEgo Carbon-rimmed road wheels, plus all the technical specs and mechanical differences between their mountain and road hubs…

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