Press Launch

Interbike Four: See? We’d just forgotten to post it.

September 27, 2009
15 Comments
Interbike 2009-1
An Empire frame, from just down the road from Singletrack's offices, was on display on the Cane Creek stand, where they were boasting that they carried headset combinations for all 48 different steerer/headtube variations these days (tapered, inset, drop-in, 1.5, 'normal' and all combos in between)
Interbike 2009-3
Curtis Inglis of Retrotec really does make some of the sweetest looking frames ever.
Interbike 2009-5
A chunky old school shifter for the...
Interbike 2009-4
...Sturmey Archer three-speed fixie hub. They're not in production (or entirely working...) yet by the sound of it, though it should only be a couple of months before they start appearing - to the delight of fixie riders everywhere.
Interbike 2009-10
Who said that 29ers always looked ungainly? (Probably us, actually) Here's the Niner Air9 to prove us and them wrong. Full carbon, with EBB and a tapered headtube (complete with tapered Niner full carbon fork too)
Interbike 2009-4
The Knolly Delerium - now a 1lb lighter, 6.7in (170mm) rear travel, better standover and a lower centre of gravity. Noel reckons it climbs better and descends better than the old model.
Interbike 2009-3
A close up of all those lovely bits of machining.
Interbike 2009-4-1
Similar, but oh-so-different. This is the Podium, the new Knolly DH race bike now in production.
Interbike 2009-3-1
A very DH racerboy 64 degree head angle and 8.4in of bump sucking for the Podium.
Interbike 2009-2-1
At the other end of the scale, the Endorphin has been joined by this prototype Endorphin XC. 125mm rear travel for a 120-140mm fork and a build-up of 25lbs.
Interbike 2009-1
The Commencal Meta 55 Carbon - well revered by all who passed the BTI booth.
Interbike 2009-59
It's not just a 7in travel Lenz bike. Look closer - it's a 7in travel 29er!

Interbike 2009-58
The MRP camper crank is designed just for single ring use, so there are no inner ring tabs. Weight is 850g with BB.
Interbike 2009-57
All sorts of MRP ring in odd and even combinations from very small to extra medium.
Interbike 2009-55
MRP's 1x (say 'One-by') chain device for riders wanting to keep a chain on for 1x9 speed XC use. Tested at this year's Cross Vegas event was the seat tube mounted version that we should see soon too.
Interbike 2009-6
Bell + eyeballs = crazy lid.
Interbike 2009-20
The world's shortest brake lever? Nope, it's the controller for the Rase droppable seatpost.
Interbike 2009-18
Going up. At full length with slightly dusty neoprene boot to keep things clean.
Interbike 2009-17
...and dropped the full NINE inches. Now you really can ride your BMX/jump bike/sister's bike to the shops and still come back the rad way.
Interbike 2009-15
Pretty stem, plus the usual four-crosser's attitude to health and safety.
Interbike 2009-14
It's a Black Market Bikes Killswitch. A super compact full suspension 4X or trick bike seen on the X-Fusion shocks stand.
Interbike 2009-12
Tiny but rad.
Mr. Chipps Chippendale

Singletrackworld's ex-Editor At Large

With 25 years as Editor of Singletrack World Magazine, Chipps holds the record for the longest-running mountain bike magazine editor in the world. He started in the bike trade in 1990 and became a full time mountain bike journalist at the start of 1994. Chipps stepped down as Editor in April 2026 after 25 years at the helm. He's now wondering what to do next, while riding his bike in the French Pyrenees, where he also runs some gites.

More posts from Mr. Chipps

15 thoughts on “Interbike Four: See? We’d just forgotten to post it.”

  6. “Rase post looks promising; getting one in to test?”

    I’ve got one. It’s OK at best. Feels very much like a prototype. It’s so close to being good, but falls short in quite a lot of ways.

  7. oh my word, there is some pornography in this episode.
    and am now tempted to mod an old brake lever to work my lockouts, just cause i can

  10. Olly.
    You would then have to hold your little brake levers as you sprinted up that climb..!! ;o)
    Unless you used those dia-compes with a release buton but that would be mega fiddly.. Ok for a travel adjust lever though…

  15. If only I had the money for an AP-1, a Delirium and Niner that would cover everything I do and I’d be doing it in style.

    I’d be total broke though. Maybe I should sell my car.

Comments are closed.