It’s the first day of Eurobike. Well, that’s actually tomorrow, but today is the Demo Day. For many dealers it’s a chance to ride bikes on a not-particularly-challenging mountain bike course and on the roads, but for Chipps and Matt, it’s a chance to have a wander round the booths, take pictures of products in yer actual daylight and get an idea of some of the hot things, ready for the show tomorrow.
So here’s a quick and ready assemblage of some of the fun/interesting/smart/crazy things we’ve seen. There’ll be more later, but enjoy this taster.
Here's the new Garmin 800. It has real terrain maps on it, but it's not really much bigger than the existing 750.Reynolds are launching two carbon rims. One is a 230g 24hole XC rim......and this is the All Mountain 28H wider rim. The Tour's Devil is here, shouting at people.Scott's women's range is looking very smart. We're off to see them tomorrow.Some of Scott's leisure style technical clothing for the more stylishly adventurousA Scale with all the latest trimmings: Full XTR and tapered 15mm Fox forksBeOne's new 120mm trail bike. They're coming back to the UK too.The ambiguously named Nukeproof Snap. Snap as in gate-starts we hope. £399Close up of the new ScalpNukeproof's new DH bike, the Scalp. £1500 for a frame and Vivid shock.Ragley has many new things. This Blue Pig uses the new 44mm headset standard so that you can run tapered forks (or even a 1.5in fork!)Nukeproof Mega. As in -Avalanche. £899 for a frame and shock.The Ragley 'Wiser' bar in Kevlar/carbon or alloy. 720mm and 25 or 38mm wise, er, rise.You can't fault Ragley's colour coordination.The Piglet. A bike designed for people who don't ride the steep tech of Hebden Bridge. 120mm forks and a 68.5° (sagged) head angle.There are a LOT of electric bikes here. This one is one of the chunkiest.The very smart looking Superfly. Now under the banner of 'The Gary Fisher Collection, by Trek'High top ankle-protecting boots from ShimanoThese new AM45 shoes are either very smart, or they're on the run from Star Trek. What do you reckon?There are more 29ers here than ever before. The Germans seem to be getting it...This Giant Trance has a colour-matched Fox fork in a colour that we can only describe as 'SID blue'Aaaargh! My eyes! Ridley is having a push with their new 29er to prove that they don't just make (great) cyclocross and road bikes.Yeti's graphics guy must have been busy. Lots of new graphics and, as we'll find out 'inside' at the show, some new models.And Matt is the sensible one...
With 23 years as Editor of Singletrack World Magazine, Chipps is 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. Over the last 30 years as a bike writer and photographer, he has seen mountain bike culture flourish, strengthen and diversify and bike technology go from rigid steel frames to fully suspended carbon fibre (and sometimes back to rigid steel as well.)
I need to know more about that Nukeproof Mega. Prototypes were looking at being able to swap the rear travel – any news on that? What travel has it ended up with?
Ragley Piglet looks very nice. Does it also have the 44 mm headset? Also forward facing slot on seatpost, unlike the old Blue Pig and Mmmbop. Does the Piglet come in an aluminium version?
can you see if you can get any pics of the new colours for 2011 santa cruz 😉
Of course. We aim to please 🙂 They’re not at the demo, so you’ll have to wait until the show itself opens.
many thanks chips, you’re a gent
I need to know more about that Nukeproof Mega. Prototypes were looking at being able to swap the rear travel – any news on that? What travel has it ended up with?
Ees a nice price, meester!
reference the new santacruz colours, i hope they are turd – i have a shiny new black Blur LTC being built as we speak
29ers pls Chipps , especially Singulars if they are exbiting ….
That NP Mega seems like it might be a nice modern upgrade for my Blur 4X. And I love the look of the Piglet and the shiney shiney bar/stems…
Ragley Piglet looks very nice. Does it also have the 44 mm headset? Also forward facing slot on seatpost, unlike the old Blue Pig and Mmmbop. Does the Piglet come in an aluminium version?
Pics of the 2011 Zestys ASAP please 🙂
Can’t believe you didn’t describe the Scott women’s bike as “fruit salad”! ;-0
Brant’s been busy 😉
So is the Mega a blood/bottlerocket type frame.
i.e. stiff uncomplicated mid-travel fun bike?
Zesty will be up on video tomorrow ;] New one and Nico’s Avalanche Special.
Oh and all those questions about the Ragleys.
“It has real terrain maps on it,”
Does that mean the Garmin Edge 800 will accept Ordnance Survey mapping?
What chainset is on that be-one?
Chipps I hate to ruin the cred of the site but any 2011 spesh news eps the epic’s????
Shame the Nukeproof DH bike isn’t the uberbargain we were all hoping for.
Those super light Reynolds XC rims are exciting though.
Liking the colour scheme on the Scott women’s bike. Not usually a fan of white or the colour schemes dreamed up for women but I could cope with that
Can you find out if the new bolt through rear for the yeti 575 will be retrofittable to existing models?