I figured Id post up my thoughts on my favorite items from Interbike 2009.
Not just DH stuff, well mostly, but overall mountain bike goodies I found most interesting.
Not in order of most important
1 Elka coil shocks.
I met up with the guys from Elka at the Outdoor demo to try out some shocks. I was really looking forward to trying them since Ive been going back and forth between a new-tune Cane Creek Double Barrel and a Pushed Factory Race Roco that I had re worked for my new bike. The Elka is a fairly straight forward shock. Hi and Low compression adjusts that are really easy to reach and turn. One rebound adjuster. No air tuning in the reservoir. Scott here from Go-Ride and I tested 3 different shocks. One on Scotts personal Giant Reign X, I rode a Cove G Spot and also a Cove Shocker. We both noted on how plush they were and how quickly we were able to get them tuned to our liking. Within 1 run we both found settings we were very happy with. I was able to get the low speed compression firmed up enough to hump a downhill bike up to the shuttle pickup but It was still quite supple. I softened it back up a bit to see what I could get away with. After a couple rim bangs I softened the high speed compression to cope with the sharp rocks of Bootleg. I few whiplashing G outs proved the proficiency of the bottom out bumper. As I hit the bottom of a run a few buddies were just heading out for a short xc loop so I firmed the low speed back up and found it to still be plenty plush to ride the rolling terrain of the lower mountain while also being fairly quick pedaling. Very cool!!!
2 Troy Lee D3 Helmet.
I already have a Troy Lee SE2 moto helmet and this little baby fits just like it!!! I wear a small and the D2 is too tight, and the medium is too loose. The D3 is a perfect fit! Seriously plush! My Remedy feels like a barely padded xc lid with giant cheek pads, because it is. There are quite a few features to it, like the pull tab removable cheek pads. Like in some modern moto helmets, the cheek pads can be removed while wearing the helmet to make removal easier on an injured rider. The neck brace compatibility is over the top with the rear back portion shaped for maximum clearance and mobility. The Sam Hill model is especially sexy-and low key. But then again, Peatys has 1974 on the pool balls on the side I was born that year too!!! Oh and the tap handle spilling beer all over the lid, nice job Troy!
3 Giant Reign X
Im cheating the Top 5 a little here because I already own these next two items, but only got one ride before the show, and I rode my own bike there a bunch. I have ridden Bootleg on just about every bike Ive owned so it is my favorite testing ground. The Giant Reign X. Light, low, 170mm travel, pure fun bike! One 32lb all coil dream machine to take anywhere anytime. Full blown DH courses, backcountry trails, favorite shuttle runs, you get the picture. My favorite One Bike ever. Climbing in the granny sure beats pushing a DH to the top. Bunny hopping into corners and back out again. The opposite of a plower DH machine. OK maybe Im burnt on DH bikes, Im mini DH all the way!
4 Lyric 170 DH coil
Speaking of mini DH, what goes better with a Reign X than a matching 170mm coil fork with Mission Control DH damping! 5.25lbs of coil sprung mini Boxxer action! The funny thing I found is that the stock valve scheme is pretty much what we arrived at in the new Boxxer after a summer of testing. Only one rebound knob but it does have Dual Flow rebound shimmz and a seriously stiff audible CLICK with every turn. 3 springs in the box. Oil is already in the fork. It seems the Lyric 170 learned from the teething problems of its big brother. My head angle is perfect, the fork tracks chatter like crazy and the damper is easily highly tunable. No Drop Stop but Im gonna make one for it for when I like to get old school and hit up some drops.
5 Yeti ASR5 C
Heres a crazy thought- take a 4.75lb 120mm full carbon fiber racer boy bike, slack the head angle out to 68 degrees, drop the BB to 13, throw in a tapered steer tube and a 15mm axle to be sure it steers well up front and toss on a 142 x 12 axle in the rear of the full carbon mongo swingarm and see what happens! Well what happens is you create a sub 25lb rocket that can handle rocky runs far better that the pinner tires the weenies use! Im not so sure Im gonna run out and buy a 120mm bike right away but if I was that kinda guy this would be the bike!!!
OK thats what I got.
Krispy
Not just DH stuff, well mostly, but overall mountain bike goodies I found most interesting.
Not in order of most important
1 Elka coil shocks.
I met up with the guys from Elka at the Outdoor demo to try out some shocks. I was really looking forward to trying them since Ive been going back and forth between a new-tune Cane Creek Double Barrel and a Pushed Factory Race Roco that I had re worked for my new bike. The Elka is a fairly straight forward shock. Hi and Low compression adjusts that are really easy to reach and turn. One rebound adjuster. No air tuning in the reservoir. Scott here from Go-Ride and I tested 3 different shocks. One on Scotts personal Giant Reign X, I rode a Cove G Spot and also a Cove Shocker. We both noted on how plush they were and how quickly we were able to get them tuned to our liking. Within 1 run we both found settings we were very happy with. I was able to get the low speed compression firmed up enough to hump a downhill bike up to the shuttle pickup but It was still quite supple. I softened it back up a bit to see what I could get away with. After a couple rim bangs I softened the high speed compression to cope with the sharp rocks of Bootleg. I few whiplashing G outs proved the proficiency of the bottom out bumper. As I hit the bottom of a run a few buddies were just heading out for a short xc loop so I firmed the low speed back up and found it to still be plenty plush to ride the rolling terrain of the lower mountain while also being fairly quick pedaling. Very cool!!!
2 Troy Lee D3 Helmet.
I already have a Troy Lee SE2 moto helmet and this little baby fits just like it!!! I wear a small and the D2 is too tight, and the medium is too loose. The D3 is a perfect fit! Seriously plush! My Remedy feels like a barely padded xc lid with giant cheek pads, because it is. There are quite a few features to it, like the pull tab removable cheek pads. Like in some modern moto helmets, the cheek pads can be removed while wearing the helmet to make removal easier on an injured rider. The neck brace compatibility is over the top with the rear back portion shaped for maximum clearance and mobility. The Sam Hill model is especially sexy-and low key. But then again, Peatys has 1974 on the pool balls on the side I was born that year too!!! Oh and the tap handle spilling beer all over the lid, nice job Troy!
3 Giant Reign X
Im cheating the Top 5 a little here because I already own these next two items, but only got one ride before the show, and I rode my own bike there a bunch. I have ridden Bootleg on just about every bike Ive owned so it is my favorite testing ground. The Giant Reign X. Light, low, 170mm travel, pure fun bike! One 32lb all coil dream machine to take anywhere anytime. Full blown DH courses, backcountry trails, favorite shuttle runs, you get the picture. My favorite One Bike ever. Climbing in the granny sure beats pushing a DH to the top. Bunny hopping into corners and back out again. The opposite of a plower DH machine. OK maybe Im burnt on DH bikes, Im mini DH all the way!
4 Lyric 170 DH coil
Speaking of mini DH, what goes better with a Reign X than a matching 170mm coil fork with Mission Control DH damping! 5.25lbs of coil sprung mini Boxxer action! The funny thing I found is that the stock valve scheme is pretty much what we arrived at in the new Boxxer after a summer of testing. Only one rebound knob but it does have Dual Flow rebound shimmz and a seriously stiff audible CLICK with every turn. 3 springs in the box. Oil is already in the fork. It seems the Lyric 170 learned from the teething problems of its big brother. My head angle is perfect, the fork tracks chatter like crazy and the damper is easily highly tunable. No Drop Stop but Im gonna make one for it for when I like to get old school and hit up some drops.
5 Yeti ASR5 C
Heres a crazy thought- take a 4.75lb 120mm full carbon fiber racer boy bike, slack the head angle out to 68 degrees, drop the BB to 13, throw in a tapered steer tube and a 15mm axle to be sure it steers well up front and toss on a 142 x 12 axle in the rear of the full carbon mongo swingarm and see what happens! Well what happens is you create a sub 25lb rocket that can handle rocky runs far better that the pinner tires the weenies use! Im not so sure Im gonna run out and buy a 120mm bike right away but if I was that kinda guy this would be the bike!!!
OK thats what I got.
Krispy
Thanks for the post...
Medium (18.5”