Gear Army: Mountain Hardwear Lightweight Chockstone Jacket
Mountain Hardwear's softshell-like Chockstone Jacket ($100) shoulders the changing weather from spring to summer like a champ. Especially in the Northeast, where the weather can go from sleet to sunshine in one afternoon. Its water-repellent finish sheds drizzle, and when the sun comes out it scrunches down to a 10-ounce ball that can fit into a small hydration pack.
Because it's lightweight, I wouldn't call it "warm." Over a t-shirt on a brisk hike, I was comfortable. But when I put additional layers under it for leisurely, early-morning walks or outdoor movies at night, the Chockstone didn't cut the chill. But that's okay. It wasn't made to surround you in warmth. It's lack of a liner or insulation is what keeps it so light and packable for cooler summer days.
If you are tall with long limbs, like me, this jacket is for you.
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July 02, 2009
The Gear Junkie Scoop: Lazer Tardiz
Belgium-based Lazer Helmets was established in 1919,
making the company among the oldest helmet manufacturers in the world. But that
doesn't keeps the company from looking forward and innovating in the realm of
head-protection products.
Lazer's latest, the $175 Tardiz helmet, was made for maximum aerodynamics in bike time-trial events. Available for the first time in the United States this summer, the Tardiz -- which is an acronym for "time and relative dimensions in space" -- includes a two-part shell design to minimize air resistance.
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July 01, 2009
Gear Army: Smith's Multi-Lens Parallel Sunglasses
Cycle around the city much? All you need is a little piece of urban debris in your eye from a cab or construction site to be thankful for quality eyewear, like Smith Optics Parallel Max sunglasses ($129). The lenses cover more area than those in your average shades. But you aren't just paying for the extra protection.
The lens set that comes with the Parallel Max features proprietary Carbonic TLT technology—the lenses are gradually tapered so there is no optical distortion. High-impact resistance makes them ideal for the tough conditions around the Big Apple.
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June 30, 2009
The Gear Junkie: Family-Tent Roundup
Swooping nylon and linked poles, zippered doors, screened windows, and stakes in the dirt holding it down--the humble formula for a tent has long prevailed as an ultimate outdoors habitat for humans in need of a temporary home.
But today's campground cabanas are far from the basic designs of decades past. Indeed, leaky roofs, clammy quarters, and complex setups that take away from your fireside time are not a trait to any quality
tent today.
This column highlights new tents made for families of four or more. Be it in the backcountry, on a canoe trip, or car camping at an area state park, one of these shelters is sure to fit your family's preference for sleeping outside under the summer stars.
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June 29, 2009
The Spoke Word: Specialized 2010 and '11 Teasers
I'm in Utah for the Specialized 2010 Global Press Launch. The big items
on the road side are the Shiv time-trial bike and the Tarmac SL3 race
frame. They've also debuted a new S-Works road shoe with dual Boa
dials.
Full stories and reviews will be up in a day or two. In the meantime, here are a few photos. I'm also updating from the daily presentations on Twitter (@johnwbradley).
—John Bradley
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June 27, 2009
The Spoke Word: Specialized Tarmac SL3
I'm in Snowbird, Utah, for Specialized's annual press launch. We just had our first dinner, and I'm told that I'll be spending the next three days riding the newest iteration of the brand's flagship road racer, the Tarmac SL3. The bike was actually under a couple of Specialized-sponsored pros at May's Giro d'Italia (painted to look like the SL2), and several riders from the Saxo Bank and Quick Step teams will be racing it at next month's Tour de France.
I got the lowdown after dinner from a Specialized engineer who says the bike was developed in response to racer feedback after two seasons on the SL2. Tube shapes of the front triangle—including the tapered head tube—remain basically unchanged, though the construction and carbon layups are completely different. The rear triangle, however, has been completely redesigned and includes a monocoque bottom-bracket-chainstay assembly and new hollow-aluminum dropouts.
We'll be taking the bikes out for about 50 miles tomorrow through the Wasatch Mountains. Check back for first impressions.
—John Bradley
Twitter: johnwbradley
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June 26, 2009
The Spoke Word: New Stuff from Press Camp, Part 2
More 2010 product previews from Sun Valley (click here for Part 1).
GT The big news for GT was the Fury downhill bike, the first full-carbon bike built specifically for the rocks, roots, drops, jumps, and general mayhem of downhill racing (a Kevlar strip under the downtube helps with the really nasty stuff). The 8.5-inch-travel bike utilizes full monocoque (one-piece) construction and weights in just south of 40 lbs, according to GT. That's not light, even for a DH bike, but crafting a frame that could withstand the rigors of a DH run understandably took a lot of carbon fiber. GT engineers also pointed out that the decision to go with carbon wasn't about weight but, rather, ride quality. Even with all that travel, test riders claim there's a noticeable reduction in vibration over smaller bumps.
I didn't get a chance to ride it and, honestly, wouldn't be capable of pushing a bike like this to its limits. But gravity racers wanting to explore the full-carbon route now have an option.
Mongoose
GT's sister company rolled out a very cool commuter called the Sabrosa Ocho, which is built around an internal eight-speed Shimano hub. The standout features are quick-release pedals (take them with you to deter sticky urban fingers) and a breakaway headset that allows the handlebars to turn 90 degrees (parallel with the top tube) for easier storage at home or in crowded bike racks.
Gore
Gore has announced a new addition to its RideOn cable line and a price drop on some existing systems.
Since reintroducing Ride-On cables in 2007—after a four-year hiatus that saw riders begging the company for any remaining inventory—Gore has seen it's super-low-friction cable systems quickly spread through the cycling world. The slippery, coated cables now come standard with SRAM's top-of-the-line Red components and are add-ons on a lot of pro bikes. But the pros, who rely on mechanics, who rely on pressure washers, wanted something more like Gore's mtb-specific sealed system to keep water and gunk out—only in the thinner diameters of a road system. Gore has responded with the Pro System, which adds seals and extra-long ferrules to the existing road cables for a semi-sealed system for derailleurs and brakes.
The Pro System will be available in the fall for $65.00. If you can't wait until then, or balk at the price, Gore has also reduced the price on its existing road kits from $50 to $40, effective June 30.
CamelBak CamelBak used Press Camp to announce a redesign of its road-oriented RaceBak "wearable hydration" system—a typical hydration bladder which fits into a sleeve in the back of a tight baselayer-type sleeveless shirt (no bottles, no backpacks). (Read my review of the original model.) The new shirt has a 1/4 zip and slightly better ventelation throughout. Good improvements to an already great product.
More interesting, though, was the newly announced VeloBak, which takes the bladder out of the baselayer and fits it into a shortsleeved jersey. It seems obvious, but it's a tricky thing to pull off. A top has to be constructed fairly tight and robust material to handle a few pounds of sloshing water without entirely losing its shape. This is easier in baselayers, which are tight anyway, but another thing altogether when taking in the functionality of a full jersey. CamelBak didn't have samples in time for Press Camp, but this is one I'm looking forward to testing.
Check back later for more.
—John Bradley
Twitter: johnwbradley
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Gear Army: Hi-Tec Cascadia Backpacking Boot
While slogging through flooded Appalachia, the last thing I needed to worry about was my footwear. Luckily, the Hi-Tec Cascadia XCm eVent boots did almost everything I asked of them.
Boasting a laundry list of high-tech features, the Cascadia XCm ($180) is a rugged, waterproof boot which held up to the slick sandstone of West Virginia’s New River Gorge just as well as it did the ups-and-downs around Lake Moomaw in Virginia’s George Washington National Forest.
Visually, the boot is a welcome counterpoint to some of the more garish, primary-colored footwear being promoted right now. Functionally, the Cascadia feature nylon uppers with seamless construction that are waterproof thanks to an eVent membrane. Even though there's a membrane in them, they are still highly breathable. Plus, they have a rubber toe cap for protection and rugged Vibram soles.
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June 25, 2009
The Spoke Word: New Stuff from Press Camp, Part 1
The last day of the first-ever Bike Press Camp is winding down. To understand Press Camp, where I've been since Tuesday, you'll have to know a bit about how product launches work in the bike world.
The two major industry trade shows—Germany's Eurobike, in early September, and, Interbike, which happens about two weeks later in Las Vegas—are geared toward dealers. There are always countless product announcements, but with thousands of people running between 30-minute appointments, sessions are generally too short and hectic for journalists to get any in-depth info. To address this, major manufacturers invite journalists to multi-day product launches, where they have access to the engineers, marketers, etc., and plenty of time for real-world testing.
Smaller companies can't afford this and are thus left at a disadvantage. Press Camp fills this gap by bringing together around 20 bike-industry brands and roughly the same number of journalists for three days of informational sessions and product testing in Sun Valley, Idaho. The companies get to pool their resources, and we journalists get to spend quality time with the engineers and their new products.
So that's what I've been doing since Tuesday, and here's some of what I've learned about late 2009 and early 2010.
Delta 7 I just got back from my first ride on a Delta 7 frame—the just-launched Ascend road bike—and I have to say I'm impressed. Delta 7 entered the bike world about 18 months ago with the Arantix mountain-bike frame, which was also the debut of the company's IsoTruss technology. IsoTruss is a patented construction method that forgoes traditional tubes for a web of Kevlar-wrapped carbon-fiber strands. The strands form a series of interlocking triangles, much like the trusses used in the construction of large buildings.
In theory, everything says this should result in a rigid structure. But in practice, it's a bit of a leap to trust a frame tube you can see through. But the only frame failures Delta 7 has ever suffered were when the epoxy that bonds the IsoTruss tubes to the carbon lugs came apart on two demo Arantix frames last year—at Interbike, of all places. No one has managed to break the tubes yet, and the company immediately halted production after Interbike to redesign its tube-lug junctions and has also switched to a new aerospace epoxy.
So...I threw a leg over an Ascend road this afternoon for 30 windy miles through Sun Valley. It wasn't enough time for a full test, but first impressions are that there is something different going on here. The sensory clues I'm used to when I'm at top speed—loud pings and rattles, vibrations, pedal feedback—weren't there. It didn't feel like I was at speed at all, but I still managed to drop the four other riders I was on the roads with. And, trust me, I'm not that fast. Looking forward to spending more time on this one.
Blue Competition Cycles This five-year-old Georgia company has been making inroads into the triathlon world with its Triad time-trial bike, the purchase of which comes with one free hour of wind-tunnel testing and fitting at the A2 wind tunnel in Charlotte, North Carolina. But Blue also has a full line of road and mountain bikes and is expanding for 2010 with the AC1 aero-road frame and the Norcross cyclocross frame. The AC1 is a top-flight race design that should appeal to road racers and those who want a bike that can take a set of clip-on TT bars for the occasional triathlon. The Norcross has already been tested on the World Cup circuit by America's top 'cross racer, Jonathan Page, who is a Blue-sponsored athlete.
Clif
New from the makers of Clif Bars is Clif Quench, an electrolyte-rich drink focused more on hydration than energy replacement. The drinks are 88 percent organic and come in plastic bottles that are 40 percent post-consumer recycled, which the company claims is the highest available. The drinks themselves are all clear (no artificial colors) and lightly flavored, with just 90 calories per eight-once bottle. They're just a bit sweet for my taste (I'm generally more sensitive to this than most people). But I've found that mixing about 3/4 Quench to 1/4 water is the perfect amount of electrolytes and calories for the 90-minute test rides we've been doing here.
Quench comes in four flavors—Lime-Ade (my favorite), Fruit Punch, Orange, and Strawberry Citrus—and is already available in health-food stores and natural grocers.
That's it for now. Off to the last info session of the day. Check back tomorrow for Part 2.
—John Bradley
Twitter: johnwbradley
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June 24, 2009
Gear Army: Columbia Gaia XTM Multi-Purpose Shoes
I am not ashamed to say I own more hiking boots than high heels. That said, I live in the land of year-round sandals (read: California). So encasing my feet in any enclosed structure of fiber, synthetic mesh, and rubber means impending discomfort.
The Columbia Gaia XTM ($90), however, is without comparison. Here's the scoop: The forefoot plate and nylon shank provide stability without unnecessary bulk. The mesh upper and molded plastic support cage provide breathability while maintaining vital inherent structure and support. The non-marking Omni-Grip soles lend you sticky traction without added weight. They cinch on with an easy lace system and pull off. They even have finger hooks on the back to pull them on and tiny flowers that grace the reinforced forefoot plate and heel protector. The foot bed is cushy and molds to your foot, truly solidifying its namesake: Contour Comfort 3D.
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