Outdoor Demo - Interbike 2013

This was the very first bike that I saw on my way to the Outdoor demo and I knew that it was signalling of things to come. 11nine is the maker and this full Ti Fat bike is sporting 120mm of rear travel with a 110mm front inverted fork. Aluminum production models are on the way too.

Surly have been making fat bikes for a long time and now it's everyone else's turn to play catch up in the big tire program. Their mid width bike, the Instigator 2.0, was looking up to doing battle on all terrain. Way to push the sport forward Surly.

The newest full face from Bell Helmets is the Transfer 9. Many of the same features found in the Full 9, but half the price. The overbrow venting is found on its high end, big brother, but the fibreglass shell helps to bring the retail into range for a lot more riders. You can expect to pay $200 USD for these once they hit bike shop shelves.

This is the bike that Jared Graves piloted to a Bronze Medal at this year's World Champs in South Africa. Pretty cool to see and check out his exact set up and to think he turned that #54 into a third place podium run. Congrats again to you Jared and everyone at Yeti this season.

What do you think about the suction cup racks from Sea Sucker?

Marzocchi Moto C2R (rear shock) and 380 C2R2 (fork) equipped Transition TR450. We are looking to some long term testing on these new suspension offerings from the folks at Marzocchi.

An office favourite since its inception a few seasons back, the Giro XAR has some new colours for 2014. Camo - Matte Green (Left) and Matte Blue (Right).

Some of the best staff we saw out in the Boulder City heat were helping at the Xeccon lights booth. Sometimes it's the little things that set a booth apart from the masses, in this case it was the toys.

Skin Wall Maxxis Ardent. This is only done for aesthetic reasons, there are no benefits to the skin wall look. But it caught our attention and we liked the look.

Check out these inflatable event tents LPTENT.ca with the PB approved Lotus on display.

The rules to signing out a demo bike at Specialized were pretty straight forward. Staying safe on the trails was up to you.

If you rode a demo bike here at Bootleg Canyon, then you passed by Power Bar where they were on hand to hydrate and feed you in order to keep you safe out there in the desert heat. If you get a chance, try their Smoothie flavoured bars.

Check out Bell's more affordable Enduro/AM helmet offering, the Stoker. It's lighter than the Super, has marginally increased venting and at $70 MSRP you can't really go wrong. Expect these to fly off shelves late October, early November.

The main idea of the Outdoor Demo is to come and test ride bikes that you may want to carry at your local bike shop. But some folks take this opportunity to bring in their own prototypes/working bikes and components and hope to catch someone's eye. These two bikes are from I Track, the P2 (Prototype Two - Left) and the tactic (Right). The tactic is a single pivot design, while the P2 uses a four bar set up. What sets the bikes apart is their floating idler wheel. Learn more at www.i-tracksuspension.com

It's safe to say that Giant has the largest fleet of demo bikes on hand during Outdoor Demo and folks were always lined up at the big blue tents. Current feedback suggests that the Trance X 27.5 is going to be a hit.

Being very familiar with Smith's line up of Snow Helmets, I am impressed with their first offering to the bike world - the Forefront. Its unique looks sets it apart from the rest and that's tough to do these days. Their demo helmets were out all day on the masses and received great feedback for both ventilation and looks.

Camelbak's line up of hydration packs covers the widest gamut possible. Here are some fun new colours for the ladies and gents for 2014. The 10L Spark in Imperial Purple/Graphite for the girls (Left) and the M.U.L.E. in Lime Punch for the guys/unisex (Right)

Karaoke party at Camelbak and the girls are singing Eminem's Lose Yourself song as Seth and crew get down for them. Always a good time staying hydrated.