Interbike Dirt Demo: Day 2!

Even though we got a late start and pretty much spent the whole day looking for shade, I think we still managed to exceed expectations for Day 2 of the Dirrrrty Demo. The expectations are set quite low though so it wasn't to hard. Chris King is showing off a 1.5" headset and 150mm hub, '08 Manitou Travis, and some killer brakes from a few different people. There's a bunch more in here so read on....Ok, so we slept in a bit. With the buses to Bootleg running at 7:30 am, a real keener could have beat the heat and crowds this morning. Not the Pink Taco crew though. Yesterday's updates didn't get done until the wee hours of yesterday morning so some extra sleep was well deserved. Once we ambled downstairs to the buses at 10am we discovered we also deserved the hour long wait for being slackers!

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Alright people, the wait is over. Chris King made an appearance at Bootleg to show us peons what's new. And what's new is a 1.5" headset for the front and a 12/150mm hub for the back of your big bike. As usual there was a slew of colors to choose from so pick something that matches your eyes and pimp out your DH bike!


King also had a nifty little device called the PreLoader that keeps the headset on your big bike from coming loose. Its been done before, but not in King quality. The cut-away of the 12/150mm hub was super neat to see.

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Chain giant KMC had a little booth in the desert proudly displaying their chains. Some neat painted versions on display but from what I've seen painted chains don't look to hot after a few weeks of riding. The gold 10spd chain looked very nice though!

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Manitou had some forks on display that included the '08 Travis and Gold Label boingers. The colors for next seasons forks look killer. Nice and simple but they pop with no crazy graphics or unneeded junk.



More info from Manitou forks coming real soon!

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With more then one wheel size choice and some companies even mixing sizes on bikes it was about time that someone took it too far! Screw 24", 26", 650B, and 29" wheels because this is the future.

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Formula is gaining more spec here in North America and it's no wonder why with brakes like this.

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I'm going to continue with the whole brake theme for a bit and show you some slick stoppers from Hayes. Everyone out there has seen the new Stroker but here is the fancy pants carbon version.

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Any brake named after a big ass tiger must work good eh? Bengal has got the Helix 1.0 for your stopping needs. While not as fancy pants as other stoppers, they felt solid and must come in at a killer price point. I think. I don't actually know the price.

Roar, I'm a Bengal tiger

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X Fusion had some neat suspension products for the masses to see. The Vector DH2 is their long stroke coil shock, from 2.4" to 3.0" of stroke. Adjustments include compression, rebound, bottom resistance, and air pressure.

If you want something lighter for your big bike then look up the Vector H3. At only 320 grams you'll drop some poundage off your over weight two-wheeler. There was a V10 at their booth that had a H3LT (longer stroke model) bolted up and it was still more sensitive than most recent coil shocks being produced!

Vector DH2

Vector H3

I'm keen to give one of these a go on my DH bike to see how they compare.

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Along with some tough as nails short travel bikes, the 20" kids at Eastern have some nice components for your ride. "Nice" doesn't cut it though when describing Eastern's Ti 3pc crank arms. Maybe damn nice would be better. Titanium arms, 48 spline titanium axle, and titanium crank bolts. 16oz for the whole set up. Plus they look stealth.


If you are both a fan of the Transformers and nice stems you'll want to zoom in on the Eastern Deceptikon. It comes in 4 color options (don't know what they are though!) and has removable gyro tabs if you want to gyro it up. Reach is 48mm and the back has a nice rounded curve to it so it won't take your kneecap off when you slip a pedal like a noob.

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Random Bits and Tits


What do you do when you find yourself in the desert and need to test how waterproof your jacket is? Jump in the Gore-Tex bus!


Ned Overend on his 73rd lap of the XC course this morning....


Powered by the wind and a dork in the seat!


"Dollar Bill" spent the whole day hiding in the can when he was supposed to be pumping out vids!

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Reviews and Tech Reviews Interbike