The long awaited GoPro HD HERO was on display at Interbike, and the multiple TV monitors around their booth had some very luscious video running. I got to speak with a whole slew of GoPro people, and I even had a long conversation with the man himself, founder and CEO Nicholas Woodman. Nick is a really great guy, and he is very psyched about their new product. GoPro spent a lot of R&D time on the HD HERO, and they not only worked on the video, but also on the audio, to help keep down wind noise when riding at Mach 10.

It was very sweet to hold the new camera in my hands and play around with it. The camera is just slightly larger than its predecessor, and uses the same old mounting hardware, except the new housing is obviously larger to accommodate the new camera. The camera looks almost exactly the same, with the same small screen, LED light and 2 buttons. The small screen still has its information upside down as you progress through its settings using the buttons.

What is hugely different is that you can now shoot HD with the HERO. You can shoot in 1080p (widescreen) at 30fps, 960p (full frame) at 30fps, and 720p at either 30 fps or 60 fps. The 60 fps allows slow motion, how cool is that! The camera angle is different in each format, so 1080p is 127 degrees, while 920p and 720p are at 170 degrees. And hold on to your horses, memory is now up to a 32GB capacity!

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James Penfold from Exposure USA showed us the exciting new lights in their line up. The Diablo is about the same size as the  old Joysick light. It has a bigger head to accomodate the Seoul P7 LED emitter and the rear of the light is flared out as well to balance it out. It is ultralight at  and is not much heavier than the 97 gram joystick. Yet, it almost 3x as bright at 700 lumens claimed output (Joystick was 240 lumens). The beam pattern has a wide and clear halo and  a powerful spot in the middle for throw (visiblity at longer distances). This light can be mounted on the bar or helmet using the same mounting hardware as the Joystick.

There will be three light levels and the highest level of 700 lumens will only deliver 1 hour of run time. But a piggyback battery can be hooked on to double the run time. 700 lumens is about the same brightness as their old Exposure Maxx light with three LEDs.

MSRP for the Diablo is $250.  The Toro is a similar light but with a larger casing to accomodate a bigger battery. Light levels will be the same but the run time will be at least double the Diablo’s.

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There wasn’t a whole lot of new stuff being released for Ibis this year. Some new colors for the bikes and the Mojo HD was on display.

Mojo HD
The much anticipated Mojo HD is still in a prototype phase, so its unavailable for now, but at least we can see it and touch it. “See me, feel me, touch me, heal me.”

I spoke with Scott and he said that they had kept the bike under wraps for a long time before it was allowed to be seen. Sort of a Ibis secret Skunk Works project if you will. The had just painted Brian’s bike, so it looked a bit different than some of the earlier photos I had seen.

I commented on the gearing on the bike; which was obviously meant for going downhill; and Scott said Brian was able to keep up (and kill) with everyone on a group ride on XC terrain! He also said that Brian sets his derailleur to not go to the upper cog, since getting a chain sucked up over the top of the cassette isn’t to useful for racing.

Next -> Mojo HD continued

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After the Interbike 2008 cavalcade of new bikes and parts, it was a bit calmer in Titaniumville this year. Moots released a new version of the Vamoots, a new road stem and a 10 year anniversary edition of the Mooto X YBB 29er.

Mooto X YBB
The limited edition Mooto X YBB 29er was created to celebrate the 10th birthday of Moots first foray into the 29er world. It has a cool looking decal package, and is decked out with a slew of white and red parts. Of course using Sram XX made it look pretty bling! Very rad looking for the usually understated Moots. Only 75 are being created, so run out to your dealer and order one!

Color Options
Moots added some colors to their stem faceplates, seat collars and cinch post saddle clamp. You can now get them in black, red, blue and gray. I am already destined to add some blue pieces to my Moots Mooto-XZ!

Next -> Vamoots RSL & RSL road stem

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DT Swiss has a bunch of new products being released this year, the most prominent is the new tubeless ready Tricon wheelset. They are also releasing some new carbon wheels, new forks with a better price point and some minor tweaks to their existing top of the line carbon fork.

Tricon Wheelset
The new Tricon wheel system has some very innovative features that were engineered into them. Foremost is that they use a multiple piece hub, which is comprised of 2 spoke flanges and a hub body. The separate spoke flanges are tightened down onto the hub body, so they are not part of the hub itself. This arrangement leaves the hub body and the bearings free of tension from spoke pull, so the bearings can spin as smoothly as possible. Usually a hub has to have a built in amount of bearing bind, since once spoke tension is applied the body is pulled outwards, thus freeing up the bearings. Otherwise the bearings would be sloppy and more apt to wear if that factor was not designed into the hub.

The spoke pattern is a combination of radial and crossed spokes, for maximum stiffness and torque transferal. The spokes use Torx nipples, and are threaded on each end, and are straight pulled. Lastly the rim, uses small spoke inserts, which are supported on two sides of the rim, think of them as a sort of rectangular spoke nuts. This arrangement allows the rim to be built lighter, and in addition it is airtight for tubeless compatibility.

The mountain version of the wheel system is the XM 1550 Tricon, and is 26mm wide. The front is available as either 100mm/15mm or 110mm/9mm, while the rear can be 135mm/10mm or 142mm/12mm. Weights are 700 grams for the front and 850 grams for the rear. It is also available in a road version RR 1450 Tricon.

Next -> Forks & Carbon Wheels

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Cannondale showed an elite few members of the cycling media some new suspension technology. They invited us to take a ride in their “Unimog” out to their super secret desert location known only as “Area 88″. With the press corp riding blind, a simple iPhone (equipped with GPS) assured the test subjects that they were really only about a quarter mile from the Outdoor Demo area.

Once inside Area 88 (actually a public storage facility), the goods were shown. We listened to a presentation by the main R&D guys for this project, complete with informative slide show with an overview of key points and features of the new technology. This project has been five years in the making, so far.

After a short Q&A session, we were lead out of the back of the “warehouse” to the testing grounds and our first real close-up of “SIMON”.

First Look>>
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Banshee is fairly new to the bike scene, and their Spitfire model is still in its prototyping stages. The 5 inch suspension Spitfire has one very interesting feature, it has 2 shock mount positions, that allow you to vary the geometry of the bike. One position gives you a higher BB height, and a steeper head angle for technical XC riding. The other position drops the BB height, and slackens out the head angle for higher speed riding.

Spitfire Adjustable shock mount

The Spitfire was wicked fast when it was pointed downhill, it just accelerated down like crazy. The Spitfire was very neutral, steered and handled nicely, and didn’t display any outstanding squat issues. During hard pedaling, it did just you asked of it, and on steeps climbs the rear end tended to stay connected to the tarmac. I think there is some room for further tinkering on the suspension system, to get it to the same level of its competitions (DW Link and Yeti AS come to mind). On some G-outs, the front end collapsed a bit much, and really tossed you forward. The Spitfire is designed as a 1×9, something that I haven’t ridden very much, so I found the gearing tough for me, since I like to granny gear it a bit more.

I enjoyed my brief time on the Spitfire, it was a nice bike, and the adjustable geometry is an innovative feature. Release date is 2010. I think Banshee has a winner on their hands, and further tweaking of the bike will only help improve it.

Later today Panaracer makes public the new Cedric Gracia XC 2.1 and 4X/AM 2.3 Signature tires at Interbike in Las Vegas.

MTBR.com and mtbtires.com are able to bring you the first look at the XC 2.1 as I have been evaluating the tires and various rubber compounds through the summer.

The XC 2.1 features a unique “H” block in the center for smooth, quick rolling while still having good drive and braking grip. Simple, effective transition and edge block inspire confidence in the turns. I found myself channeling CG and pushing harder into the corners and hitting (small) jumps.

While not a “big” volume it likes to be run at fairly low pressures without suffering casing squirm or pinch flats.

Look for pics of the 4X/AM 2.3 later today. It is a totally different concept from the XC.

Chris Holmes of the Electra Bicycle Company, shows us the Ticino 20D. The Ticino (pronounced Ti-chee-no”) line showcases several retro features and embodies the hand built “feel”.

Feautures include:

-6066-T6 aluminum frame
-20 speed drivetrain
-indexed downtube shifters
-Electra 420 chromoly tubing with 80mm of offset (for nice relaxed feel)
-double brazed chromoly stem quill bolt
-Electra high flange hub

www.electrabike.com

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Downhill Jill shows us the all brand new Haro Sonix 650B bike:

This bike features:
-Virtual Link platform, which is designed to engineer all the pedal bob out, no pivot between the bb and rear axel
-super efficient
-120mm front and rear suspension travel
-advantages of a 29er, without any of the disadvantages
-White Brothers Fluid 650B specific fork

www.harobikes.com

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Some better pics of the Kenda Happy Medium, Eric Carter Signature tire. Much easier to see the propionate edge and transition blocks, and the course “file” tread down the center.

More photos:

“Hi, I’m Larry and this is my brother”…wait a minute…This is a tire for a different character, the Surly Pugsly. Surly wanted a front tire with better straight line tracking, increased cornering  and off camber grip, and lower rolling resistance on pavement. Larry, their new (week-old) 26×3.8 tire has accomplished all of those goals. Expected to be available in January.

Quicker and more lively. The H-Factor joins the ultra grippy Telonix in Hans Ray’s signature line.

New from Eric Carter the Happy Medium combines the edge and transition blocks from his Excavator with a “deep” file center tread. The truncated pyramid knobs should be big enough to punch through a loose top layer with a minimum of rolling resistance. The intermediate blocks have been set far enough to the outside to not be on the ground when riding in a straight line but be there instantly for cornering.

Both tires will be offered in Kenda’s usual size range and casing options.

Revamped and refined tread designs, Tubeless Compatible System (TCS) and UST models headline WTB’s tire lineup for 2010.

The Weirwolf received a complete facelift to improve transition feel and control, and cornering grip for a wider range of riding styles. The most noticeable change is the stepped edge blocks. With the original WW Mark Weir (WTB team racer and employee) noted the tire worked better after the edge blocked were scuffed. He asked If this could be designed into the tire so it would perform at it best from the first ride. Mark is happy–but only after he tried 7, and rejected 6, rubber compounds.

Available in 26×2.1(50/53), TCS, UST, Race and Comp; 26×2.3(52/56), UST, AM TCS, Race.

Big news with the Dissent FR/DH tires. With feedback from World Cup DH racers and extreme trail riders the cornering channel has been made wider, the tread blocks bigger and compounds tweaked for outstanding loose conditions grip with little loss on hardpack performance.

The surprise to many is the Dissent 29″. This may be “The Tire 2″ bringing 29ers to a new area of riding.

2.5(57/65) wire bead, Super Track DNA compound (~50a), Super Duty casing.

Tubeless options have increased. The Tubeless Compatible System uses UST beads, casings with a slightly more rubber and require sealant for tubeless use with little or no weight increase over standard Race versions. They can still be used with tubes and plans are for . It is being used in the Wolverine, Mutano and Weirwolf.

Full UST has expanded to 5 models: Wolverine, Prowler MX2.1 and 2.3, Weirwolf and Dissent.

Only 26″ tires are being offered in tubeless at this point. The plan had been to make the entire mtb lineup with UST beads be the retooling costs became prohibitive. All future new models to be (at least) TCS.

Other tweaks to the lineup have seen some overlapping models dropped, others refreshed and names shortened. The Stout and Prowler SS are gone. The Mutano and Nano have dropped the “Raptor” label. The Mutano 2.24 has been replaced with a revised design 2.2 while the 2.4 carries over after minor freshening and an All Mountain TCS version in addition to the Race. The 26″ Vulpine is faster and lighter with a even more minimalist center tread. Most other tires are carried over unchanged.

Yeti ASR 5 C

Yeti ASR 5 C
The ASR 5 (5 inch suspension) is a brand new bike for Yeti, and this was the first time I had seen this model. The ASR 5 comes in an aluminum version, and a full carbon version, which is what I tested. The moment I started pedaling this bike, I felt its instant acceleration and laser like steering and handling. Its suspension was very compliant, and the directional rigidity of the carbon material was paramount in the feel of the bike.

Yeti Carbon!

I found myself sitting in almost all the terrain the XC loops of Boulder City had to offer, and was amazed at how well the suspension just sort of floated along the undulations and rocky sections of the trail. This did not feel like a 5 inch travel bike. On one of the very steep and very loose climbs the bike went up it effortlessly, and needed very little pedaling to get to the top. This is an excellent bike, that has a carefully thought out suspension system, with an incredible amount of compliancy. It is very neutral, climbs like a demon and makes the most of the carbon material’s directional rigidity and vibration damping qualities.

Yeti - Very nicely done cable layout

http://www.yeticycles.com/#/bikes/ASR5Carbon/

Specs:
Travel - 5 inch
Weight - 4.75lbs
Sizes - small. medium, large
Colors - black/turquoise or white/black
Rear shock - RP23 (7.875 x 2)
Bottom Bracket - 73mm
Rear wheel - 135mm with QR or 142mm with 12mm
Front Derailleur - 34.9mm with traditional mount
Seatpost - 30.9mm
Kits Enduro, Race, Pro

Features:
- High Modulus, hand laid-up carbon front and rear triangles
- Tapered headtube 1 1/8 to 1 1/5
- Gravity dropper cable guide
- Interchange dropouts
- Titanium hardware
- Internal cable routing on swingarm

Pivot Firebird

Pivot Firebird
The Firebird was new to 2009, but I missed getting to try it out last year. The Firebird has 167mm of travel in the rear and 160mm in the front. This long travel bike eats up terrain, and allows you to fly down anything, soaking up terrain, rocks and undulations like crazy. It rails around the berms, and flies through the air with ease.

On steep loose climbs the suspension would drop out on me, which meant an immediate unloading of the rear end and all lose of traction. It happened a couple of times on the circuit I did, and it was a bit unnerving. All in all, the Firebird was a nice bike, and it ate any terrain I could throw at it for lunch, albeit with the occasional unloading rear end.

Innovative linkage

Ibis Mojo HD

Ibis Mojo HD
Although I didn’t get to ride the new prototype Mojo HD, it was pretty impressive just sitting there. The Mojo HD will be the Ibis foray into the 6 inch All Mountain world, and promises to be quite a bike. Brian Lopes has already been racing it, and only time will tell how it all well the end product will be? Since it is a prototype the linkages are a bit crude, but they are pretty beefy and will hopefully tighten up the somewhat current sloppy feeling in the Mojo rearend. I spoke briefly to Brian about the bike and his recent trip to the worlds down in Australia, he is a real decent and nice guy.

The cables have been re-routed to the down tube, to facilitate the inherent issues with the newer geometry of the bike. For a lot of Mojo riders that are a welcome change from the current somewhat disliked top tube arrangement.

Titus FTM Carbon

Titus FTM Carbon
I had read a lot about the new Titus FTM (Full Tilt Moto) product line, but I was surprised to see this full carbon version. The current aluminum, Ti and Exogrid versions are now joined by this carbon compatriot. The Titus FTM series has 135mm of travel in the rear and 140mm in the front. This carbon frame is decidedly on the stiff side of things, which means that any sort of pedaling has a prominent side effect of getting the power to the trail. Unfortunately, it also made the ride stiff and somewhat deadened. This frameset might appeal to a racer, but I wish it had a more lively carbon feel to it. The FTM Carbon was a nicely done and light bike, that just misses the mark by not having the attributes that I like from carbon fiber. The internal cable routing really was a nice touch, and added to the nice swooping lines of the frame.

Titus Carbon

Titus - Internal cable routing

Gary Fisher Rumblefish

by Brian Mullin aka Gram and MTBR.com Pastajet
http://www.gramslightbikes.com

Gary Fisher Rumblefish 29er
I was thinking of trying the new Gary Fisher Superfly 100 29er after hearing some really good things about it, but while I was looking at the display model, I saw the Gary Fisher Rumblefish sitting right next to it. It has 110 mm of travel in the rear and 120 mm in the front, and it is made to Rumble. Are You Ready To Rumble? So I got in the queue and took it out for a spin.

I demoed the top of the line Rumblefish II version, and it had a Fox F120 FIT RLC 29 fork with a 15mm axle, a Shimano drivetrain, Avid brakes and a custom Fox RP23 shock. Some of the special features of the Rumblefish are the 6011 hydroformed butted aluminum mainframe, a E2 tapered headtube, the BB95 bottom bracket, a direct mount front derailleur, the ABP (Active Braking Pivot) rear suspension and a DRCV (Direct Rate Control Valve) Fox RP23 rear shock.

DRCV Fox RP23

I was really impressed how well this bike handled. It still has the big 29er wheels that still take a bit of cranking to get their inertia going, but it sure felt more like a 26er when I was climbing. The bike has a very short wheelbase, cockpit and trail for a 29er. Those geometry characteristics really showed itself in its quick and nimble handling, and its neutral weighting while climbing. While railing and flying down the trail those big wheels were a treat, and the suspension did really well in g-outs. On spirited sprints while standing the rear suspension squatted just a tad, and I felt some flex in the Fox fork.

Overall I have to give the Rumblefish high marks for a successfully engineered long travel 29er. It climbs and handles well, and is a really nice rough terrain full suspension 29er. Let it eat some rocks!

Andrew from Giant shows us the rebirth of the Faith. Completely new design, 7″ rear travel, freeride bike with Maestro suspension(co-pivot design) and massive down tube made of drawn, hydroformed aluminum.

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Totally new frame, Maestro suspension, 6.7″ of travel, all mountain bike.

Andrew from Giant shows us the highlights of the new 2010 Reign X.

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Be sure to check out ALL the Interbike Hotties in the Hottie Photo Gallery!

Here are some highlights:

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