e*thirteen components is proud to release the XCX, a chain retention system literally years in the making. Like all e*thirteen products, the XCX has been proven at the highest levels of competition right out of the gate. Having won the Men’s Elite Silver medal in the 2009 UCI World Championship Cross Country race the XCX is the first chain retention system in the world to podium at a international World Cup XC event.

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Bike LED lights have come a long way. They have come from bike tail lights to affordable commuter lights to decent trail riding lights last year. Everything about them was better than halogen or HID except for light brightness. This year though, we heard that they are now brighter than HID. Brighter than HID? This we had to see for ourselves.

Beam Pattern Comparison is here: http://reviews.mtbr.com/blog/bike-lights-shootout-beam-pattern-comparison/

Our own light output measurements can be found here: http://reviews.mtbr.com/blog/lights-shootout-light-meter-measurements/

November 3 Update: We received a new crop of amazing LED lights. They will be added to this shootout in the coming weeks.

‘09 Updated Lights

‘08 Reviewed Lights

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By Kurt Gensheimer

Uppers:

Descends faster than the balance of your 401K
Magnesium frame = light, durable and shock absorbent
Handmade in Boulder, Colorado
Custom built down to the last chainring bolt
Gates belt drive is dead silent and bulletproof

Downers:

Low hanging bottom bracket = rock magnet
Hard to maneuver in tight, technical singletrack
Even though it’s light, still feels sluggish on climbs
Spendy
What, no seat tube water bottle mount?

Ruling: Regardless of the terrain you ride, Paketa offers fully custom, USA-made magnesium bikes with more build configurations than the dollars in our national debt.

There’s this dog in my neighborhood; a golden retriever. He’s psychotic. Every time I roll up the street on my way home from a ride, he hears me coming, leaps from his porch stoop, and sprints towards the fence. He either hears my fat knobby tires humming down the road, or more likely hears my under-lubricated chain and friction-ridded singlespeed chain tensioner.

At first he’s quiet, the only audible evidence of his presence is the jingle jangle of his collar, as he follows me along the fence line hidden by a thicket of oleanders. Then, just as the oleanders give way to exposed fence, he’s in full visible sight, and unleashes his ferocious barker. It’s not so much a bark as it is a frantic, high-pitched yelping which grates on your nerves so much that you want to reach through the fence and strangle him.

If the psychotic barking isn’t bad enough by itself, his snarling sonata grabs the attention of every other fenced-in dog in the neighborhood, setting off a cascade of angry barking which escorts me all the way home.

What does any of this have to do with a bicycle review? Well, the day I rode Paketa’s new belt-driven singlespeed magnesium 29er called the Wac Corporal, for the first time ever, my psychotic canine adversary never came to the fence; he didn’t hear me. Thanks to the Gates belt drive system, I had a quiet, peaceful ride up my street.

The Merits of Magnesium

You’re probably wondering who is Paketa, but more importantly, you’re probably wondering what exactly is a Paketa. Is it like a cheetah or a leopard or something? Or perhaps it means something in Pakistani? Or maybe it’s just someone’s last name? Don’t ask me, I have no idea. Whatever the meaning, Paketa is a custom bike builder located in Boulder, Colorado, and they specialize in only one kind of material – magnesium. Now for those chemistry buffs or air-cooled VW gearheads, we all know that magnesium makes one magnificent light show when ignited. But magnesium’s attributes go far beyond a juvenile junkyard twilight pyromania session.

It turns out that magnesium also makes a damn fine material to build bicycle frames with. According to Paketa’s website, magnesium is currently the lightest structural material in the world; 34 percent lighter than aluminum and 50 percent lighter than titanium. The test bike weighed in at a svelte 24 lbs. In addition, it has the highest known damping capacity of any structural metal, as much as 10 times greater than steel, titanium or aluminum. In other words, it won’t rattle your brain stem loose.

The next natural question would be ‘well if magnesium is so great, why isn’t everyone building with it?’ Well for starters, magnesium isn’t cheap. Then you factor in the difficulty of extruding perfect tubes and welding them in a way which doesn’t compromise strength, it makes for what you would call a niche frame builder market. And Paketa is exactly that, considering you can count on one hand the number of reputable frame builders in the U.S. currently using magnesium.

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source: Don Walker

BERKELEY, Calif.–Three days of festivities mark the imminent 2009 NorCal CycleFest, regarded by many as the Bay Area’s cycling social event of the season, November 6-8 in Mill Valley. The event is a benefit for the Northern California High School Mountain Bike Racing League.

Matt Fritzinger, founder of the NorCal League, said “The NorCal CycleFest is the main annual fundraiser for the League. This year attendees will enjoy the vintage poster show, our line-up of speakers and the silent auction which provides a great win-win opportunity to support the League. This is a key developmental year for high school cycling, and we are really counting on the continued support of Bay Area cyclists.”

The event begins on Friday, November 6th, with a cocktail reception from 6-10 p.m. presented by McGuire Real Estate, where Jonathan Vaughters, founder of the Garmin-Slipstream Professional cycling team, will chat and mingle with attendees.

Saturday evening, November 7th, starting at 6 p.m., is the main event: a gala dinner featuring a silent auction and vintage poster show, at the Mill Valley Community Center, 180 Camino Alto. The stars of the silent auction are two ultra-desirable offerings from Specialized Bicycle Components and a luxury guided mountain bike trip from Western Spirits.

Of the bicycles, one is a Specialized Roubaix PRO SRAM road bicycle, equipped with the award winning Specialized crankset. Described as ‘the ultimate alchemy of performance and comfort,’ with an MSRP of $4400, this machine is the perfect ride for the less-than perfect Northern California country roads.

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The San Francisco Bay Area Bike Expo is many things to many people.

First it starts with the people. The community gathers to buy and sell from each other. Race teams and clubs look to part with their past season gear in order to raise funds for next year. Individuals look to sell an obscure bicycle part, only to buy another hard to find, one of kind bicycle part. Non profits and coalitions spread their good words. It brings the community together. Everyone wins at the Swap.

On the other side, we have an Expo Trade Show, where custom frame builders show the fruits of their labor and bicycle clothing manufactures give you the details on their threads.

Then there is the action, the BMX stunt show is about kids inspiring other kids to jump on their bike. The Dirt Jump Competition displays the evolution of the mountain bike and its riders.

Up next is the racing, where we have a unique take on Cyclocross Racing where racers will start and finish indoors and through the infamous corrals of the Cow Palace.

Finally, there is the style. Custom, Vintage, and Low Rider bicycle show bringing history, culture and eye candy.

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Gamut’s latest chainguide solution, the Gamut Dual Ring, is designed to accommodate 2 ring set ups with the proven protection of the P30 bashguard. The guide comes in all possible mount types (ISCG, ISCG05, BB mount) and does not require the use of adapters. CNC’d 6061 aluminum is the material of choice making weights range from 146g to 154g including bashguard. The Gamut Dual Ring is ideal for 2 ring set ups on any trail, downhill or XC bike. Designed, machined, and assembled in San Jose, California by the Gamut crew themselves, this device continues Gamut’s tradition of offering simple, high quality solutions backed with world class customer support.

SPECS:
Bashguard 104-4 teeth 34-36
Set up 22/24t - 34/36t
Bashguard available in Red, White, Blue, Black

WEIGHTS:
BB mount: 146g
ISCG: 153g
ISCG 05: 154g

MOUNT TYPES:
BB mount
ISCG
ISCG 05

For more info:

www.gamutusa.com

twitter.com/Gamutusa

www.facebook.com/pages/Gamut-USA

source: Mateo Graziosi

Banshee Bikes (www.bansheebikes.com) and Team Geronimo (www.geronimoracing.com) are both pleased to announce their new partnership for the 2010 race season. 2009 isn’t even a memory yet, but Jay MacNeil, General Manager of Banshee Bikes, and Team Geronimo are busy preparing for a jump start on 2010 – ready to hit the National, International, and World Cup race circuits on Banshee’s new Legend Mk II DH bike and Rampant 4X bike.

Banshee Bikes is amped on teaming up with Team Geronimo for the 2010 season and beyond.

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