Today was the 2nd day of the Outdoor Demo at Interbike. As expected it was much busier than the first. More people meant more waiting to get demo bikes to ride. Tomorrow Interbike moves inside.
Electric Assist Bikes from Kilowatt Bikes
Although I don’t see myself switching to an electric bike any time soon, I wanted to check them out. The electric bikes vary from small amount of assistance to ones that seem closer to mopeds.
I noticed the Kilowatt Bikes because they still look like bikes. The Commuter requires that you keep pedaling and the electric motor will turn off if you miss a couple pedal strokes. The Cruiser allows you to completely quit pedaling and let it do all the work.
The batteries take about 4 hours to charge. You typically can go 30-50 miles on a charge depending on how much pedal. I enjoyed riding up the hill on a cruiser bike passing guys on tricked out bikes. I can see these bikes being great for people wanting a way to get around and aren’t serious cyclists.
Specialized Epic Marathon 29er
I rode the Specialized Epic Marathon 29er. I really wanted to ride the S-Works Epic but it was a good wait to just get the 29er. In a way though I’m glad I rode it since it’s the first time I’ve ridden a 29er on a rough trail.
Unlike some of the other 29ers I’ve tried in parking lots, the Specialized Epic felt like it fit well. On the open smooth trails, the 29er felt big but rode nicely. Like with the Moots 69er, the steering felt different because of the large front wheel.
Once I hit the rocky downhill, I really didn’t feel comfortable being up higher. When I’d go over drops, it felt like I was having trouble keeping my weight far enough back. Of course it could partly be because I’m not used to it but I’m not ready to more to a 29er.
Because I still like riding a hardtail, I like the Specialized Epics because the brain makes them feel like a hardtrail most of the time but the suspension becomes active when needed. Today I got more trail riding than I’ve been able to on my other test rides of them and I still like the suspension.
Van Dessel Cross Bike
I took the Van Dessel Gin Trombones cross bikes out for a spin. The frame was a size too big so I was reaching a bit on it. Even with the frame being too big, it handled nicely in loose gravel. It was stiff when I got out of the saddle.
Kenda Tires
When I stopped by the Kenda booth, I noticed a tire that looked like a semi-slick but with more aggressive side knobs than most semi-slicks. It’s the first one in the photo above. It seems like a great tire for the Leadville 100.
The tire is still a prototype. The rep said it should be available by the end of the year. He’s pretty sure it’ll make it to market but it could get some changes before then.
For more photos, you can check out my Interbike 2009 Outdoor Demo Day 2 album.
– UltraRob
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Tags: cycling, Interbike, mountain biking
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I think you'd grow to like 29ers if you spent more time on one. Yes, you're higher up, but that's largely irrelevant because of how the bigger wheels ride over the obstacles. Big jolts become tiny bumps, and because of that, you'll find it handling much better. Of course, some say that it's more comfortable/natural for taller people, so maybe you wouldn't; I don't know. At 6'1", they feel perfect to me – I'll never go back to 26".