The Path Bike Shop Hits Interbike 2007

[aukmal]

[FONT=Times New Roman][SIZE=3]The Path Bike Shop headed out to Interbike last week (Sunday through Friday) and managed to keep a skeleton crew in Tustin to keep the shop open (kudos to those who stayed in town). A little birdie gave me the scoop on the Path's trip so here's my summary of what that little birdie told me. [/SIZE][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman][SIZE=3]There have been enough writeups and spy photos so this recap will focus on the shop experience and maybe some insight to a couple of new products.[/SIZE][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman][SIZE=3]Sam Hill was at the show and asked to take a couple pics with some local celebs.[/SIZE][/FONT]
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[FONT=Times New Roman][SIZE=3]The shop rolled into the accommodations late Sunday night. Someone managed to find a place across the street from the Rio called the "Cay Club," yeah, yeah, yeah, the mind reels with sarcastic comments. It was actually a killer place to stay. The units were condos with washers & dryers, full kitchens, leather furniture, flat panel TV's in every room, and very clean.[/SIZE][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman][SIZE=3]Monday morning the dirt demo opened up and the setup was much better than in years past. The parking lot wasn't 10-miles from the vendors! This year, with so much focus on DH racing, even Cid managed to get out on an Ironhorse Sunday (no changes from last year's geometry) and showcase his DH skills. Sara abandoned her Nomad and tried a plethora of DH bikes as well: Turner DHR (radically revamped frame design), Ironhorse Sunday, and Specialized Demo 8 (7?).[/SIZE][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman][SIZE=3]Teague, Dave, Tani, and others tried out several DH / Freeride bikes as well: Rocky Mountain Flatline, Intense Socom (Leigh Donovan's personal race bike), Specialized Demo 7, and Knolly Delirium-T.[/SIZE][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman][SIZE=3]Mondo was actually spotted on a mountain bike...[/SIZE][/FONT]
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[FONT=Times New Roman][SIZE=3]Some pics from the shuttle experience on the DH bikes[/SIZE][/FONT]
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[FONT=Times New Roman][SIZE=3]Monday afternoon and Tuesday morning were trail rides (Cid spent more time on Monday trying out many different trail bikes). The Leviathan Milk Money (Singlespeed 29er full suspension bike w/ concentric BB similar to the Kona "A") was a hit with both him and Brian Blair. Blair also tried out the Behomoth (6-inch travel 29er w/ prototype WTB tires). Other bikes that were tried out were the new Specialized Stumpy, Niner RIP9, Lenz Leviathan, Knolly Endorphin, AND perhaps one of the cooler things at the dirt demo, the Pivot Mach-5.[/SIZE][/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman][SIZE=3]Here are some pics from the trail rides (Cid is sportin' some Muscle Milk on the Milk Money)[/SIZE][/FONT]
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[FONT=Times New Roman][SIZE=3]Pivot Cycles was started by the founder of Titus bikes and licenses the DW-Link. According to Pivot, the uninterrupted seat-tube prohibits Weagle's true and full vision for the DW suspension from being fully implemented. Pivot's interrupted seat-tube allows the lower pivot to be moved a couple of inches forward therefore creating a slightly more rearward initial wheel path (supposedly, this is part of Weagle's true vision). A couple of other cool things about the Pivot bikes is a 92 mm wide BB that allows the external BB bearings to be pressed directly into the frame and a bolt on front derailleur, these things supposedly provide crisper shifting and a stiffer BB assembly. What does it all mean? According to everyone who test rode these bikes, they ride great, track super well, and pedal like a hardtail. There are two bikes in the lineup: Mach-4 and Mach-5. The Mach-5 has 5.4 inches of travel and a medium supposedly weighs in at around 6 pounds with a 68-degree head angle. The upper linkage is carbon fiber, the machined parts are made here in the US and the welding done overseas. Looks like these bikes could be MKIII / Stumpy / Epiphany killers.[/SIZE][/FONT]

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[FONT=Times New Roman][SIZE=3]Some other cool stuff: King is rolling out the 1.5-inch headsets in October (that's what they said). This looks to add to the momentum of the 1.5-inch revival, with King supporting it, that's another reputable company supporting the 1.5 standard, Intense is updating the M3 to the M6 (64.5 HA, 13.75BB, lower weight.sounds like a VPP attempt at the Sunday), Manipoo is reviving the Dorado, and Seven is trying out the integrated headset on their carbon road bikes.[/SIZE][/FONT]

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[FONT=Times New Roman][SIZE=3]But this one gets the BEST IN SHOW award.[/SIZE][/FONT]
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[denmother]

Mondo swears he was giving hot chicks rides on the tandem, where are the pics????

[ShinKen]

oOohh SWEET!! FS 29er SSer sooooo drooooling!!

so how did it feel?

[Burner]

Originally Posted by ShinKen

oOohh SWEET!! FS 29er SSer sooooo drooooling!!

so how did it feel?

I talked to a couple of people that liked it A LOT

[Kid A]

great report. thanks. Tani mentioned Pivot to me when i was in shop the other day and asked about the trip. Noticed a pic of a protype in a bike mag next day and the welds and no paint made it look like sh!t IMO. Your pic looks sweet. love the ano (right?)

again thanks

[J_Sims]

A new Lunchbox and some Milk Money would make a happy camper over here....

[roadkillross]

i want me one of those flatlines!!!!

[Dino Brown]

Thanks for the report Aukmal

Did anyone have a chance to DEMO a PIVOT? Is there a chance The Path will become a Pivot Dealer?

To have Chris Cocalis (Titus) and Dave Weagle (DW-LINK) combine forces on a bike project...... it must be good! The Mach-5 looks VERY interesting. Six pounds.... 5.4" travel.... 68 degree head angle--- dream numbers!!!

Tani- Remember how you told me to stop by the shop? You had something for me...... It isn't the 2008 Iron Horse Sunday World Cup behind You and Sam Hill... is it?

[CalEpic]

Am I the only one that noticed Sara flipping me the bird with that new-school one fingered braking technique? No wonder she's so fast.

C

[dstepper]

Good eye Craig, double bird and double bare bird at that!

[Winston]

[FONT=Times New Roman][SIZE=3]Some Pivot pearls of wisdom from…[/SIZE][/FONT]

Originally Posted by Dave Weagle

[FONT=Arial]This firmer, less active feel is exactly how I designed and intended the Pivot's dw-link suspension. Chris Cocalis rides at South Mountain in AZ all the time, and for his trails and his riding style he prefers a much "racier" feel to his bikes. This means less initial travel progression and more end travel ramp up at the shock. The result is a stiffer overall ride. I think that there are a lot of riders out there who love this type of feel, and the Pivot bikes will satisfy that niche. Where Ibis and Iron Horse asked me to design for a more plush ride, Pivot really wanted that "racy" feel. The implementation on the Pivot bikes as compared to the more plush and active Ibis and IH bikes really showcases the industry leading and very wide range of ride and leverage rate tunability attainable with the dw-link suspension.[/FONT]

[Waldo]

Originally Posted by CalEpic

Am I the only one that noticed Sara flipping me the bird with that new-school one fingered braking technique? No wonder she's so fast.

C

I brake that way too - how come I'm so slow?
Wait...does that mean you aren't supposed to use the brakes more than the pedals when riding XC?

[aukmal]

Actually, two solid Path riders hopped aboard the Pivot Mach 5. Both had a blast on them. Given that the Mach-5 supposedly is going to weigh in at about 6.5 lbs, looks like it's gonna be a solid trail bike. As far as the Path becoming a Pivot dealer...hmmm...that would be cool wouldn't it...

Slight correction to the Mach5 geometry, it's a 69-deg HA with a 140mm fork. In my mind's eye, I must've already put a 36 or a Lyrik on it...lol.

...supposedly the 2008 World Cups aren't due out for a while, but supposedly no change in the geometry either.

...no little birds ever actually Witnessed Mondo with anyone on the backside of that bike...

[sauce]

Originally Posted by CalEpic

Am I the only one that noticed Sara flipping me the bird with that new-school one fingered braking technique? No wonder she's so fast.

C

I was giving the little birdie the birdie.