A cool new addition to this year’s Sea Otter expo was the demo area, which had dirt jumps, pump tracks, and workshops by the Bike Skills guys. It was a little hard to get to so a lot of people may have missed it. Hopefully, next year it will be placed more prominently. In any case, it was cool to have a place where people could demo bikes, play on some jumps, and generally polish their mountain bike skills. And the pump track pulled in some dirt jump and gravity pros, including Intense pro rider JD Swanguen (see photo directly below), who beat Brian Lopes at the Ray’s indoor pump track competition this past winter.

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Peter, who used to distribute Planet-X bikes in the US, got my attention and dragged me over to see this pretty bike. Last year at Sea Otter he had only road stuff and it looked like he was getting out of the mountain bike business. But apparently, he can’t stay away. Because he’s now distributing Orange bikes in the US. Including this CroMo Orange P7 hardtail , set up with a carbon belt drive, and internally geared rear hub.

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Most of you probably know about the accident Tara Llanes had in Colorado last season. If you don’t, check out Tara Llanes MySpace blog. She was out at Sea Otter this past weekend and looked really good. They were having a raffle to help raise money for her recovery with $5 tickets and prizes from Manitou, Santa Cruz, Thule, Smith, Giant, and Michelin, to name a few. The main prize was a trip to Costa Rica.

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While walking back up to the media center on Friday, I spotted this old horn. If you’re a Northern California cyclocross racing fan, you know what it sounds like. Because it’s at all the races. I asked the guy who was carrying it if I could take a picture because it looked so cool. Then I noticed the sweet, lugged Rock Lobster bike he had and it turns out he is Mr. Rock Lobster - Paul Sadoff.

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Haro was showing off some new stuff in the Sea Otter demo area. They have two new 650B bikes, which feature the new 650B wheel size. The Beasley 1/9 and Beasley SS are both purpose-built 650B cromoly steel frames. The 650B wheel splits the difference between the 29er and traditional 26-inch mountain bike wheels. The idea is to find a compromise that combines the snap and maneuverability of the 26-inch wheel with the stability and comfort of the 29-inch wheel.

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xDave Weagel and Jon Heim met at Sea Otter to complete e-13’s acquisition of the Heim 3-Guide. Hopefully the e-13 name and marketing will help the 3-Guide become better known and more readily available. The 3-Guide is a super simple, elegant, and effective guide for 3-ring drivetrains. It’s easy to set up, weighs next to nothing, and works really, really well.

e-13 and Heim 3-Guide press release >>
e-13Web site >>

A lot of bike companies come to Sea Otter with surprises up their sleeves. Marzocchi showed up with a new XC / All Mountain fork from their 2009 lineup, the 44 ATA Micro. As the “44” moniker suggests, Marzocchi is positioning the new fork as the smaller, lighter sibling of their 66 and 55 forks. The new 140mm travel 44 ATA Micro fork weighs just 3.92 pounds (1778 g) with 32mm stanchions and Marzocchi’s QR15 quick release axle. The 44 has Marzocchi’s ATA travel adjust system, lockout, compression and rebound control, and pedal platform.

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One of the biggest surprises at the Sea Otter was the debut of the Look 986 Mountain Bike. Look hasn’t sold a mountain bike in the U.S. in at least 5 years. And this wasn’t just a bike. This was pretty special.

It’s an ultra-high end carbon bike with an integrated seatpost. The frame weighs in at 2.6 lbs with an uncut seatpost. The frame features very dramatic big carbon tubes for dramatic design elements. It was also designed to be very stiff laterally but compliant vertically.

 And of course the most revolutionary element on this frame is the integrated seatpost. This design was introduced in the Look 595 road bike and has been in the market for almost a year. The frame as a post designed into the frame. This post is designed to be cut according to the rider’s height and preferencs. Then a seapost insert goes in the post and is locked on by compression rings. There is a few millimeters of up and down adjustability using spacers in the seatpost insert.  The insert also features and elastomer stack that provides some bump compliance. Two densities of elastomers are provided to work with different rider weights.

Availability is end estimated at end of 2007. Price has not yet been determined.

BMC is proud to provide the Melanie with the most advanced high-tech off-road bicycles available: the Fourstroke FS01 and Team Elite 01. Both feature advanced carbon materials and production techniques that maximize strength while optimizing weight and enhancing performance.

“We are pleased to support Melanie in her quest for a fourth Xterra World Championship,” said BMC Brand Manager Scott Thompson. “Melanie epitomizes the winning spirit and dedication to excellence that embodies BMC. We are excited she will be out there competing on a BMC.”

Photos: Scott Thomson showing off his ink and Melanie McQuaid getting ready for the mtb time-trial

Photos:

The mtbr.com presence this year at Sea Otter was bigger than ever. From the booth, signage and raffle, we stepped it up a notch. The daily raffle was bigger than ever as we gave away at least $25k worth of product. All the product was donated by mtbr sponsors and is our way of giving back to the supporters of mtbr.com

Greetings from the mtbr.com crew