Sea Otter 2009 [en]
| Sea Otter exhibition, USA, revealed some new products such as the new SRAM FORCE group and confirmed some others. Most of the following featured products, will be available for 2010. The most attractive new products are coming from FSA, ZIPP, DT SWISS, EASTON, EDGE, INDUSTRY NINE and of course SRAMFSA : FSA unveiled a new TT and triathlon wheel range named quality-label Vision. There are 4 models in this range :
SRAM : The american manufacturer presents on his land which will be the newest SRAM Force groupset. This new groupset enters the sub-2kg family as its big brother Red. The main benefit comes from the BB30 Force crankset. With only 645g including BB, this new crankset is 140g lighter than the GXP standard, which is very important. Visually, the Force is coming with a very nice « zephyr silver ». Here, no red, there is only white, black and silver. The rest of the groupset remains unchanged. New Force groupset will be available in June or July for $1399 in GXP version and $1439 in BB30. Cable set is new. It's named « SRAM Professional System by Gore ». Cable routing is in a liner for extra smoothness, quicker shifting and easier installation.  Click to enlarge ZIPP : ZIPP presents a « new » 303. This new wheel presents a modified and reinforced rim to endure cobbles or cyclo-cross impacts but also to improve its aero properties. Tested during Vlandeeren classics, the rim of this 303 is quite impressive. The brake track width is 25,4mm while the normal current 303 is 20,3mm. Beside this, the rim is widened and reaches an amazing 27,5mm of width at its widest point. Equiped with ZIPP 88/188 hubs and 18/24 Sapim CX-Ray spokes, this new 303 set weights only 1182g. Cyclo-crossmen will like it for sure...  DT SWISS :  Swiss brand was present in America to introduce its new range of carbon wheel. More details here. Besides this new road and MTB range, DT SWISS worked on two new « ratchets » with 36 « teeth » instead of 18, which allows a faster engagement. However, DT SWISS isn't sure on the hub to use it. Indeed the higher engagement positions increases the freewheel friction.Compromise, compromise ! EASTON :
EDGE Composites : Young Edge Composites brand is going to offer light components. A stem and a seatpost are going to be released. The new stem only weights 113g in 100mm thanks to a carbon structure and aluminium inserts. Production should start early in June. The seatpost is still under development. They let us know that it will use a hollow carbon tube and aluminium hardware with only one M5 screw. The cylindrical head would give an adjustement of 360 degrees. Wait and see... Photo credit: cyclingnews.com
INDUSTRY NINE :
M5 : Far, very far from Sea Otter, M5 unveiled a new hub on its website. This new front hub will be soon available (this summer). Heavy duty, it is designed for racers who find the 33g model not stiff enough, not reliable enough. The bearings are larger than the standard 33G version, which may comes with durability too. Avalaible in 24-28-32T, this new hub weights 52g. Its price should be very close to the 33g model, which costs less than 100€. It's a serious competitor to the Extralite UltraFront SX and the Tune Mig45... Photo credit: M5 |
