VeloDramatic » Interbike Coverage

Knog 12½ Stories – Lights, Computers, Action

Velodramatic — Thu, 09 Oct 2008 17:04:19 +0000

Australia's Knogs are a quirky, hip, indisputably batty, and seemingly brilliant lot. Their latest catalog "12½ Stories," for lack of a suitable description, is part fantasy, part instruction manual, part ransom note (We have your attention and we're not giving it back until you buy some Knog gear). It's so engrossing it will leave you smiling like a shot fox.

When I met him at interbike, Michael Lelliot, Knog's brand director, had a twinkle in his eye as he spoke about the piece and the greatly expanded range of products for 2009. Clearly he's having fun.

18 Tools: There's an implication that 18 things can go wrong with your bike. Wrong. Billions of things can go wrong, it just so happens that this sucker can fix a lot of them. Lucky too, because a Billion Function Tool wouldn't fit in your pocket as easy as this one.

12½ Stories features street photography by cinematographer Adam Arkapaw, words by the Ugly Kids, Daniel Juhasz and James Ruhfus, design by Niki Fisher and Ben Druce and product photography by Tord Johnston. The large format 80-page catalog is printed on smooth matte stock which accentuates the photography's muted urban tones and textures. It's alternately witty, sly, sexy, irreverent and smart. All that, and I believe it still manages to sell product.

Neat Dog- Rackless Pannier: Don't be put off by the 'Neat' connotation. Sure this Dog thinks that there's a place for everything... But here's the kicker – it also packs eight bottles of vodka inside its pannier sack; and it doesn't take too long for them to empty. Then it's a three hour mission to get some black-market scotch, a dirty sunrise and, finally, falling into a hospital-cornered, freshly-laundered bed.

Michael's sense of humor is deeply ingrained in the piece. Words and imagery inhabit a surreal cinematic landscape populated by a cast of outsiders, eccentrics and nose picking bike polo players. A couple searches for their lost rabbit, Missy; a pair of aquaknogs pedal in way over their heads; and then there are the nubile ladies of the laundromat, fluffing while the wash is in the dryer.

Ride Hard Gloves: Designed for people who actually prefer it soft but have a finely tuned sense of irony and a penchant for half-cocked sarcasm. Such people will inevitably end up calling these their 'flash palmers', 'finger slicks' or even their 'shitty gloves' – there's that sarcasm kicking in. Either way, these gloves are the business.

Apparently the Knog product designers have been hard at work. There's a new line of N.E.R.D. cycle computers (9 and 12 function) that attach with the same silicon simplicity as the ubiquitous frog lights. Moving a N.E.R.D. between bikes (the settings support two) is a 30-second breeze. No zip ties, no profanity. The soft, silicon holder allows the unit's orientation to be flipped for stem or handlebar mounting. You could say these N.E.R.D.s go both ways.

The computer starts and stops automatically and has a nice backlight feature. Pressing the lower display edge cycles between functions. I've got one sitting on my bars right now... there will be a report on how it plays in traffic soon.

5 LED Toad: True Story, the guy in the bathtub of ice-cold water with the missing kidneys and the mysterious note and all that. He ended up fine. He's in the perfect health and recently started a kind of franchised karate dojo thing. His secret? The Toad. When he leapt out of his watery predicament to get stitched up, the 5-LED power-pack of Toady goodness was strapped to the front of his bke. They lit him up so bright that a couple of crappy kidneys were the last thing on his mind.

The Frogs have been joined by 2-LED Beetles (pic). These little bastards clip to your bike, your gear or if the piercing is big enough, to you. As the Northern Hemisphere's ration of daylight gets smaller in the next few weeks, I'll be adding a couple of Beetles to the commuting rig in the hope all the flashing will get me noticed. If you're constantly harassed by wheelsuckers or the police are still tailing you, Knog's new Boomer Tail Light might scare them off.

To keep you rollin' you can take your pick of: 7, 12 or 18 multi-function Tools encased in smart, stackable magnetic shells, and accessorize with matching chainTool and Shifter (wrench). PSSST. Just when you thought you had that ride licked, your tube goes soft. Knog's Porno Patch Kits (pic) are guaranteed to help you get it back up. (see I'm getting into the Ugly Kids' mode)

F*ck Off Gloves: You’ve got chocolates for saying ‘thank-you’, flowers for saying ‘sorry’ and that tight skivvy for saying ‘I’m desperate’ – well, now you’ve got some gloves for every other occasion.

Only Knog could name a pair of gloves "F*ck Off. In keeping with the sentiment I'm ordering a pair of full-finger F*ck Offs. If that's too much for you, how about "Eight Ball" (pic), "Starsky and Clutch" or "Skull Spangled Banner" models. Now for the topper, Knog is offering the EanieMynieBeanie. This is a stylish, urban lid that shouldn't be worn by anyone over 30 unless your in a band or write a blog like Sucka Pants.

If I can be serious for just a moment, all the edgy humor and cool photography in the world is not going to sell lousy products. At its core, Knog has some very talented product designers who find new ways to solve familiar problems with ingenious simplicity and style. That's why it's worth your time perusing the catalog, and giving them your business. A little patience may be in order, it looks like the Knog site is slowly incorporating the new stuff. Your best bet is to contact Andrew Wood (Woodie), Manager of the Knog store in Melbourne with any questions by email.

Virtually all of the products shown are available in a variety of colors, see the catalog.

Strange Vegas and The Fantastic Interbike Circus

Velodramatic — Mon, 06 Oct 2008 00:23:30 +0000

Flashback. Eight-thirty a.m. and the blue-haired seniors are chain-smoking their way through another tub of quarters at the Venetian slots. Dealers shuffle from foot to foot at their empty tables waiting for the action to pick up, or the world to end. In their ruddy brown uniforms they look sad, empty and in need of ironing. There's no sign of Frank, Dean or Sammy; this feels like Fry's Electronics with a bigger architectural budget.

It's day three of interbike and I'm dead tired after two 20-hour tours of duty. I'm nibbling on my four dollar muffin surfing the tidal bore of attendees coursing towards the Sands Convention Center and the show's final act. Messenger bags, plus fours and body art adorn the younger set; it's probably the only week of the year you can walk a single speed through the casino without getting tackled. A few plump salmon gambling against the current don't stand a chance, they either make it to the slots or get swept downstream into the show.

And what a show... nothing can quite prepare the novice for the spectacle of gear, gadgetry and garb served up by over 900 exhibitors. The venue floor is a maze of industry giants, up-and-comers and fledgling startups oriented by some logic known only to oracles and political wedding planners. Navigating with a combination of dead reckoning and the stars (Mavic, Campagnolo, Cervélo) I managed to find my way around sticking to familiar but circuitous routes. Note to trade show organizers: start thinking about GPS, just don't rely on Garmin for software.

A week later I'm still trying to sort it all out. Here are some highlights.

Bicycles – Isaac Sonic, Velodramatic Best-in-Show

There were so many beautiful bicycles at the show singling out just one wasn't easy. Cervélo had the S3 in gleaming black and silver livery, demonstrating a fresh visual sensibility. The Edge Composites booth was literally ringed by seductive, desirable models (the two-wheeled kind) from Vanilla, Parlee, and Crumpton all wearing Edge carbon. Then there was Museeuw Bikes with what looked like new paint across the range. The MF-3 was a standout along with the new 50/50 carbon/flax wheels.

All of these rides would make me happy, but it was the Isaac Sonic that really got my heart racing. Pictured above, the Sonic was fitted out with Campagnolo's Super Record group and CarbonSports Lightweight wheels guaranteeing it would be unsuitably expensive. The Sonic tubes are massive, but in keeping with the company's appreciation for natural forms, they flow seamlessly into each other.

For all it's brawn the Sonic's clean, understated paint and type-inspired graphics clinched the deal. I'm not sure I'd roll with gold handlebar tape (I don't have the shoes to match) but it sure looked good on the display bike. If the economy ever gets over its nightmare, I'm dreaming there's an Issac in my garage in 2009.

Clothing – Mavic, Panache and a Visit from Rapha

Even though Rapha was officially sitting this one out, U.S. G.M. Slate Olson was keeping his finger on the pulse and checking out the show. Slate, Jeremy Dunn (editor of Embrocation magazine) and I met up for lunch on day two and I got see the new Rapha Softshell Gilet. I loved it, and I'm pleased to say the one I ordered arrived last week. I wore it commuting the next three days and it fits and functions as good as it looks. This is a versatile piece of kit and sure to go fast. Get your order in if you want to enjoy one this winter.

Elsewhere big yellow (Mavic) introduced their luxurious new shoe and clothing lines. Leveraging big daddy Salomon's Design Center in Annecy and its access to rarefied technical fabrics, Mavic has assembled an impressive offering that is as broad as it is deep. The Zxellium shoe in optic yellow and its mountain equivalent, the Fury, are featherweights that feature unique closures immune to the material memory that Mavic claims compromise typical straps. The full, matte-finished carbon soles are as sleek as the uppers and happily their threaded inserts are user replaceable. Several riders in the CrossVegas pack appeared to be wearing the Fury shoe.

In the essential department, Mavic will offer nine varieties of bibs/knickers including the Stealth short that's entirely without seams. Just looking at it made my essentials comfortable.

On a purely visual note, I really like what Mavic designers have done with the stylized "M" throughout the lines. It's used effectively as: a background field on shoe liners; repeated vertically on jacket zippers; horizontally banded on socks and singularly as an accent with pulls, badges, appliques and labels.

Newcomer and Velodramatic favorite, Panache Cyclewear, had a small, cozy display befitting a brand new outfit. It was great to meet founder, Don Powell in person after having exchanged countless emails with him over the past few months. He and designer Dylan Nelson showed attendees some polished, race-inspired pieces available now along with a few novel ideas coming soon. Look for clever overshoe gaskets and an under-jersey wind screen in the not-too-distant future.

Don proudly wore the Panache Training Jersey and Eleven bibs in the industry crit race Thursday night and despite getting involved in an early crash, came back strong to finish the 40 laps in tenth place.

Gear – Edge Composites, Super Record 11, Gore RideOn cables, Allay Saddles

I mentioned earlier that Edge Composites had assembled a sublime collection of bicycles to celebrate the companies growing reputation for quality carbon tubes, wheels and forks used by the likes of Parlee and Crumpton. Recently they've added a seatpost and handlebar to the mix. I'm not sure when they'll be available. I've emailed Jason for an answer.

I'm still getting used to my Ligero-built Edge Composites 38s... the differences between aluminum and deep-section carbon are more than I anticipated and I compounded the issue by going with Zipp carbon-specific pads over the recommended Swiss Stop Yellows. Sometimes I take the whole black and white thing too far. Jason set me straight and there's now a set of yellow pads headed my way. It will be great to stop again. Troy Watson of Ligero has a huge interbike gallery on Flickr. It features plenty of shots of the Edge booth and gear. Definitely worth checking out.

Edge Composites is a company to watch.

Campagnolo Record 11 and Super Record were the jewels of the show and everyone who was anyone was wearing them. I have no close up photographs of the components because I couldn't stop my hands shaking in their proximity. In lieu of that I substituted the fictional 11-speed ad below... the fishnet is a special carbon weave. The "11" bicycle WAS in the Campagnolo booth.

Gore impressed with the return of their RideOn Cable systems recently reintroduced to the North American and European markets. Standard equipment with SRAM's RED group set, the low-friction system is available in two flavors: standard; and sealed (within a continuous liner). Gore's Lois Mabon explained the system and the improvements that should make installation significantly easier for mechanics and wannabes alike. I'll have a feature and long-term road test of the sealed system soon.

I also spent time with Allay Saddles. Using technology that brings back memories of the Nike pump, Allay employs an air bladder under the front half of the saddle. The AirSpan feature is designed to alleviate pressure on that essential region we keep talking and worrying about. Given how easy it is to add and remove air this has got to be a boon on epic rides. Thanks to Allay I'll have one of these saddles installed on my commute bike for testing over the winter. I would point out that if you tune the AirSpan repeatedly while riding there's a good chance your fellow riders might think you're up to something else. Is that an AirSpan in your saddle or are you just glad to meet me?

And that does it for the highlights (well almost all of them). I learned more than I bargained for in the three days, met friends, made new ones and arranged to demo plenty of product in the coming year. If there was a disappointment, it was with the photography. With so much to cover it was difficult to talk and shoot at the same time. Next year I'll approach the event slightly differently. I'll start looking forward to it just as soon as I've caught up on my sleep.