Interbike 2017 Day 2: More bikes, more gear

The top of what the cycling industry's got on display at the Las Vegas trade show

Matthew Pioro September 21, 2017

North America’s biggest bicycle trade show, Interbike, continues for its second day. Here are some of the eye-catching bikes and gear on display.

Cervélo R3 Disc

The Toronto-based Cervélo relaunched its R Series of road bikes, designed for tackling tough climbs, this past May. Once you’ve reached the top of a col on this R3, you’ll have excellent braking control and power with the Shimano Dura-Ace rotors and calipers.

FSA Afterburner modular crankset 1X

FSA Afterburner Crankset — The 3-mm spacer between the crankarm and the chainring can be moved to achieve the right chainline

Italian company FSA makes products with elegant solutions for the sometimes complicated world of bike “standards.” Take the Afterburner modular crankset 1X, for example. It comes with a 3-mm spacer that sits on either side of the chainring. Put it to one side of the ring and you can have the right chainline for a Boost configuration. Put the ring on the other side, and you’re good to go for a standard setup. The crank can accommodate a chainring as small as 26-tooth to 38-tooth. It works with most bottom bracket standards.

Maxxis Aspen 29 x 2.25

The Apsen is an old tire in the Maxxis lineup, but it’s been reinvigorated by Nino Schurter. In 2016, Schurter tested the 2.21 model of the Aspen. He liked the tire’s speed and had ideas for Maxxis for making it even faster. The company then bumped up the width to 2.25, lowered the centre knobs for more straight-line speed and raised the side knobs for better traction in the corners. So, did those changes make the Aspen better? Well, Schurter won Olympic gold on them, as well as XC worlds and World Cup races. Not too shabby.

4iiii Precision Podiiiium

The Cochrane, Alta.-based power meter maker launched its new pod on Wednesday. The crank-mounted unit, the Precision Podiiiium, brings dual-leg power to a wider range of alloy cranks than the previous model. Take the new Shimano Ultegra 8000, for example. It just wasn’t possible to fit a 4iiii pod on the chainring side. The new Podiiiium, which is only 7 mm high, can sit easily on the drive side. It charges via a USB port, so there are no batteries to fiddle with. The power meter tech is essentially unchanged, providing you with +/- 1.5 per cent accuracy. A pair of pods adds about 20 g to your bike.
More to come from Interbike.