Originally unveiled just before Sea Otter, Answer’s new XC Trail Protaper bars look to be a strong and reliable way to add some color to your bike. Not wanting to leave out any of the ladies who would like to upgrade their bikes as well, Answer has included a Women’s colorway to the bars, with a pink anodized bar with a black flower petal overlay.
Taking the color scheme one step further, Answer has also released a line of Women’s Fall Line XC gloves with matching flower petal graphics. The women’s line of XC gloves is brand spanking new, and we have our hands on some of the first production samples.
Scope out a few of the different colorways of the Pedal glove, along with more details on the XC Trail bar after the break!
While the Fall Line XC glove for men has been out for a little while now, Answer just dropped the female counterpart to the glove, seen above. Coming in four colorways, they all feature the flower petal graphics featured on the pink XC Trail bar. Just like the men’s version, the ladie’s Fall Line XC glove features a stretch fit, no Velcro wrist closure, and a tough but soft, pre-curved palm to prevent bunching when grasping a handlebar. As Answer states, the Pedal Glove’s two-way stretch nylon is tough enough to survive repeated crashes and wash cycles, yet breathable enough for epic summer rides.
Features:
- Clarino Amara palm material
- Absorbent cotton terry cloth thumb
- Silicon printed non-slip palm
- Pre-curve shaped fingers
- Durable 2-way stretch breathable woven nylon
I’ve been riding one of the men’s Fall Line gloves for a bit now, and if the women’s glove is anywhere near as comfortable as the men’s, it’s a sure winner. The pre-curve shape really improves grip comfort, and while the glove seems thicker than some that I’ve tried, it seems to breath just as well, lending to overall comfort. Also, the palms are made out of a fairly soft material that is dense enough to absorb vibration, yet thin enough that it doesn’t interfere with your grip. Sizing wise, I find my men’s medium to fit fairly well, if not slightly bigger than most standard mediums.
And where would the gloves be without the matching bar, right? Answer’s new Protaper XC Trail bar continues the Protaper’s history of reliability, comfort, and style with a few new colors to boot. In addition to the flower petals that grace the pink bar (and aren’t all obscured by grips), all of the XC Trail bars include a nice centering grid in order to ensure proper stem placement.
Protaper XC Trail bars are available in three rises, with a completely flat bar, 1/2″, and 1 inch models (1″ rise shown here). All of the XC Trail bars, including the pink one, are all reasonably wide at 685, and include well marked cutting gradients as shown below.
Answer claims the XC Trail bars come in at 265g for the riser bars, and our scales show that is exactly true with 1 gram to spare. This reaffirms the fact that these aren’t the lightest bars in the world, but they aren’t heavy and include a one year warranty against bending or breaking (2 years in Europe, I guess America should put down the Twinkies).
Then add in the fact that they incorporate the incredibly well liked Protaper geometry, and you end up with an incredibly comfortable, durable, colorful bar for only 65 bones. Not bad.
Specs:
- 7050 –T series alloy.
- All are manufactured with our Patented Pro Taper Technology in the clamp and rise regions of the bars.
- Available in several new colors, Black, Brunette, Green, Red, Mango and Pink Petal.
- All the bars have the same Splatter graphics and simple cut graphics on them.
- Pink Petal has a Floral / Petal graphic that will tie out to some new Women’s Petal Gloves.
- All bars are available in:
Flat -685 width / 3 degree back sweep.
- Weight 235 grams
- Suggested retail $65.00
12.7mm (1/2 rise) -4×8 degree rise and sweep 685 width
- weight 265 grams
- Suggested retail $65.00
25.4mm (1inch rise) -4×8 degree rise and sweep 685 width
- weight 265 grams
- Suggested retail $65.00
Look for a post soon that will nearly cover Answer’s complete line of handlebars, right here on Bikerumor!
