SEA OTTER CLASSIC 2010 – Ergon had one of the most useful little items at the show. Their new TP1 pedal cleat tool provides a guide for aligning your cleats the same on both shoes, and for matching the alignment across multiple pairs or when replacing worn cleats.
The Ergon TP1 is offered in several versions for different types of pedal/cleat systems (SPD and Crankbrothers shown above). To use it, you loosely attach the cleat to your shoe and position it how and where you want it on one shoe. Then snug the cleat through the hole in the bottom. From there, you can trace the outline of the sole on the grid, allowing you to match up the other side exactly. Brilliant, simple, and cheap: MSRP is only $25.
They also showed off a few new grips and their new BC3 trekking pack. Check ’em out after the break…
The Ergon BC3 is the largest of three new packs that they’re introducing this year. The smaller BC1 and BC2 are coming soon, but the BC3 is the first to hit. It’s the largest of the three, and it’s available in small and large lengths in both men’s and women’s sizing. It has a front flap that cinches down via compression straps that’s good for holding a jacket or helmet.
A roomy top pocket is quickly accessible for phone, camera or gels.
The inside is roomy with a few pockets on the back panel for organization and stowing the rain cover:
Like all of Ergon’s packs, the upper shoulder harnesses are mounted to a plate that’s attached to the pack via a swiveling ball joint. This provides less restrictive movement when tweaking your body over, under and through the woods. The external frame connects the ball joint to the waist belt for a structured bag. Additional side zip pockets keep more small stuff easily accessible. MSRP is $199.
The BioKork ergonomic cork grips were shown at Interbike last year, and the news on them are that they should finally start shipping this May. Estimated U.S. MSRP is $35. If you haven’t seen these, they’re made of natural cork with recycled aluminum lock rings and use otherwise earth-friendly materials (like vegetable oil rather than mineral oil for the gel inserts).
The GR2 gets a composite bar end body and replaces the longer magnesium model (MSRP $48). The GC2 is their lighter performance-level grip that comes in at 255g with an aluminum bar end (MSRP $32) versus the 183g GX2 with carbon bar ends.
