We watched last weekend’s UCI XC World Cup in Nove Mesto from the pits, the sidelines and all over the course to capture closeups of the fastest bikes there. And we caught a lot of prototype bikes in the wild, with crazy paint schemes and graphics trying (unsuccessfully) to hide them. All the links are after the break, look for “BIKE CHECK” in caps before all the pro bike checks.
In other news, we put together a few posts from our time with Specialized and their new Turbo Vado, which was one of several interesting e-bikes launched over the past 10 days (along with some real talk about e-bikes from Bosch). We also got into their Win Tunnel and learned why they always measure at speeds way faster than you or I could ever maintain.
If you’re into gravel, Cannondale surprised us all with the new SuperX SE, a more road-ish version of their cyclocross bike, and we reviewed the Framed Gravier Carbon UL, too. And be sure to watch the videos from the handmade builders at Paul Camp, we’ve got a lot more of those coming up soon!
Lastly, Zipp unveiled new, more affordable wheels in both standard and bio-mimicked aero shapes, and Trek debuted their 29er DH bike, proof that the big wheels are taking over every discipline! Lots more, too…links to everything since last Sunday below!
BIKE CHECK XC Pro Bike Update: World Cup winning & World Champ Annika Langvad’s Specialized S-Works Era
BIKE CHECK XC Pro Bike Update (deja vu): World Cup winning & World Champ Nino Schurter’s Scott Spark RC
Bikerumor Pic Of The Day: Kualoa Ranch, Oahu
HBO skewers pro cycling with Tour de Pharmacy mockumentary…just in time for Tour de France
Zipp drops dimples & price for new 302 carbon clinchers, adds discs to 454 NSW
BIKE CHECK American Eagle mountain bike soars again with gold medalist Bart Brentjens’ Atlanta 2.0
BIKE CHECK Spotted: Prototype redesigned Continental Race King ProTection mountain bike tires
First Ride: Intense Recluse DVO Special Edition
What I learned about aerodynamics from the Specialized Win Tunnel
Bikerumor Pic Of The Day: Enjoying The View – Gjøvik, Norway
BIKE CHECK Spotted: Mondraker prototype carbon full-suspension XC mountain bike
The Smacircle S1 folding electric ‘bike’ fits in a backpack
BIKE CHECK Spotted: Michelin testing prototype XC race mountain bike tire casings
Hands On: MacAskill inspired HC3 brake lever takes Magura brakes to another level
Mega Clothing Roundup! Summer road releases from Cinelli : Brooks : Santini : RPM Cycling : Boardman
SOC17 Gear Randoms: Funky bibs from Funkier, Custom colors from Boa, new pads from POC, more
Prologo upgrades more road, mountain bike saddles w/ CPC Airing vibration damping
Review: Framed Bikes Gravier Carbon UL Gravel Bike
Bikerumor Pic Of The Day: San Francisco, California
BIKE CHECK Spotted: Prototype carbon MMR Kenta 29 replacement full-suspension XC mountain bike
Garmin VIRB 360 goes full circle & fully immersive
BIKE CHECK Pro Bike Check: Gunn-Rita Dahle Flesjå’s Old Rose Pink custom Merida Big.Nine mountain bike
SR Suntour Raidon bumps up to 34mm stanchions to keep stiffness high and cost low
Paul Camp 2017 Builder Highlight – McGovern Cycles’ monstercross bike
Paul Camp 2017 Builder Highlight – Caletti Cycles’ monstercross bike
Oakley clicks into Flak Draft with quick change Prizm lenses, adds new shapes to EV Zero line
Bikerumor Pic Of The Day: Stockholm, Sweden
Sombrio shows off Margus Riga’s artistic side at their pop-up gallery in Whistler
Review: Forget the snow, 9:zero:7 Tundra is cruising beaches & crushing trails
Trek introduces 29″ Session DH Bike, plus all new 27.5″ model as well
BIKE CHECK Pro Bike Checks: XC World Cup’s fastest, U23 women podium roundup
First Rides: Specialized Turbo Vado urban e-bike; plus video overview & model lineup
Lake throws it way back for 35th anniversary with lace up CX1 / MX1, new endurance shoes, more
Bikerumor Pic Of The Day: Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Rocky Mountain mountain bikes get electric with Altitude Powerplay e-MTB
Real talk about eBikes: Bosch panel probes pros and cons
BIKE CHECK Spotted: Updated Felt Edict carbon mountain bike prototype, in snakeskin?
USAMade gives your pedaling more bite w/ new Oval Sharktooth chainrings
Friday Roundup: Cycling Odds & Ends
The TReGo Trolley quickly converts your bike into a cargo hauler
Cannondale releases SuperX SE featuring wider tires and 1x wide range gearing
The Build Cycle Podcast #015 – Colorado Teardrops’ Dean Wiltshire
Off The Bike: New gear from MSR, Tepui, Polar & Altra Running