Interbike Vegas 2011 New Bike Mechanic Tools by Park Tool

I spent a while in this booth, since I needed to know every new bike mechanic tool Park Tool plans to release. This is one of a few videos. The pegboard was large and covered with new products, like a simple yet effective chain stretch indictor tool made more effective.

Car Companies Collaborate and Brand Bicycles

You probably already saw this posting about car companies collaborating and branding bicycles. But in case you were working on your Halloween costume for the past several days and missed it, see what you think. I haven't had a chance to ride any of these. If you have, comment.

 (Maserati and Montante Cicli, photo lifted from the post. Not sure about a front disc on what could be an uncomplicated fixie? But I like the colorway.)

 (Specialized and MacLaren Applied Materials, photo lifted from the post. Fast is good. Faster is better.)

True, on you way back from a training ride, you could knock on doors, and score some treats by convincing some you are wearing a bike racer costume. But change into a fresh jersey, or the little pirates, painters, and neurosurgeons won't ever think about being cyclists.

Oregon Manifest Modern Utility Bike Challenge and Creative Collaboration Bicycles

If you want to see the bikes constructed by those who took up the Oregon Manifest's challenge of building the ultimate utility bike for modern living, click here.

Here are some of the winners of the competition. Thank you, makers and all concerned, for providing me with some thought-provoking, two-wheeled eye candy.

 

All pixs lifted from the Oregon Manifest site. (Best of Show: Tony Pereira, Pereira Cycles), (Student Winners: Univeristy of Oregon.)

While you are clicking around on the Oregon Manifest site, check out the creative collaboration bikes.

(Peoples' Choice: IDEO and Rock Lobster Cycles)

(Fuseproject and SyCip Design)

(Ziba Design and Signal Cycles)
(All pixs lifted from the Oregon Manifest site.)

If you have a job, you better get back to work. If you don't, and you love bikes, go for a ride. You'll feel better. While you are pedaling, think about what you might create.
(Thanks to Raju for sending me this link.)

Interbike Vegas 2011 Kryptonite Bike Shepherd Lets You Use a Cellphone to Recover Stolen Bikes

At Interbike 2011, I took a bunch of video of the lovely wooden bikes decorating the Kryptonite booth and talked with Kevin. He explained that Kryptonite's Bike Shepherd is a product which allows you to view information about a tagged and registered bike, via your cellphone, and then use social networking to help to return those bikes registered as stolen.  (Watch the video.)

Yes, cats, if i were a bike thief, I'd try to scratch off the tags. Kevin told me that the glue is pretty difficult to remove. But I've peeled off so many bike wheel and rim labels, I'm pitbull relentless at label peeling. Bike thieves are sly, so use your collective urban cycling brains to place the tags in places someone can scan them with a cell phone, but where bike thieves won't immediately see them.  (Suggestion: If you find an excellent and stealth place to stick at tag, don't publish the location online. Bike thieves can read, too.)

Interbike in Vegas 2011 Get out! There's a wooden track by the snackbar?

I'm going to start posting a bunch of random (and somewhat chaotic) videos I created at Interbike in Vegas a month ago.  In 16 hours, I tried to visit as many of the 1000+ bike vendors as possible, and as I stepped into each vendor booth,  I pressed the recording button and began chatting about new bikes and accessories for 2011.  I saw some awesomely cool stuff for next year.

None of the vendors knew I was going to visit. I did not research anything prior to my visits; hence, I'm learning as I'm filming, so bear with me.  I was delighted with how helpful and forthcoming the vendors were with technical product information.  As I edit out the unplanned shots of the floor and my less than generous comments about video camera batteries,  I'll post them.

(I only shoot video once a year at Interbike, which is wicked loud. I bought an open box video camera on deep discount from Best Buy a day before the show. These facts will come as no surprise to you when you watch the videos.)