In their pursuit of footwear domination, Keen continues to expand their product lines with both niche products and expanded products for the masses. Every time I get the rundown of the Keen product line, I’m impressed with both the product quality and sheer expansiveness of the line. Not only does Keen offer some of the most protective and trail-friendly sandals on the market, but they also produce river shoes like the Keen Hood River Boot, casual shoes for a walk around town, bags and packs and also left and right-specific socks. A couple of new products that I’d like to highlight represent both product refinements and an expansion into a new market....
Continue reading...

We are getting close to Interbike and that means that all the manufacturers are starting to release more information on their upcoming products. I got a great preview of the Fox/Shimano 15QR system and actually have my 2009 Fox Vanilla 32 RLC mounted up and nearly ready for its first ride. I’ve also seen tons of other great new bikes and products come my way over the past month or so. But, this one is bound to be one of the most amazing new products of the season… the Truvativ HammerSchmidt bike transmission. Aimed at providing dual-ring function in a single-ring design, the HammerSchmidt will change the game when it comes to shifting....
Continue reading...

A quick stop at the Yakima booth yielded a couple of sweet new products that will be introduced in early 2009–something to look forward to.  The battle for bike-carrying supremacy is one of the sweet spots of the roof rack market. Between Yakima and Thule, you’ve got a variety of options to suit your personal tastes and vehicle type. Hefting a bike on your roof is never an easy task–unless you drive a Mini Cooper–however, sometimes it’s the quickest and easiest way to get your bike from your garage to the trailhead. I’ve been pretty vocal about my love/hate relationship with roof racks. In my 15 years of using roof-mounted bike racks, I’ve done...
Continue reading...

I must say I’ve become quite a believer in the 29-inch revolution. However, my enthusiasm is a bit tempered because 29-ers aren’t for everyone.  Still, there are a whole lot of riders out there who can benefit from the increased momentum and smoothness only bigger hoops can provide. So, from cycling’s counter-culture to mainstream, 29-ers are coming out of the woodwork and who else to wave that banner than Mr. Tony Ellsworth with the newly-introduced Ellsworth Evolve 29-er. Ellsworth knows a thing or two about building bikes, but can we expect the world from a first-generation product? If it’s an Ellsworth, I think we can....
Continue reading...

I’ve tried a number of sunglasses from all the top companies over the years: Smith, Oakley, Scott, Ryders, Julbo and others.  Each one offers something unique and is made to fit different size faces or made to serve a specific function. Lately, I’ve noticed a trend towards offering more and more polarized lenses. As such, I’ve had a number of polarized sunglasses and goggles come my way. Polarized lens technology has been around for a long time, but some do it better than others and some lens materials are better suited to it than others. I had a chance to sit down with Derek Newton, the local Kaenon Polarized sales rep...
Continue reading...

If a podiatrist was looking for a great example of a flat foot, he’d look right at mine and say, “See that guy over there? Yeah, the one with those pancake-flat feet. He needs orthotics!” And there I’ve been for several years with everything from Dr. Scholls arch supports to $350 custom orthotics. However, no matter how much I spent on the orthotics, I couldn’t get them to work in all my shoes, so over time, they ended up in a single pair, then ultimately tucked away in the corner somewhere only to be used on occasion. I’d almost always go back to the Dr. Scholls arch supports because they were cheap and easily swapped between...
Continue reading...

Before getting the lowdown on the latest sunglasses and goggles from Julbo, I had pidgeon-holed them into the “mountaineer-only” category.  Their famous glacier sunglasses are worn and trusted by many mountaineers worldwide… that’s all I thought they made, but I was pleasantly surprised to see their latest lineup of sunglasses and goggles. Talking through the new sunglasses and goggles, I was impressed with the quality and pricing offered by Julbo.  With a crowded market, Julbo has their work cut out for them to capture enough business to become a solid player, but with smart designs and quality products, they just might make it happen. Julbo Zebra Photochromic Lenses The most notable feature of the Julbo lineup i...
Continue reading...

Going into this year’s Outdoor Retailer show, I knew there would continue to be stories of green products and green companies.  Though that drumbeat has been a little more subdued this year, it’s still present and will be a large part of the show and the industry moving forward. A few months back, I heard about END (Environmentally Neutral Design), a small Portland, Oregon startup with big ambitions. I was intrigued enough by the secrecy of the company’s products (no products are currently displayed on their Web site) and their mission that I had to stop by the END booth for a visit.  I’m glad I did as I was able to chat with END co-founder,...
Continue reading...

For those of you who don’t know, Outdoor Retailer is the largest tradeshow for outdoor manufacturers to showcase their wares. It happens twice a year with the Summer Market in August and the Winter Market in January. The best part… it happens right here in Salt Lake City at the Salt Palace. I’ve got a full plate of appointments from all the major manufacturers and will be posting about the latest gear for next Spring. Last year brought some nuggets like the MSR HyperFlow water filter, new MSR tents, and new glasses and goggles from ...
Continue reading...

Lots of new stuff showing up in my inbox these days. With only a couple of months before Interbike, most manufacturers are starting to leak some of the goods to keep everyone on the edge of their seats. Most of the time, I don’t get enough detail to know everything, but just enough to bring you some details. For 2009, the venerable Ellsworth Moment (2007 Ellsworth Moment review) gets a new rectangular oval top tube and all new tubes elsewhere. Officially, Ellsworth calls the proprietary tubeset “swaged, tapered and shaped,” but I’ll just call it sexy.  Looking at my current Ellsworth Evolve, I imagine that the tubeset on the new Moment is very similar. The...
Continue reading...