Our apologies to anyone who came by recently for their daily bikefix and saw this nonsense. If you're reading this now, that's because we've fixed it! Of course, because it took ages to figure out how to fix it, there'll be no second post this week. You'll have to make do with a "Merry Christmas!" instead. Back next week...
For the shortest day of the year, we have a review of Exposure's very cool (and super light) 700 lumen Diablo lightset. From the UK, where short (though relatively mild) winter days and a strong culture of 24-hour racing make night riding extremely popular, comes what is essentially a bulked-up version of the company's extremely popular Joystick, the 102g (plus mounting hardware) Diablo is shaped like a small handheld flashlight. Like the 240 lumen Joystick (see our overview of the entire range here), the Diablo mounts to the helmet by way of a readily adjustable ball and socket mount or to the bars with the company's very solid but low-profile forged handlebar mount. In keeping with the Exposure's Cable-Free Design (CFD) philosophy, the light's primary power source is an internal lithium-ion battery- though additional batteries and accessories can be added using the light's rear SPT (Smart Port Technology) port.
Unfortunately, the single cell internal battery can only keep pace with that output for a little over an hour. Except for on extremely fast descents or when using external power, riders will probably spend most of their rides on the medium (260 lumen, 3 hour) setting.
Because the barbell shape touches the helmet, the beam is clipped, leaving a dark area for the first three feet in front of the bike- it's a bit disconcerting when relying on the Diablo alone, but as doing so hardly provides any depth perception at all (or backup lighting should something go wrong), I never recommend relying on a high-powered helmet light alone. The outer tophat has a socket into which a ball-mounted clip fits. It can be frustrating at first to get the hang of adjusting the light in one direction (say, up or down) without affecting another (side to side). With practice, I'm now able to move the light to where I need it without too much trouble. The nylon screw is used to keep riders from overdoing things and cracking their helmets. I was a bit timid with the screw at first but found that, when not tightened sufficiently, the entire mount tends to rotate rather than the light itself. Some sort of texture, rubber, or shaping on the mounting surfaces would probably help. As it stands, the light didn't stay put until after the mount was tightened enough to make a small indentation in the foam inside of my helmet- nothing that makes me worry about the helmet's function, but still a bit painful on a new $200 lid. I also found that the mount was entirely incompatible with my favorite helmet and was noticeable against my head in another. I know several riders who use the mount with their Joysticks and none have mentioned them being uncomfortable. Still, an alternative helmet mount would be nice for riders who don't have a bunch of helmets lying around.
$100 3-cell external battery takes the light's run time over 4 hours at 700 lumen- not bad at all for a $350 helmet or handlebar mounted light- and this is how I've been using the light. One of my other justifications for buying the Diablo is its suitability for commuting. Being helmet mounted, the light doesn't have to be removed from the bike when locked or left outside. Having a very bright "flash" (really more of a pulse) mode that is mounted high and can be directed toward merging traffic helps the rider to stand out, especially around dawn and dusk. The flash mode can apparently run for days between charges- meaning that most riders will only need to recharge over the weekend.
The $50 single-cell piggyback battery can be strapped to the helmet or clipped to the light itself to provide a 2-hour runtime on high. That's great, but for another $50, the three-cell battery (and 4 hour runtime) is just too good to pass up.
I have been using Hope brakes off and on for years. Hope set the benchmark for how disc brakes should feel when they introduced the Mono Mini. Unfortunately, those brakes didn’t have quite the power that we in the Rocky Mountain region like to have. More importantly, they also tended to fade quite a bit on long descents, and although this was common with most disc brakes when the Mono Minis first arrived on scene, most manufacturers improved their brakes in this regard, and soon after, serious fade was rare. When the “Pro” version of the Mono Minis was announced, they were just too pretty not to buy. I ordered a set and installed them on my original Maverick ML7 from 2001, which I keep as a fun alternative in my quiver of bikes. The Pros were the same design as the regular Minis but lighter due to Ti bolts, carbon levers, and rotors with aluminum spiders. Hope has since re-named this brake the Mini X2 Pro, but it is essentially the same brake.
The lack of power that I have been mentioning is only noticeable at one moment- on really steep grades where you have built up any kind of momentum. In that moment, they can give you a scare, because when you pull down harder on the brake lever, not as much happens as you expect. This really sounds worse than it is- it probably isn’t even much of an issue if you only ride the Hope brakes, but coming off other bikes with more powerful brakes makes the feeling more pronounced. That being said, these brakes could work well for many riders out there, with XC racers being one of the most likely groups.
One warning: The Hope rotors with the black spider are the X2 version and can be easily ordered by your LBS from many of the big parts distributors- but weigh slightly more at 89 grams. Hope has told me the Pro rotors are available separately but I have never seen them on any distributors’ websites, so they must come directly from US importers Hope Tech USA.
Regardless of the home country of brand name they bear, some of the (and some would argue the) best bikes, accessories and apparel are now coming out of Taiwan. While Boulder, Milan and Morgan Hill (and to a lesser extent Waterloo, WI) could be argued to be homes of the cycling industry, virtually nothing that we ride, carry or wear actually comes from these places. Giant and FSA are some of the best-known Taiwanese companies to have made their own name at retail, but a number of other overseas manufacturers are looking to follow in their footsteps. Almost 20 years ago, Exustar began life as VP's high-end pedal arm. Ten years later, the brand broke off from its parent and was reborn as Exustar. Now diversified considerably into shoes, accessories, tools and apparel, the brand (through distributor Q Cycle) is making a push into the US market.
There is some thin gel padding under the black panels on the palm and a good-sized Velcro closure under the wrist. Though hard to see in the photos, there are the obligatory (but rarely durable) grippy patches on the thumbs and first two fingertips.
For as long as I've owned full-zip cycling jerseys and jackets, I've wondered if there was a way for manufacturers to avoid the belly pouch that zippers inevitably create. It turns out that someone over at GORE may have figured it out- and it's so simple that I'm amazed that no one else had thought of it earlier. While jerseys don't often have much detail to write about, the handful of details that make up GORE's Oxygen Thermo jersey are spot on. As unfamiliar readers might have guessed, GORE BIKE WEAR (their capitalization, not mine) is a branch of WL Gore & Associates- the company that makes GORE-TEX and WINDSTOPPER fabrics. As we're finding out, the details in the German-designed range of cycling clothing and accessories is more than just a vehicle for the company's fabrics.
After a month of cool- and cold-weather riding in the Oxygen Thermo, I'm becoming more and more of a convert.
Because the front of the jersey is cut high, the zipper isn't pushed up and out by my thighs- there's no belly pouch to be found here.
It's a well-worn (even tired) saw: If your feet aren't happy, you won't be happy. Not that feet are the only gatekeepers between riders and cycling nirvana, but anyone who's endured hot spots and numbness on even a short ride can attest that unhappy feet can really take their toll on one's mood. With so much riding on their products (and countless ways in which they can go wrong), shoe designers might well have the hardest job in the industry.
The toe bumpers, while not large, are sturdy plastic. The shoes' uppers weren't exactly glove soft in the way that high-end road shoes' can be, but the fit seemed good and the shoe not heavy but certainly substantial. Altogether, the Montana XT2's come across as a solid and handsome (though not flashy) mountain shoe. It was time to mount up some cleats and hit the trail.
The idea from those companies is that most people's feet don't naturally land flat (either under- or over-pronating). By canting the soles so ever so slightly, the shoes' stiff soles are able to more completely and evenly support the feet (though I couldn't find any claims along these lines from Garneau online or in their catalog). It certainly felt weird for the first few pedal strokes, but the oddness went away within a mile or so. Though I hadn't zeroed in on the problem before, when wearing the Montanas, it feels like I'm able to pedal with my entire foot, rather than putting a good deal of pressure on the outside of the foot. I can't say that everyone will benefit, but the canting was certainly an unexpected bonus and felt great in my case.
While I haven't done any proper epics, I have to say that the Garneau's have me rethinking my old standbys. When I switch back to my old shoes, the outsides of my feet are uncomfortable by comparison and it takes several miles to readjust.
Not too many components on a mountain bike evoke strong brand loyalties like disc brakes. Probably because being able to stop is nice and the brakes are so important in that regard. That makes a brake review tough. You are either preaching to the choir or trying to convert the already damned- it’s hard to change anyone’s mind that already has an opinion. I myself am guilty of some very negative feelings towards a certain brand- all based on one set of brakes I owned a long time ago. Out of curiosity, I decided to look at the chatter on the internet about the new Saints, and found some mixed and very strong opinions.
so I ditched them for some standard 6-bolt aftermarket 180 rotors by Gusset.
One small annoyance is that the Saint has a one-piece clamp so your grips have to come off when you install them.
This time of year, commuting by bike can be a bit of a challenge. Not only is it colder and often wetter than other seasons, but the end of Daylight Savings Time means that all but the luckiest riders will ride at least half of their commute in the dark. As we mentioned in our overview, Exposure are big into not being into cables. A regular commuter who locks a bike outside and switches lights between bikes, the appeal of a simple, self-contained unit was immediately clear to me. The idea of a road-specific light was a new one, though.
ensuring a decent lateral flood and good visibility to cars but without wasting valuable output on the front tire or signaling overhead aircraft.
Even off road, the Strada performed very well- it doesn't flood the trail, but again- the light is focused where it's most useful. When combined with the company's Joystick helmet-mounted light, it provided more than enough light for spirited mountain biking. In fact, combining the Strada (on high) with a flashing Joystick on my helmet made for some very confident commuting. The Strada provides enough light with which to ride confidently and the pulsing Joystick is very effective at capturing the attention of oncoming left-turners and drivers merging from side roads.
Sometimes a tool is perfect in its simplicity and specificity. This is just such a tool If you ride and are at all particular about how your clothing fits or gear works, you've probably come across a pad that has become uncomfortable before its time or pack with unnecessary straps that do nothing but make a nuisance of themselves. Dritz's Deluxe Seam Ripper is a badass little tool that helps the user remove sewn seams without destroying nearby fabric. Its form is perfectly evolved to do that an nothing else- and is beautiful for that.
Windstopper material underneath. Now, I have knickers that can be worn several rides in a row with different shorts on each ride, keeping them out of the wash and my knees happy. Similarly, when my nose started running, I realized that putting "armor" on a pair of gloves' terry thumbs made them pretty ineffective at removing snot. 3 minutes with the Seam Ripper and they're much, much more pleasant to use. The seam ripper can be used to quickly cut poorly-located or overly large tags out of clothing too. Any time, really, when you want to remove a seam without screwing up an expensive piece of gear, they're ideal.
Aside from being one of the friendliest, most enthusiastic riders we know, Juan Pablo is also an accomplished off-road triathlete, one with the sort of bike handling skills few tri folks posses. Here's his review of Continental's 2.4in Mountain King UST Tire:
and this is the same for everyone, from [three time Xterra world champion] Conrad Stoltz down. The a’a (Hawaiian name for this a particular type of lava) is unpredictably sharp and it litters the south part of the MTB course (due to recent lava flows – 400 years old or so), the place where most of the course’s descending takes place. All of the race's climbing takes place on the North side of the course with a little more dirt than rocks.
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