Mountain Bike News From the 2011 Toronto Bike Show

This weekend I attended the 25th annual Toronto bike show and I gotta say the event is getting bigger and better each year. I had a chance to catch up with some friends from the industry and I was surprised at how things are coming together. I spent some time chatting it up with Julien …

This weekend I attended the 25th annual Toronto bike show and I gotta say the event is getting bigger and better each year. I had a chance to catch up with some friends from the industry and I was surprised at how things are coming together.

I spent some time chatting it up with Julien Papon from Vitess and learned they will be producing their first mountain bike soon. I actually spoke with Julien last year and he asked me for my thoughts on producing a high end mountain bike. How high end? Well, at the show they revealed their limited edition 007 road bike, which will be priced at about $30,000( it includes a 5 day VIP Tour de France tour). Yeah that’s not a typo. So needless to say I am wondering what the 29er bike they are set to reveal will look like. Only time will tell.

Intense, Opus, KHS, Shimano, and Trek were all there showing off the new rides for this year and there were booths set up for clubs and resorts as well. I even managed to pick up my season pass for Blue Mountain this year.

The photo above shows what Opus has in store for 2011 – mountain bikes for all disciplines. Starting at top left and going clockwise we have the Clutch, Crate, Nelson, and Stakh, all of which have been improved for 2011. The Stakh is completely new for this year and there’s also a new steel version of the Crate.

The show also had a ton of extras for everyone to enjoy. In addition to the familiar BMX jam competition, the show also featured a stadium-style mountain bike competition. The competition was basically a dual-slalom and freestyle stunt competition all on the same indoor course. Since it was a family show they even had a kids place where parents could test bikes with their kids.

Two of my favorite mountain bike destinations – Blue Mountain and Joyride 150 – were at the show as well and seemed to be doing good business. Both spots have something for everyone – challenging trails and features but also family-friendly stuff to do as well.

Although I didn’t need to buy anything this time, I did see a lot of people picking up bikes and tons of accessories including the GoPro HD, highly machined cranks, tires, and all kinds of jerseys. Other noteworthy items included handlebars, particularly the wider bars out there. I remember talking with trek7k at Interbike in September about the wide bar trend which now looks like it will be around for a while.

If you’re ever in Toronto during the first week of March, swing by the Toronto bike show. I’m sure you will find something you like!