Words by Stuart Kernaghan
Gear Shots is a new feature here on nsmb.com. We put the spotlight on three products that the nsmb test crew is riding, wearing, or using right now and give you a first look at what we'll be reviewing in the near future.
It's a chance for you to see what's coming up on the site, and get a sneak peak at some of the latest and greatest freeride and DH products - maybe even before they're available at a store near you.
Yakima RimRoc
Some people transport their bikes in the back of a pickup or on the roof of their car, but what do you do if you've got an SUV? I don't want to be lifting a 45 lb. bike six feet up onto a roof rack at the end of a long ride. One slip and those little pedal studs are gouging right through the paintjob.
Besides, I've already got yellow paint on the factory roof rack from driving under parkade barriers. There's no way I'd be able to get another five or six inches of after-market roof rack into most parkades. |
Up to three bikes on the back, carried by the wheels
Photo: Scott Johnson |
Enter
Yakima's RimRoc hitch-mounted rack. The RimRoc attaches to a two-inch trailer hitch, and carries up to three bikes at a time. But unlike a lot of other hitch racks, it doesn't carry the bikes by the toptube: it carries them by the rims, so you can load up your VPS or Big Hit without any sort of special adaptor and keep the wheels well off the ground. You can even open the tailgate without removing the rack. Very convenient.
SixSixOne Wrist Wraps
SixSixOne's Wrist Wraps are protection for one of the few places that riders around here don't instinctively cover up when they head to the trails. But think back to the last time you bailed: what was your first reaction? Put out your hands to catch your fall, right? And what do you usually end up doing? Hurting your hand, or your wrist. Or both.
The Wraps are fairly similar to wrist guards designed for rollerblading, but rather than using hard plastic external braces, the Wrist Wraps |
Body armour for your wrist
Photo: Stuart Kernaghan |
use removable internal stiffeners made out of the same flexible PE plastic ribbing that's in arm and leg padding. Left- or right-specific Wraps are available, and they fit under your gloves to prevent new injuries or keep you from aggravating old ones.
Evil SRS Chainguide
Undoubtedly the hottest chainguide out there right now is Evil Bike's Single Ring Security. Not only does the clear Makrolon® plastic bashguard make it particularly sexy, it's also ridiculously strong, and you're not going to end up with the sharp burrs that are common on metal rock rings.
The addition of an integrated set-up feature to the 2003 model makes installation even easier, and improved instructions are a bonus for home mechanics.
The SRS comes in three sizes and three bolt patterns, so they'll fit just about any crankset you could find, and there's enough mounting hardware in the package to set it up on full squishies or hardtails. So that's what we've been doing - riding it on both. |
The best clear plastic protection available
Photo: Stuart Kernaghan |
And because we're just a little masochistic, we're even using the guide on rides that involve a lot of climbing.
Stay tuned to nsmb.com for full-on reviews of each of these products in the coming weeks. We'll also be rolling out new Gear Shots about every other week, and you never know what you'll see. But here's a hint for next time: it's silver, but not metal.
Until then...
