Giro Shoe Restock and SALE!

With cyclocross season around the corner we want to show you how great a new set of Giro shoes can be for your season.  Come in and buy any pair of shoes and get a $25 gift certificate for your next purchase!

We have the Carbide, Privateer, Privateer HV, and Gauge in stock currently in just about every size.

The Giro Gauge, my personal favorite CX shoe, reviewed here.  EC70 carbon sole for $200.

The Giro Privateer, the workhorse of the line, reviewed here.  Zytel sole for $150.

And the bargain of the line, the Carbide.  With a great fit and a killer price tag, $100, hard to fault.

In Stock: Niner Carbon Jet9 RDO Tang Medium!

What happens when you want to race your Niner, but need full suspension? The Jet9 has been a solid choice, but was a little heavier than it's competition. That used to leave you with a choice to be made: do I suffer the extra weight or do I switch brands?

Well, if you've ever ridden any Niner products you'll know they have their geometry dialed. Why would you want to sacrifice the amazing CVA suspension design and geometry just for a little weight?

So let's say you've decided that the geometry and suspension is enough to keep you with Niner, but you're still struggling with the added heft of the Jet9 when compared to some of it's carbon-competition. Have no fear, because Niner has answered with the Jet9 RDO.

RDO stands for Race Day Optimized, a moniker that's being added to a number of items in the Niner line. It means you're getting equipment truly ready to be raced to your best times and right onto the podium!

Iron Cycles is one of the few spots in the country to find one of these frames. We have ONE brand new Jet9 RDO in medium coming in stock for sale. 


The Jet9 RDO is sporting a tapered head tube with inset headset. We've had a love affair with Chris King headsets for quite some time, and this machine screams for one! Tapered from 1-1/8" to 1.5" adds stiffness and steering precision.


Internal routing done very similar to the Air9 Carbon is a welcome addition, as long as you have a little patience. We've gotten pretty good at routing them, but if you're planning to build your own for the first time I recommend visiting www.ninerbikes.com and following their tutorial.


Fox RP23 with Kashima Coat. Does a rear shock get any better? Make it part of the patented CVA rear suspension design and know you've got the best rear suspension available.


A PressFit30 bottom bracket means tons of added stiffness for your pedaling pleasure! BB30 cranksets can be employed for lighter weight and a more narrow q-factor. Or, use a PF30 to BSA adapter and run a standard crankset.

Current wait time is roughly 4-5 months, unless you're ready for the one we have in stock. But don't wait, once this one is gone, you have a long wait for another....

In Stock: K-Edge Garmin Mount!

These things have been flying off of our shelves.  Our initial order was sold out in about 72 hours, but we have more arriving today!  Today's shipment includes gunmtal gray and red, more black mounts are coming but we're not sure when, probably another week.

Part of this shipment is already pre-sold and we're down to about 10 left.  Call today to get yours before they are gone again!

In Stock: K-Edge Garmin Mount

After months of waiting, they are finally here!  The Bar Fly has some real competition in the K-Edge mount, though the Bar Fly has it's own set of features.  But this isn't about the Bar Fly, this is about the K-Edge Garmin mount.

First, this thing is beautifully made, just like every other K-Edge item.  Wonderful machining, perfect anodization, beautiful laser etching.  Each of these finishing touches can be found on every K-Edge item, and luckily for $50 this mount doesn't disappoint.

Much like other K-Edge products, the Garmin mount comes with all required hardware and fits perfectly.  One thing I've noticed so far with the K-Edge over the Bar Fly is that the Bar Fly can rotate (only by hand when you want it to, not on it's own...ever) when torqued where the K-Edge with two bolts isn't going anywhere without being loosened.

The K-Edge mount matches nicely with my Paul front brake hanger, and would match a Thomson stem perfectly.  Unfortunately this bike is currently using a Zipp stem.  They still match well, but man the Thomson would work well together.

Your Garmin sits lower with the K-Edge than with the Bar Fly, which could be good or bad, it's pretty personal.  I do feel more comfortable with the Garmin mounted on the K-Edge if I were to crash, it's hidden between the hoods if the bike finds it's way upside down.

The K-Edge mount is extremely secure, the positive engagement is welcome when dealing with such an expensive computer.

Beautifully machined computer mount, adjustable mounting positions, perfect anodization, laser etching, it's hard to beat this piece of kit.  Then again, a $50 computer mount should be pretty darn nice, don't you think?

(Soon to be) NEW BIKE DAY! Niner Jet9 RDO

I'd guess there will come a day when I tire of building these bikes, but I have no idea when that will be.  The Jet9 RDO has been a huge hit since the day it was introduced, which has led to incredibly long wait times.  Frames like this one, in licorice, are in such high demand that some people are left waiting an entire season to get one.

Come to us, we'll not only help you get your grubby mitts on one, we'll build it for you.  Trust me, you don't want to build it yourself.  The frame is beautifully designed, but the internal cable routing leaves much to be desired during the build.  Once the bike is built though, look out.  She screams.

Keep an eye out for this one once we build it.  I'm guessing sub-24lbs for a full-suspension XL 29er, but it depends heavily on tire choice....

New Review: Surly Cross-Check Custom Single Speed

This one just rolled across my desk from Henry, one of our team riders.  We had the pleasure of recently building this piece up for him, and we think it turned out pretty awesome.  Read on:

Last spring I was looking for a singlespeed bike for some basic commuting.  Nothing too crazy, but nothing too plain either.  I wanted a bike that would be reliable and strong enough to take a beating on the pothole-laden Chicago streets, but still fun to ride and with some personality.  Although I looked at a few complete bike options, I was pretty much set on a Surly Cross-Check.  While it looked great and would be a perfect candidate to build up single speed, it also has semi-horizontal dropouts and thus can be built as a geared bike, whether for commuting, touring or even cyclocross racing.  Flexibility in the future was just an added plus for this already awesome bike.

I spoke with the guys at Iron Cycles and set a time to pick out components.  This was the first bike where I’d be picking essentially everything for the build, so Steven and I sat down at the shop to discuss options.  For anyone who has not done this, I highly recommend it at least once.  The simplicity of a single speed bike also makes it both easy and overwhelming to select parts.  This is because there are a limited number of items you need to buy for the build, but each part has nearly unlimited options from which to choose.
 
The end results were follows: an All City crank and chainring (which looked slick in black, with etched silver logos), a basic flat handlebar with dirtbike grips, and mini-V brakes.  One area I did spend some extra dough was the wheels, as I picked a set of electric blue Velocity deep V rims, with black spokes and hubs, wrapped in 25mm Conti Gatorskins.  Rarely would a chip of glass or stray nails would cut through these reinforced tires, so they seemed a good choice for worry-free riding.

Two weeks later everything was at the shop.  My wrenching skills are approximately limited to picking up an allen wrench to adjust a seat post, so I opted to have the new Surly built at Iron Cycles.  That said, I did want the opportunity to learn, so while Ben built the bike up he patiently explained everything he did.  I picked up a good deal and found that while the beauty of a single speed (or fixed gear) bike is its simplicity, there is still a fair amount of prep work and skill associated with building any bike.  I helped here and there with a few small tasks (though it depends who you ask – I may have slowed the process down) and after maybe 3 hours we were finished.  I took the bike home and was pretty excited to get to ride it the next day!

Fast forward just over a year to today.  I’ve not had a day riding the Surly that I don’t absolutely love it.  It has been completely maintenance-free, other than just lubing the chain and keeping the bike clean.  If I could go back to build this bike again I wouldn’t change a thing.  It’s my first steel bike and while I will stick with other frame materials for racing, there is something about the steel ride that has character and as I’d heard, kind of a soul.  As a rider you are not totally insulated from road vibrations, but they are dampened and the result is a comfortable yet solid ride feel.  The sensation of being connected to the road through your bike is definitely present with the Cross-Check.  I highly recommend considering this particular Surly if you’re in the market for a bike that is fun to ride, reliable, friendly to your wallet and flexible enough to be built up in several different ways.

Of course, this review wouldn’t be complete without a huge thank you and shout out to Ben, Steven, Brandon and Chase at Iron Cycles for the help, guidance and answering all my pain in the butt questions while building the Cross-Check.  You couldn’t find a better place to bring your bike or begin your search for a new ride, so look these guys up if you’re in the market or need any repair, fit or general bike advice.

NEW BIKE DAY! Surly Cross-Check Custom in Robin's Egg Blue

Surly builds like this are always a pleasure.  Starting with the complete build, adding small touches to make the bike yours without going over the top.  Much like we did with this bike, the Robin's Egg Blue Cross-Check today was all class.

The complete build is pretty sweet, but subtle changes like Arundel Gekko tape in white really brightens up the finish on this bike.

Fatties do in fact fit fine.  This bike was built with SKS fenders and 28c Continental Gatorskin Ultra tires, and there's still a ton of clearance.

Just sit back and enjoy the rest of the photos.  This bike is just so classy, so clean, and so ready for whatever the road brings.  This one is intended to be used on a roughly 20-mile commute each way, though I have a feeling it will be seeing far more miles than that.

Coming soon: Niner Jet9 RDO Spy Shots!

In Stock: Niner Air9 Alloy!

These things are starting to roll in, and out, of the shop on a pretty regular basis.  Medium is still extremely hard to come by, but we're starting to get some large frames in stock, just waiting to be built for you!

We'll include a new Shimano XT or SRAM X.9 rear derailleur with each frame purchase on in-stock models.

Current stock:

AIR9 Alloy - Tang/Black - Large
AIR9 Alloy - White/Raw - Large
JET9 RDO - Black - Large
AIR9 RDO - Black - Large

Need a large frame?  We can help!  Medium and small frames coming soon.....hopefully.....

First Rides: Mavic R-SYS SLR Wheelset

I have to admit to these wheels sitting around for the first couple of weeks I had them to test.  It's not my fault, Lumberjack 100 is right around the corner so I've been on my mountain bike.  But, it's about time to log some faster miles to feel better about myself.

 A few rides and I'm starting to form an opinion on these wheels:

First, they are a time-trialists worst nightmare.  They spin up fast and gain speed like crazy, but the boxy rim and fat carbon spokes are about as aerodynamic as a CTA bus.

Second, the Exalith braking surface is incredible.  Out of the box with Exalith-specific pads they whistle like crazy.  Super loud.  I've swapped to stock Shimano alloy-specific pads and the whistling was greatly reduced.  The pads do wear faster on the machined braking surface, but the performance is unreal.

As you can see from these shots, I've taken the wheels out in some wet and on less-than-ideal roads.  Braking performance is perfect, even in the wet.  The brakes aren't grabby and have a really steady power curve.

Third, the tires are holding up well for me.  Chase on the other hand destroyed one on is second ride to a big cut, I'm hoping that's just bad luck.  The tires aren't my favorite, though.  The rear PowerLink tire is made to roll faster, the front GripLink made to, surprise here, grip.  I haven't pushed them too hard into corners, but so far the front seems ok.  The rear on the other hand offers very little grip in the wet.  So little grip in fact that it actually makes me a little nervous to ride in the wet.

Fourth, the rear hub, or more specifically it's engagement.  It works fine, it's been flawless, but the engagement is slower than the Chris King R45 rear hub I'm used to.  It's fast enough, but when you get used to King it's hard to settle for less.  I also like the "buzz" of the King, Mavic freehubs are pretty quiet.  Personal preference here, not a big deal.

Fifth, they are beautiful.  That's a fact.  Not really a fact, my opinion, but they really do look great.

Finally, let's cover stiffness.  Laterally, they are stiff.  Really stiff.  I did a couple of low-speed, big-gear sprints really wrenching on the bike and the wheels just don't flex side to side.  Vertically they ride nicely, but I won't say they are better than a pair of hand-built wheels.

So far, so good.  I like this pair of R-SYS wheels, but I'm not sure I like them $2000 worth.  When in a group ride, I won't ever win a sprint.  The only way I can get some "fame" is to get into a breakaway and try to ride away with a group.  This is not the wheelset for that.  If you like to sprint or treat your wheels like crap, this wheelset may work for you.

More to come....

Giro Factor LTD, Rapha Edition Road Shoes

We scored just a few pairs of these Limited Edition, Rapha-inspired, Giro Factor road shoes.  Made for the Rapha-Condor-Sharp Road Team, Giro saw the demand and created only 600 pairs of these shoes total.

This pair is #245 of 600, is new in the box, and has the Rapha key chain also labelled as #245.

Size 44, $350.

Beautiful and comfortable, the Factor is in my opinion the best Giro road shoe.  While the Prolight SLX may be lighter, the Factor gets you the EC90 sole and a buckle instead of a strap.

EC90 sole provides unparalleled stiffness, extremely low stack height, and unmatched durability.  The EC90 sole on the Factor LTD has pink accents to match the upper and Rapha-Condor-Sharp team kits.  This is a limited edition colorway that you won't see again.

These shoes come delivered with a Giro/Rapha leather keychain with matching serial number and a Rapha-Condor-Sharp booklet.

Sidi Shoe Closeout!

We only have a few pairs left, and at this pricing I doubt we'll have these for long!  Call or email, these are first come, first served.  You must mention this post to receive the sale price!

Genius 5 Pro Carbon, 40.  MSRP $260, on sale for $120.

 
Nevada white, 44 and 45.  MSRP $150, on sale for $70 each.

 Genius 5 Pro Carbon womens, 40.5.  MSRP $260, on sale for $120.

 Genius T2 Carbon, 45.  MSRP $200, on sale for $110.

 Sierra Black, 41.5.  MSRP $150, on sale for $70.

 Giau Black, 42 and 45.  MSRP $150, on sale for $70.