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SR Suntour adds more playing pieces to the suspension game with its new MG_UL and MG90 suspension forks. Shown here, the MG-UL comes in at under 3-1/2 pounds. The long list of features include magnesium lowers and arch, alloy steerer tube, forged alloy anodized crown and Duralumin stanchion tubes. The coil springs and elastomer stack provide 88mm of travel and have indexed adjuster knobs with optical display to control preload. The fork, which is also V-brake and disc brake-compatible, comes in metallic silver, neon red, black and yellow. Price is not available yet, but if you email them at bike@sidetrak.com or call them at 206-575-0335, I'm sure they can give you more info. Sidetrak Messenger Bag
Bicycling: April 1998
If you've got wide load, consider the Sidetrak Messenger ($100). It's the mother of all messenger bags, with a huge, padded 1,400-cubic-inch capacity. Ignite Full Neoprene Booties Mountain Biking Action: April 1998
Sidetrak, a Seattle (Washington) distributor, has assembled a quiver of super-specialized cycling accessories, including the best cold-weather overboot in the business. It is called the Ignite. There is a rectanglar port in the bottom that provides easy access for clip-in pedals. Ignites come in men's sizes: S (up to 7), M/L (up to 10), and XL (11 and up). They retail for $29.95.
HOW THE BOOTIES FIT
There is a hook and loop strip (that's a Velcro-like substance) on the inside seam of the booties and an elastic strap on the bottom. The pointed toe is rubber-coated for extra traction and abrasion resistance. To properly fit the bootie, make sure the toe is snugly in place and strap the hook and loop firmly around the ankle. The thick neoprene overboot rides high on the ankle to prevent freezing mud and water from violating your designer cycling socks, but is dlexible enough to allow freedom of movement. Sidetrak claims that the booties fir almost every shoe/cleat combination ou there except for Look.
HOW THE BOOTIES WORK
Two thumbs up for the Ignite from the MBA test staff. We ran on'em, dashed through water crossings and sped down-hill in sub-freezing temperatures in total comfort. Considering that the shoes we were wearing had mesh outers, it was doubly amazing that our feet stayed warm. If you suffer from cold feet, get some of these pups. When ordering, snug is btter. The neoprene booties is fairly elastic and the toe will not stay put if the fit is too loose.
Mountain Biking: January 1998
From staying warm to keeping dry, here're some of the top choices in winter weather protection!
Sidetrak Booties - Unique open heel and toe design. Keeps your feet warm, dry and comfortable.
Sidetrak Toe Warmers - Slip them over your cycling shoes and cut the chill.
Sidetrak Shinguard - Blocks wind as well as offering padded shin protection.
Sidetrak Brake Power Booster
Bicyclist: October 1997Sidetrak's ever-growing line of devices to make your cycling experience better now includes a device that allows you to use parallelpull-type brakes (commonly referred to as V-brakes) with road levers. The brake power booster, or BPB, uses no cable stops and can fit anywhere between the brake and the lever. According to Sidetrak, the BPB is fabricated from 6061 aluminum and weighs only 30 grams. A unit retails for $40 and is available in blue, red or black anodized finishes.
Sidetrak Brake Power Booster Mountain Biking: September 1997 If you don't think your brakes have enough power, you may want to check out the Brake Power Booster Cable-Travel Expanding Device from Comtek Design. According to the company, the BPB is designed to work with conventional canti-brakes, sidepulls, and even linear-pull cantis like Shimano V-brakes.The BPB works on the simple principle of multiplying the leverage exerted by the brake lever where the brake cable is attached to its pivot arm. A cable running from thebrake is hooked to the top of the BPB's arm. Squeezing the brake lever moves the arm which pulls the brake cable it's attached to at a greater leverage.
Two leverage positions are provided on the pivot arm; all necessary hardware is included, except cables, and no mounting is required.Weighing 30 grams, the Brake Power Booster is made of 6061 alloy and comes in anodized black or silver. Suggested Retal Price is $36.00.
Sidetrak Brake Power Booster
Mountain Biker: September 1997
One problem you might run into as you stroll into your local bike shop and try to buy "just a set of front and rear direct-pull break," is the costly reality that in order to get proper operation, you'll need to purchase brake levers as well. This can painfully double your expected cost of buying stoppers. Seattle-based Sidetrak offers a cost-effective solution to this problem with the innovative $39.95 Brake Power Booster (BPB). This device will effectively allow older-style brake levers to be used with direct-pull brakes. The booster is difficult to install, but once adjusted, performs its job well. We mated older-style short-pull canti levers to a new pair of long-pull Shimano Deore XT V-brakes. The mechanical advantage gained gave our stoppers enough cable pull to function properly, but braking feel is too distant for our tastes and it's just adding extra weight, considering a new set of XT levers only costs $75. Sidetrak, (206)575-0335
Mold Fighter
Mountain Bike Action: August 1997
This is a must for Camelbak users. After each and every ride, empty the contents of the bag, rinse with cool water (if you use energy drinks), remove the bite valve and insert the Hang Dry before storing. The Hang Dry forces the bag open so it will completely air-dry without forming strange, moldy substances. If you have noticed strange smells or oddly colored water coming from your Camelbak, you have a moldy bag. Play it safe; buy a Hand Dry Aerator. The going price is $10.00.
MBA rating: Two thumbs up
| SHIFT BOOSTER Mountain Bike Action: August 1997 Before Shimano upgraded the rate of the springs used on its '97 derailleurs, Sidetrak Power Springs sold like hot cakes. So if you are an owner of a '91 to '96 bike equipped with a Shimano Light-Action derailleur and twist shifter, you will discover, as we have, that replacing the stock Shimano parallelogram spring with the stouter Power Spring will improve derailleur centering and cable drag problems.m While installing the spring is extremely easy, it still takes first-timers a half-hour to wade through the instructions and complete the replacement. The going price is $7. MBA rating: Thumbs up. |
Sidetrak HangDry
OUTSIDE: June 1997
AS POPULAR AS THE NEW-STYLE DRINKING BLADDERS are among thirsty runners, bikers, and skiers,they might be even more favored by microbes. The interiors of such hydration systems are notoriously difficult to dry, and so they are often left damp postouting, perfect for spawning all mannger of mold, mildew, bacteria, even - echh - mosquito larvae. Enter the Hang Dry from Sidetrak (206)575-0335. It's a clever hanger with a football-shaped frame of FDA-approved polyethylene; alip it into the pouch and it expands to allow ventilation, and thus drying, between jaunts. More good news: It costs less than $10. Please email bike@sidetrak.com for information. Thank you!!
Sidetrak ToolRaps Bicycle Guide: April 1997 Sidetrak ToolRapsA BIG METAL BOX MAY BE fine for carpenters or plumbers to stash their tools in, but cyclists have different needs. We use lots of small, fiddly tools, all of which become hopelessly disorganized and hard to find in the wide open expanses of a typical toolbox. Sidetrak's ToolRaps are the perfect solution to this bicycle tool storage problem. The company makes an assortment of pocketed, heavy-duty nylon satchels, which unroll or unzip to reveal a plethora of different size pockets and compartments, providing a nest for almost any bike hand tool (short of framebuilding equipment). The $30 Techno Bag features 14 pocklets, including a zippered mesh compartment - it;s my pick for packing essential tools for airplane trips with my bike. The $46 Track Bag has a more minimal nine pockets (reflecting the more minimal machine that a track bike is), plus straps to hold spare cogs and chainrings. Sidetrak's big-daddy model is the ToolRap Pro, a massive 29-by-44-inchi portable workshop that incorporates 52 pockets in various sizes and shapes. The Pro model even includes hooks for permanent wall mounting or for hanging the 'Rap from a car's rain gutter at a race. But please, don't try to fit a Sawzall or a pipe wrench in your ToolRap. Contact Sidetrak at @206)575-0335, fax (206)575-0631, www.sidetrak.com, bike@sidetrak.com. Sidetrak Ignite Tights BICYCLE GUIDE: December 1996 When there is a chill in the air, my stated preference for bibbed garments becomes a downright requirement. Bib shorts and tights may not offer much torso coverage, but I find the extra layerhelpful, not to mention the increased comfort I get from not having to rearrange my shorts and tights (if they are not bib, you'll have to stop sooner or later to pull one of them up). The Ignite tights from Sidetrak ($99.95) have all the features I like to see in tights intended for winter use. At the bottom of the tights are stirrups to make sure you don't wind up with flesh exposed above your booties.
The front four panels of these tights are made from neoprene. Early season rides in western Massachusetts are sandy, wet and cold affairs. I wish I'd had a pair of these while I was living in Northampton. Contact Sidetrak at (206)575-0335, bike@sidetrak.com.
Sidetrak Hang Dry Bladder Aerator
BICYCLE GUIDE: September 1996
HERE IS MY DEEPEST, DARKEST secret: I use a CamelBak on the road. I know you're appalled - I can hear the gasps from here. People always ask me why I use one on the road, to which I reply: It works. I don't have to think about hydrating, it carries more, you never lose it, it stays colder. The list goes on. But the big downside of using a backpack system is the care and feeding of the bladder (and we think Joe looks like Quasimodo - Ed.). It tends to get all scummy and nasty, kind of like those Sea Monkey colonies after two weeks. It's especially bad if you use energy drinks, which seem to feed in-the-bladder bacteria the way they feed me on a ride. I tried tons of ways to clean the bladder and get it to dry with no effect. What I needed was a way to spread the walls of the bladder so they'd dry.
Enter Sidetrak's Hang Dry. It's a really simple design, but sometimes that's the best. The $10 Hang Dry is simply two loops of polypropylene tubing that you snap together so it looks like the skeleton of a really small dirigible. Insert it into your sport bladder after each use and it holds the walls apart so the bladder can dry. My only complaint is that the hook end hangs the bladder right side up, so all the water collects at the bottom. Remedy this by hanging it upside down by the tube. For more information, contact Sidetrak at 206-575-0335, bike@sidetrak.com .
High Performance Products
Sport Cycling Special: Volume 2Sidetrak Butt Buddy: the easy answer to "rear" suspension. Ideal for casual riders, touring riders, tandem stokers or anybody wanting less lower back impact. Help your butt remain your buddy! $40
23 FREAKS
Mountain BIKE: December 1995Sidetrak: Shoji Onozawa's the Inspector Gadget of off-roading. We've celebrated him in these pages before, but it bears repeating here: anybody who can sell you the kitchen sink-and fill it with goofy bike parts-in a world filled with knock-offs and rip-offs is worthy.WHISTLER
Mountain BIKING: November 1995Shoji Onozawa shows his downhill form, which definitely benefits from the IRD trailing link fork with anti-dive. The fork features a "Critically Damped Elastomer (CDE)" system which mimics air-oil damping with elastomers. We got a chance to try out the forks for ourselves on once ride. Like most linkage forks, they took big hits, especially direct frontal hits, exceptionally well. It also performed well on fast fire road descents.
Beating Around...
Mountain BIKE ACTION: December 1994Money belt: Tired of your fanny pack bouncing bruises on your hip bones? Bruise no more. The ToolRap QuickBelt fits tightly around your waist like a money belt. It doesn't bounce, bulge or tug. It has five pockets, straps for carrying pumps or tubes and weighs 4.5 oz. It's available from Sidetrak at (206)575-0335. It is only available in black. Cool huh?
GEARHEAD Filling a Niche
bike MAGAZINE Sidetrak Inc. carries no stems, no seatposts that you don't need, just quirky, bad-ass stuff that's unavailable elsewhere, all designed by a rider who quit Suntour before the fall and admits to "having too much fun." ToolRap, Shoji Onozawa's first product line, draws on his admirable analretentiveness, with a line of rollable, cordura nylon tool carries that feature separate pockets so each piece is easy to locate and doesn't rattle against its neighbor. The original seatpost-mount ToolRap ($20), was quickly followed by the smaller Bare Minimum version ($15) that has hung from my tandem's top tube for the past year. Despite its name, the Bare Minimum is spacious enough to hold allen and crescent wrenches, chain and cassette tools, a patch kit, spare links and bolts, plus an extra pair of toe straps and a butyl tube-everything required to keep my long bike rolling in the backcountry, in one compact, nounceless bundle. There's also a roll-up Spoke Bag for wheelbuilders ($19.95) and a 14-pocket shop apron with a unique, shoulder-saving suspender system for harried mechanics (also $19.95).Sidetrak's sewing connections, plus Onozawa's penchant for winter riding on snow-covered trails ("Winter is my slowest time, it's almost the only time I get to ride a lot") inevitably led to garments equally inspired by his personal needs. Stretchy Ignite neoprene-fron nylon tights ($89.95, bib tights, $10 more) are simply the best winter-weight leggings I've tried for active rides. Their thick, slush-proof neoprene front eliminates windchill and warms the knees, while the thinner Lycra back breathes away excess heat and moisture. I've found the line's Velcro-closure, SPD-holed neoprene booties ($29.95) warm enough for the wind-chill of the nippiest Colorado mornings.
Sidetrak carries harwarre, too. The Butt Buddy ($59.95) softens the ride of hardtail bikes without the higher investment of a suspension seatpost. The 285 gram, spring steel and elastomer device clamps between any saddle and seatpost, adding a bit of shock absorption that, while no match for the tush cush of a full-suspension sled, takes the edge off washboard and ripple bumps.
Onozawa's most recent inspiration, the ExcessAccess ($20.00) showed up just as I was wondering how to fit dual-beam lights and the lever of a hydraulic brake onto a narrow handlebar. His simple solution uses a pair of carbon steel rails to extend an additional short section of handlebar stock several inches ahead of the clutter, making room for lights, computers, or even Sidetrak's Inclinometer ($11.95) a 110-gram gauge that reads out the bike's tilt in angle and percent of grade just in case searing lungs and legs aren't enough climbing feedback.
There's other stuff as well: cool portable truing stands, several convenient map carriers, or my favorite, the Hind-Site 20/20 rearviewmirror (you guessed it, $20.00). This pencil erasaer-sized mirror adheres to the inside surface of various-style eyewear lenses, providing a decent rearward view while remaining invisible to others, and out of your line of sight when you don't glance at it. - J.K.
Got a LUMP??
This cool little bag will help you to organize your staff along with our Forest Hump. For more information, please check our on-line catalog.
What is this!!??
It's a combination tool kit!!
U.S. Patent No. 5213146
COOL LINKS
Here are links to cool bike sites!!
Mountain Bike Magazine
Bike Guide (in German)
CyclingNet
Sports Etc
Bicycle Guide
Dirt Rag
GearHead
Outside
Triathlete
VeloNews
Winning
USA Cycling
Tandem Magazine
Mountain Bike Action
Spessarthoppers Lohr
Bianchi
Cannondale
Diamondback
Fisher
Grip Shift
GT Bicycles
Haro
Ibis Cycles
KHS Inc.
Raleigh USA
Rock Shox
RST USA
Schwinn
Softride
Specialized
Trek
VooDoo Bicycles
Wheeler USA
White Brothers
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Our Corporate Dog, BANDIT.
He is a 3-year old greyhound that changes our work environment.
Thank you, Bandit.
BILINGUAL WEB SITE!!
You can read Japanese on your computer? Cool! Click here to jump to our site in Japanese. There, we have special features such as Shoji's essays and information on Seattle.
Wanna stop by?
We are located at:
774 Industry Drive
Seattle WA 98188-3408
Please note that we are not a retail store. Look for building #16 on your left after you turn into Industry Drive.
Tel: (206)575-0335
Please send questions/comments to: bike@sidetrak.com
