Interbike Dispatch: Day 3 quick hits round-up

By Justin Steiner

Royal Racing women’s line

For 2013, Royal Racing is branching out into new territory with technical apparel for women. Two price points of jerseys and shorts will be offered along with a pair of women’s specific gloves.

The Women’s Concept jersey and shorts (below, left) make up the high end of the spectrum, retailing for $60 and $120 respectively. Royal bills the Concept jersey as the perfect do-it-all top, with 4-way stretch fabric and a flattering feminine, semi-fitted cut. Colors are feminine without resorting to pink; your choices are turquoise and black or white and “sangria” red. For those familiar with the Royal clothing line, this shirt is modeled after their Turbulence jersey.

Royal’s Concept short offers a detachable, women’s specific liner inside 4-way stretch outer that’s interspersed with color accented, 2-way stretch mesh to keep things cool and comfortable. These shorts feature similar materials and construction to Royal’s Esquire short, with a women’s fit.

 

Royal’s Cruiser jersey (above, right) offers a three-quarter length sleeve and slightly roomier, though still feminine, cut for $40. Neutral colors, white and black or black and graphite, are accented with subtle green and turquoise highlights. The matching Cruiser shorts are constructed of materials similar to Royal’s Matrix short, utilizing soft twill, 2-way stretch polyester and a rear stretch yolk. Internal waist adjusters allow for fine-tuning of fit. This short includes Royal’s women’s specific liner as well. Retail price will be $90.

Royal’s Tybyn glove will keep lady’s fingers happy ad protected, while coordinating with any of Royal’s women’s offerings for $30.

These women’s pieces weren’t the only news to come of out of the Royal camp, they’re redesigned and bolstered nearly their entire lineup from lightweight DH racing kits, to youth clothing, to lifestyle clothing, and even high quality outerwear in both soft- and hard-shell varieties. Keep an eye on this company; they are going places.

Efficient Velo Tools

I always look forward to swinging by the EVT booth to see what ingenious product they’ll come up with next. This year it’s a fresh take on an old Campy pedal wrench. The Medieval wrench offers 5 positions for its three 15mm openings to ensure you’re always able to align the wrench and cranks for maximum leverage and subsequent safety.

In the same vein, their Knuckle Saver facilitates additional leverage for loosening stubborn pedals that only offer an 8mm female hex interface. Slip this tool in the back of the pedal spindle and slide your Medieval wrench on the wrench flats and crank away—just make sure you’re turning things the correct direction.

Küat

Küat has been brining us some ingenious rack solutions over the years and they’re offering up a few more this year.

The Rüffee fork mount, roof tray will accommodate 9mm, 15mm, and 20mm forks on bikes with wheelbases up to 48” long. They’re also working on a fat bike solution, as those bikes can be a particular pain. An integrated cable lock extends out of the rear of the tray to secure your frame and rear wheel.

The slim design looks aerodynamic and robust—it’ll carry bikes up to 45 lbs. Rack mounts will clamp to all aftermarket rack systems and most OEM rack setups. The Rüffee will retail for $209.

Küat’s skinny basket is a narrow version of the Vagabond rack we saw last year, measuring 23” wide so you can run this basket along with other rooftop accessories. Like the Vagabond, the Skinny offers one fork mount for bike hauling. A three piece design allows you to select between 68” and 82” widths depending your vehicle and needs. The Skinny offers a 160 lbs. load capacity and a locking cable to secure your gear. A universal mounting systems will affix to factory and aftermarket roof racks. Retail price: $389.

Küat’s Dirt Bag fork mounts are now available for 15mm and 20mm thru axles for $17.

We saw Küat’s Bottle Lock last year, but they’ve upped the security ante a bit this year with the Link. A burly 27” chain slips out from inside the bottle-like shape to secure your bike. The Link will retail for $49.