Catching Up On Interbike – Expo 2009
Las Vegas, NV - If Outdoor Demo Days is the "heart" of Interbike, then the Expo is its dolled up exterior that draws your attention like a shiny new penny.
In my third year of attending the annual bicycle trade show, it would be easy to presume that I might have an inkling as to how to cover it. But in truth, the task is just as complex as ever. While my past experiences have made the expansiveness of the show less daunting, I am still like that child who has just discovered, and then been let loose, in his first toy store. There is always something new to see, someone new to meet, and something new to experience. In that respect, Las Vegas is perhaps the perfect playground to hold the event.
This year's expo was no less flashy and was just as well attended as in years past. However, several of the larger bicycle manufacturers were noticeably absent from the showroom floor; no doubt a by-product of the sagging economy.
Component maker, SRAM, in contrast, was well represented at the show. As a former Chicagoan, I could not help but revel in the sheer size of their booth and the bevy of onlookers in it. Despite what seemed to be a fairly cornered components market, SRAM has slowly established itself as one of the industry's leaders. Their components are seemingly as ubiquitous as Campagnolo's and Shimano's in the professional peloton these days. And with the recent news that the Chicago based company has signed on as the component sponsor of Lance Armstrong's Team RadioShack, it can be argued that SRAM is now the foremost component manufacturer in the sport.
It certainly is a far cry from their Pentasport 5-speed hub and their original downtown office/factory, but it just goes to show how far "narrow minded yet forward thinking" can take you.
MORE: Code Red - Team TIBCO's Amber Rais reviews SRAM's Red components for the Triple Crankset
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