Virtual Tradeshow- Interbike 2008- Part Two

As promised a few days ago, here is the second installment of Virtual Tradeshow. So, without further hyperbole or delay... the bikes...

MetroItalia series:

First a brief intro and explanation of the Caffe' Racer bikes- these are flat bar road bikes... of course... built around a road geometry for quicker handling and a more "sporty" feel to them. Where many other city bikes are built like mountain bikes with skinny tires- which is fine- these are made with wider road tires AND road geometry with a longer rear end to accommodate wider tires and racks/ fenders. They are excellent city/ commuting bikes, fun coffee getters and excellent "fitness" bikes for folks who don't want to ride a drop bar road bike or a MTB with knobbies on the road. "Caffe" is the Italian spelling for coffee and the bikes are themed on coffee; solo and doppio referring to single and double shots of espresso. They really are fun to ride- not that I'm biased at all...

Cafee Racer Solo in Crema- 9spd with 105 rear derailleur and an aluminum fork.

Caffe Racer Doppio in Dark Roast (an almost black brown paint)- 10spd yumminess with Ultegra rear derailleur and a carbon fork. The picture does it NO justice at all. Promise...

SoulVille Series:

What can I say about the SoulVille series that I haven't already said or hasn't been said elsewhere by people smarter than me? These bikes have been a runaway hit for us- relatively speaking. Considering the racing history of this brand, it came as a major shock to me when the original SoulVille model released last year at Interbike ended up being our second best selling bike. That really impressed me... so much so that we expanded the series significantly over the past 6 months.


SoulVille/SS- singlespeed/ fixed curved steel yumminess. Stripped of the fenders and given a dark and subtly sinister look, the SS is the black sheep of the SoulVille family (I know how it feels). This might just be the ultimate around town/ pub crawl bike. On top of it... it's a damned fun bike on the dirt too. I mean, 700c and 29" are nearly the same thing. This is one fun, FUN riding bike!


SoulVille 3spd- internally geared with SRAM 3 spd coaster brake hub. It's such a strikingly attractive bike with the pearl white paint... it's almost unfair to other bikes. And yes, the curved steel frame does ride extremely well.


The origin of the species- the SoulVille (7spd)... I had a lot of faith in this bike when we began the design process over a year ago. I believed in it, but I never would have picked it as number two for us... and it would've possibly been #1 if we could've gotten more of them sooner. SRAM 7spd internal gearing with coaster brake and all the style you could ever want or need. The new Mixte version is simply amazing as well- the curved split top tube is very elegant. The new Golden Green color is beautiful and it compliments the Gloss Black very nicely.



SoulVille 10spd- I honestly don't know if there is a bike in our line that received as much attention as this bike. VeloNews mentioned it, Dirt Rag mentioned it, Bicycling mentioned it, Bike Hugger covered it... it was in the Interbike Urban Legend cycling fashion show. My advice, if you want one... order early!

The new SRAM Double Tap flat bar shifters are amazingly smooth and the incredible good looks of the bike mean that you WILL get more attention. Just be prepared; might I recommend cool sunglasses and stylish shoes...

That's it for tonight. Next up with be the gigantic steel series of bikes and the ever-pretty carbon 3VC bikes. So stay tuned for more... ok...

Tim