Bike Hugger@Interbike

Flickr'ing Interbike

Here's a quick circuit of the Flickrverse, checking out everybody's Interbike pics.

Of course, what everybody's looking for at Interbike is the new stuff, and there were a number of new ideas for bikes on display:

The Moots Snoots is a one-off ultramarathon snow bike (left) -- it's got super-wide tires, racks, and even built-in stove fuel storage (look for the bosses on the fork tubes). Here's everything you need to know from the guy who commissioned the Snoots.

We weren't the only ones who loved Surly's new “Big Dummy,” the Xtracycle-capable long bike. Here's a detail of the latest Surly and here's another.

Somehow I get the feeling that, well, maybe the whole pedal-forward thing is going too far...

Here's ANT's Shimano Alfine contest bike with it's signature sunburst rack.

Mobiky showed their “Genius” (at right), a folding city bike sort of like the Sinclair A-Bike, but with wheels bigger than a roller skate.

PV Glider is a pedal-less “bike” made out of PVC pipe that's intended to help kids learn to ride (more at PVGlider.com). This is an interesting evolution of what many parents do, taking the pedals off a small frame so kids can scoot around, getting their balance down pat before they have to worry about pedaling.

The 3G Stepper is reminiscent of a NordicTrac on wheels. I have a feeling this is a question nobody's really asked.

There were actually two companies with “Coasting” bikes: Trek and Raleigh; here's Raleigh's take on the Shimano freehub system.

Felt's Royal Flush (left) splits the difference between beach bike and cruiser.

BMC brings their carbon fiber frames to cyclocross.

Here are maybe as many Brooks saddles as you'll ever see in one place.

Surly's “Fixxer” is a body to replace your Shimano freehub, converting the wheel to fixed-gear.

One of our favorite bikes, year after year, is Bianchi's Milano, a cool and practical way to get around town.

Finally, I found a number of pictures of cycling royalty: new US champion George Hincapie, former world champion Mario Cipollini, 2006 Tour prologue and final stage winner Thor Hushovd, greatest rider of bicycles ever Eddy Merckx, and Italian master framebuilder Ernesto Colnago.

Finally, there was at least one celebrity frame: Robbie McEwen's Ridley.

Shoe Check at the Show

These two just stopped right in the middle of the show floor to check out each other's shoes.

Funniest part was that underneath their cool shoes were cycling socks!

The Aura of Limar Girl

I'd heard that all who go to Interbike seek out Limar Helmets Girl and when I found her, her aura was so strong it disrupted my cameras auto-focus beam, and resulted in this blurry photo.

Emma was nice enough to sign a poster for me and thousands of other attendees.

Surly Xtracycle confirmed!

Byron sends along this photo from the floor of Interbike, which officially starts today. I'm sure we'll have more details when the show is open and the bike isn't locked down, but the long and short of it is: Surly is launching the first production all-in-one Xtracycle.

That means folks who love the idea of an Xtracycle will have one less obstacle to hurdle: No more kit-building. Also, I can't see any reason the StokeMonkey wouldn't work.

Questions for our eyes and ears in Vegas: Is Surly selling this as a frame or a bike? What are they calling it? What's the availability?

I'm crossposting this to both Bike Hugger and our special Interbike coverage site. Most of our Interbike content will be at the Interbike site, so if you dig this, check there.