For those of you not compulsively refreshing the
Soma Store page, here are a few products that you might have missed.
Meet the Soma Brevet. Similar to the
Nitto Randonneur, it features a flared drop and an up-swep top. These are almost as nice as the Nittos, but at a more affordable price. They feature a traditional 25.4 (that's 1 inch in American), but of course you can use a shim to fit 26 and 31.8 stems. These are ideal if you prefer a longer, flatter ramp above the brake levers. They also work great with guidonnet reverse style brake levers. Better yet, they're available in 38-46cm sizes, so no need to worry if they'll fit with your handlebar bag. A second version with a more modern ergo style drop is in the works too.
You asked us for a 26mm version of the
June Bug bars, and at long last here they are. We call them the Portola, named after the neighborhood in San Francisco Rumor has it there's some fun single track around them parts if you know where to look. Anyway, if you didn't know, this is a dirt drop style bar. Made for offroad riding; they'll work best jacked up so the grips are level with the saddle. If you're stem isn't quite up to the task, take a look at the new
Soma High Rider stem options and the new 280mm Nitto Technomic quills stems for those of you running a threaded setup.
(Soma all natural stem enhancement)
In general I like to think I know pretty much all the products we carry, but when I was talking to Rob from Ocean Air Cycles the other day he was singing the praises of the Nitto RM-013 Dirt Drop bars. And I confess, I'd never really looked at them before. From the pictures alone, they don't look all that different from other dirt drop bars on the market, but Rob swears by them. Turns out we have a brand new 31.8 version called the RM-014.
What really sets these apart from other dirt drops is the shape of the 'hook' so to speak. They're shaped more like a traditional road bar but flare out at the tips. This gives you a nice hood position for climbing/cruising along, and a super stable drop grips that puts your wrists at a more comfortable angle for serious trail riding. Give them a looksie. You might fall in love.
If you can recall a while back, we posted pictures of a prototype headlight mount thingie dubbed the 'Wingmann'. Well they're in stock! We've tested them on a few of the bikes that our employees ride to work and found a number of good way to use them.
Of course we intended them to be mounted to the brazed on eyelets that come on the Nitto front racks (they work under the Soma Porteur rack too!), but they can also be mounted to the fork if you want to get the light closer to the ground, or you don't have a front rack. You can attach a Nitto Lamp Holder 3 and have an adjustable perch for a Cat Eye/Planet Bike/Priceton style headlight Here's Adrian's commuter with the Torpedo headlight mounted to the mid blade fork eyelet.
Well, that's all for now! Check back for more new stuff coming in soon!
Evan, The RM013 and RM014, while both dirt drop bars are still pretty different in their shape. The RM014 is much more like the original WTB Dirt drops while the RM013 is what Grant / Bridgestone had spec'ed on the MB-01. The 013 is much more like a traditional road bar with some sweep, but half that of the 014 and a much wider top. I think any one who races cross and or underbikes in general should at least give the RM013 a try. IMO the 013 is a noodle killer, but like saddles and shoes, everyone has a preference.
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