Put on the Brakes

MiniBrakeYounger riders can’t always be seen in traffic and they might not always see what is coming at them. Even on bike paths parents often need to tell their children to slow down or stop. Now the MiniBrake, which was designed by a team of inventors in Hungry puts the brakes on the kid’s bike.

This is an easy to attach braking unit that is being developed through an Indiegogo funding campaign, and the idea is that it lets parents control the brakes and stop a child’s bike remotely. It can also be automatically activated should a child be more than 50 meters away. Continue reading Put on the Brakes

Up a Creek With a Stand-Up Paddle

StandUp-SisterIf you’re heading to the water you should do so with Aqua-Bound line of stand-up paddles from Branches. The new stand-up paddles include “The Spark,” for beginners, “The Freedom,” for intermediate paddleboarders, and “The Challenge,” for more seasoned paddlers.

This offshoot of the 1960s surfing culture in Hawaii has a true Polynesian ancestry, but only arrived in California in 2004. The sport has since migrated throughout the United States, including to inland lakes and rivers, and Branches is finding that it is increasingly be paddled by women of all ages.

With this in mind Aqua-Bound has created StandUp Sisters to inspire and support women who don’t want to be up a creek (river, or on any body of water) without a (Standup) paddle! Continue reading Up a Creek With a Stand-Up Paddle

Ion2 Debut

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You need to keep an eye on the ball they say, but what about the club? Now you can watch the ball while technology watches your swing.

Full Swing Golf has released its new Ion2 Vision Technology, which keeps an eye on the club head and ball flight behavior. This all-new camera-based technology can thus display the vital information to any golfer and help improve the swing.

Ion2 Vision Technology gives you clubhead speed, clubface angle, club path information and extensive ball spin data, with an intuitive on-screen illustration of your club, so you can better understand your swing, your equipment choices and shot decisions. And with accurate and realistic ball flight accuracy, Ion2 shows your ball path shaped exactly as if it were outdoors.

Full Swing Golf Official Website

These Shorts Shine

ChromeChrome Industries has introduced a new line of cycling shorts for the season. The Spring Riding Kit includes the slimmer Folsom urban cycling short, which is made from water-resistant Everest four-way stretch fabric with a seamless gusseted double-layer crotch for durability and includes a U-lock holster. Reinforced flat-felled seams prevent chaffing, and floating rear pockets with flat seam openings provide comfort for long stints in the saddle.

The shorts retail for around $120, and Chrome’s Spring Riding Kit also includes the 90 percent Merino wool Mason Riding Jersey ($70), De Haro Windbreaker ($95), Chuey Cycling Cap ($30), Cardiel ORP pack ($110), Kursk Pro SPD shoe ($$95) and Merino Ankle Socks ($12).

Chrome Industries Official Website

Foot Armour

ApolloApollo is considered a complex Olympian deity – and was a god of light and the sun, truth and prophecy, healing, plague, music, poetry, and more. He’s not as swift as Hermes/Mercury but apparently Under Armour still thought Apollo the worthy namesake of its new Speedform Apollo running shoes.

These feature a seamless heel cup, which naturally cradles the shoe to the foot and provides superior support without heel discomfort. Ultrasonic seams throughout the shoe provide just the right fit while form-fitting upper is breathable to let heat escape. The lightweight midsole also helps provide shock absorption without added bulk. It might have wearers feeling like the shoe is one of poetry in motion.

Under Armour Speedform Official Website

Microsoft Looks Smart

MicrosoftMicrosoft is reportedly eyeing the wearables market and could be developing a smartwatch aimed at fitness. A newly release Microsoft patent shows what the watch could look like and potentially give a hint at its features. It can reportedly measure heart rate, biometric pressure, calories burned and more.

While this isn’t an official announcement it has long been rumored that this is a market Microsoft has been watching.

[Via Patent Bolt: Microsoft Reveals Future Smartwatch & Dock in new Patent]

Drink Your Meal

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Move over Kryptonite – here comes Ambronite, the world’s first “real food” super meal that reportedly fulfills daily nutrition recommendations in two minutes or less. It meets the daily recommendations for energy, protein, vitamins and micronutrients, and is also packed with natural phytonutrients, antioxidants and healthy fatty acids.

Its developers are now looking for funding via Indiegogo and recently launched a crowd funding campaign.

Ambronite – Real Food Drinkable Supermeal Indiegogo Site

Covert’d Updated

CovertNike Golf has introduced the new VRS Covert 2.0 Matte Black Edition Driver for the 2014 golf season. The company is back in black – a color traditionally associated with power, strength and sophistication.

“The Covert 2.0 Matte Black Edition driver offers a unique, limited-edition design combined with Nike’s high speed cavity back technology,” said Rob Arluna, Nike Golf Global Golf Club business director. “The black matte finish on the head provides a sleek, modern aesthetic and eliminates glare. The black grip and shaft give the driver a stealth, covert look.”

The Covert 2.0 Matte Black Edition driver features Fly-Brace technology that ties the sole to the crown, stiffening the rear portion of the club and transferring more energy to the face at impact, while the High-Speed Cavity Back technology can redistribute the weight to the heel and toe allowing for increased distance and more stability across the face of the driver.

The new driver also boasts two additional proprietary technologies from Nike Golf including a larger, re-engineered NexCOR face for increased ball speed and distance; and FlexLoft adjustability, which allows athletes to easily customize loft and face angle positions for 15 drivers in one.

Nike Golf Official Website

Never Too Early to Race

StriderStrider, the maker of child-sized balance bikes, is hosting a new national racing series geared towards toddlers. This will include a full season of races, and will culminate in a “World Championship” race in September! There will be categories for 2, 3, 4 and 5-year olds.

Races will begin on May 10 in California and continue through August. In September races can go for the big title at the Strider World Championship in Rapid City, South Dakota.

Strider World Championship Official Website
[Via GearJunkie: Toddlers Compete On Push-Bikes… Strider Launches ‘National Championship’ Series]

NOAH Where to Go

NOAHNOAH the movie didn’t exactly make a splash at the box office, but NOAH the bike could be the next big thing. NOAH – or Normally Operated Articulated Hybrid suspension system – made its debut at the recent Bespoked U.K. Handmade Bicycle Show in London. It was developed by U.K.-based COFA Engineering.

This is a unique full-suspension system for a bicycle and instead of utilizing the usual rear and shock and front suspension fork it offers two midships-mounted rear shocks. In its current form it provides 230 mm of front travel so it can more than a mere bump in the road.

The bike does weigh in at 40 pounds, so it isn’t exactly light. However, in its current form it is still a proof-of-concept bike not a production model. If the designers can get it to lose some weight they could completely change the traditional dual suspension mountain bike. Video after the jump

Color of Controversy

Marco-PantaniThis week the Giro d’Italia kicks off in Northern Ireland and begins surprisingly on a Friday – not a Saturday. The biggest controversy however could be off the course as Rapha has launched a memorial jersey in honor of Marco Pantani. While a percentage of each jersey will go to the Pantani Foundation, which encourages troubled teens to get into cycling, the choice of jersey still remains a bold choice – given that Pantani was disqualified from the 1999 Italian classic for testing positive for performance enhancing drugs.

However, some are seeing that Pantani still brought a certain level of panache to the sport, and through the foundation could perhaps some youngsters to steer clear of trouble.

[Via BikeRadar: Commemorative Rapha Pantani Jersey launched]

Rip and Curl

Rip-CurlWhether you hit the waves a few times a year or chase the endless summer looking for the big one, the Rip Curl Search GPS Surf Watch will let you track how many waves you rode, your top speed and even your location. This waterproof watch features built-in GPS and motion sensors that will allow you to get real time data, and back on the beach you can sync it with your mobile phone.

Rip Curl Official Website

CYLO Ready to Go

CYLOCYLO has rolled out what it claims to be the “Ultimate Urban Bicycle,” and it could live up to the claim with its lightweight yet durable 6061 aluminum frame, dynamo hub that powers the front and rear integrated lights and Gates Carbon Belt Drive with 3-speed Shimano Nexus hub. This bike was designed by ARRO.studio in Paris, but will be manufactured and assembled in Portland, Oregon.

CYLO Official Website