The Ultimate Noob's Guide to Outdoor Demo at Interbike 11

sspomer

9/10/2015 7:17am

The Outdoor Demo at Interbike is a unique experience in the Nevada desert near Boulder City. 30-minutes from the Las Vegas strip, Bootleg Canyon, known for its incredibly rocky and harsh terrain, is where mountain biking's retail contingent come to try out the latest and greatest products in our sport. Anything from bikes to socks can be tested in the hellish September heat, and the lure of being able to ride a $10,000 bike, free of charge for an hour, is the perfect excuse to spend $1000 on a trip to Sin City for a few days. For those of you who've never made the trip, Vital MTB is here to give you a pictorial outline of what to expect should you decide to finagle your way into the exclusive MTB testing ground of Outdoor Demo.

If you've never been to the Nevada desert, you may think you've landed on the moon. Don't worry, you're still on planet Earth (sort of). You're just at Outdoor Demo.

You can cram yourself into one of the sweaty, chamois-soaked charter buses from Las Vegas or you can drive yourself to Boulder City. If you drive, just remember, parking's a bitch. Once you're out of your gas-guzzling coffin, you'll realize you're in cycling heaven. No sharing the road here...bikes win!

If you thought parking was hard, now you have to pick the bike you want to test first. Decisions, decisions.

If you suffer from paranoia or don't want your face plastered on the internet, wear a disguise for facial cover. The media is everywhere, in human and non-human form. If you're not careful, you'll end up in the one viral video that makes a CNN broadcast.

The hardcore marketing whirling in every direction will make your bike testing decision that much tougher. Do you go with the company harnessing the eco-power of the oppressive desert sun or the company that makes you think you're at an NFL game with their aerial banner circling overhead for 6 hours. Only you know what's best for you, so listen to your heart.

You'll soon throw your moral and ethical dilemmas out the window when your realize your bike testing choice comes down to one, all-important factor. Can the thing do a fucking wheelie or what?!

So you've found the perfect wheelie machine to demo. Now it's time to hit the trail. Before you go out for that 20- to 30-minute adventure, make sure you stock up on survival goods. If you're strategic and thrifty (what self-respecting mountain biker isn't), you shouldn't have to pay for a single bite to eat at Outdoor Demo. Just hit up all the food and drink booths and fill your packs to the max. You're not eating steak and lobster, but you can tell your friends how hooked up you got with free stuff.

Now that you're full of free energy, decide if you want to shuttle up or ride up. If you ride up, it's best to follow the shuttle so you can converse with your lazy friends while showing off your wheelie skills as they get a free ride up.

You've finally hit "dirt" and can now enjoy Boulder City's flowy singletrack with 1297 of your closest friends. LET'S RIP!

Open your mind to the possibilities. You're free from the prison of those pesky conventional wheel sizes, so don't be scared to experiment with new technologies. E-bikes are getting more people onto the trail, which is a good thing, right?

If you have the patience, you may be lucky enough to get aboard one of the game-changing fat bikes at Outdoor Demo. If you don't seize the opportunity while you're at Outdoor Demo, you may never see a fat bike again once you leave. They seem to only exist at trade shows, in Minnesota, Wisconsin and on the internet. Just make sure not to go too fat.

Once you're on the trail, don't hesitate to stop and look around. The desert wildlife is well-camouflaged, but fascinating and there are remnants from hobo days past that are easily stashed into a hydro pack to be later sold at any vintage store for $25-50. The thrift-savvy MTBer would do well to demo an electric cargo bike (like pictured way above) and hoard the historic hillside relics.