March 27, 2014 (Taipei, Taiwan) – The Taipei International Cycle Show is massive with all segments of the market on display vying for attention as buyers from around the world are on hand looking for the latest trends.

One interesting area that we are seeing develop is the electronic control of bike suspension. LaPierre, owned by Accell (also Raleigh, Diamondback etc.) had the next generation of their proactive electronic E:i suspension system for both front and rear shocks on display. The first front/rear electronic system on the market, the proprietary system to Accell developed in partnership with Rockshox, uses a Relay servo unit that can open and close the valves within the shocks, and go from open to locked in a tenth of a second to automatically control the suspension of the front and rear shocks on the bike for optimal performance.

The system offers four settings controlled by a handlebar-mounted switch and includes a display to show how the system is functioning. It also has a rechargeable battery that connects to the Relay servo unit. About 80% of LaPierre’s MTB bikes are currently equipped with the novel E:i suspension set up that’s already getting rave reviews – more on the new system here.

Magura has upgraded its wireless Elect electronic front shock system to incorporate both the front and rear shocks as planned and unveiled it at the Taipei Show. The rider can manually control the suspension with a control on the handlebars or the Elect system will automatically take appropriate calculations and adjustments. It can sense when the bike is going uphill and stiffen things up or conversely on the descent it will soften the suspension. It even has a free fall measuring method using a 3D acceleration sensor that can tell when a rider is going over a big jump and the rear wheel is lower than the front, the system can tell that you’re jumping, rather than climbing, and adjust the suspension accordingly claims Magura.

On the power meter front the big news is new player Pioneer, yes the same Pioneer that makes electronics and stereo equipment, has decided to get into the bicycle power meter business. The company has introduced a second generation power meter system the SGX-CA500, that measures the force that each leg exerts at 12 different points during the pedal rotation. It’s the first system to provide on-the-bike, real time, left and right pedaling power measurements and analysis. This information is relayed to the handlebar unit that displays the power for each leg as well as the direction of the force applied in real time so the rider can adjust their pedal stroke according. Pioneer’s power system comes mounted on either a Dura Ace or Ultegra crank.

The trend with virtual training continues as well with companies capitalizing on technology to take the drudgery out of indoor riding. The use of Google maps to give the impression of actually riding and steering the bike through real terrain while training is one of the novel ways companies are employing to engage riders.

We also discovered a new group by Campagnolo, the Super Record RS on the Colnago C60. While the group looks similar to the current 11-speed Super Record, the new RS is rumored to have several refinements to it.

The Taipei Show is also a great place to find out about companies who make parts for other companies. While some manufacturers won’t discuss who they make products for, others are willing to share information about what they do and for whom. One such company is Full Tech Composites, and while they had a small booth in the back of the show, they are a very busy company.

They use carbon in all kinds of products and apparently are the largest producer of carbon hockey sticks supplying them to Reebok, CCM, and Sherwood. They also made carbon curling broom handles for the Canadian women’s Olympic gold medal team and currently make all of the carbon soles for all of Specialized’s road and mountain bike shoes. This very busy company is now making wheels as well.

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