Trek cranked up their public relations machine back in August 2008 regarding the new (belt-drive) 2009 Trek District and Soho.

Since then it's been a series of delays in getting the bikes to their dealers. The latest shipping date is July 2009.

What gives with bringing out a new bike and waiting one year to actually get the product onto the dealers floor?

Does anybody know what's going on behind the scenes? Are they having production problems? How are you unable to meet the demand for a $1000 bike during the Great Recession?

There was an issue with the belt drive themselves. Last I heard, the bikes were completed but there was an issue with the belt itself laterally derailling from the cogs. Rather than ship and solve warranty issues and spoil the system, it is being delayed. Given that Trek's model years are August-July, I would expect to see it rebranded as a 2010 model and not to be released until August as such.

This is not from an official source, but I'll say "someone familiar with the subject"

The Trek store in Toronto told me about 1 week ago they expected delivery mid-April. However maybe they've been lied to by Trek?

I spoke to the local Trek dealer the other day and he brought this up, to his knowledge they simply didn't make enough bikes to meet demand, he has one on order and may not get it until July.

Do we really need belt-driven bikes? With components that are completely incompatible with a host of standard components?

Yes. I dislike chain maintenance and appreciate drivetrain choices.

Your avatar vaguely resembles the actor who played Dresden in "the Dresden files".

oh and I too am interested in these kevlar belt driven bicycles

I had to look that up. Never heard of it. I guess you're talking about Paul Blackthorne. Yes, I see the resemblance. I've also been told I look like Christopher Meloni. I now have an enormous mustache, so I really ought to post a recent picture.

OK, I'm a luddite, and I should open my mind. I'll take a look at the belt drive when it comes out. I'm not convinced there's a problem that it solves, but I could be wrong.

As I understand it, the chain is already very efficient. It is dirty, though, and some people forget to oil it adequately. The belt could be cleaner and lighter.

Hey noglider, the 'oil the chain' debate is an old and contentious one. I see from your signature that you also hit on another great controversy: tire inflation (in this case, how much to inflate your tires). You have these two listed as bike maintenance fundamentals. Just thought it was funny and wanted to point it out.

I'm aware of the chain-oiling controversy but not the tire-inflation one. And yes, I'm aware of what my signature says. I made it recently.

My take on chain oiling is that adding oil and wiping with a rag is better than doing nothing. I know some feel that it rubs the grit into the chain, but I can feel when a chain feels friction free, and oiling-and-wiping doesn't seem to do bad things to my chain.

"Trek dealer" isn't the same as "Trek" but I doubt they lied to you intentionally. I still have an old pricing sheet that said "shipping - November" for both bikes but it has been pushed back every other month. I've seen Jan 15, feb 28, apr 30, and the current backorder date is July.

Oh ****! you DO! he he

I recently discovered the joy of a full coverage chain case+internal hub gears and I ain't looking back. This thing is gonna use IHG, right? If so, I don't see any advantage to using a conventional chain with a full coverage gear case.

Apart from maybe, availability since gear cases are even rarer in NA.