2019-05-01_Mountain_Bike_Rider

96 mbrm ay 2 019

longtermers

therider
laurabailey
PositionCycling
partnerships
manager
MostlyridesSurrey
HillsandQECP
Height5ft9in
Weight75kg

thebike
nCapable150mm-
traveltrailbike
nTop-of-the-range
Altitudebuildwith
analloyframe
nRollingon
27.5inwheelswith
2.5inWideTrail
Maxxistyres
nRide9 System
offersa mind-
bendingarray
ofgeometry
andsuspension
adjustment

MONTH5:Laurafacesherendurobaptismoffireinunder

six months and is looking for ways to lighten her load

laura’s rocky

mountain

altitude alloy 50

£3,199.99 / 27.5in / bikes.com

P

rojectEWS80is well

underway.Andwith

lessthansixmonths

untiltheRocky

Mountaingoesback

toitsspiritualhomeforrace

day,I’mputtingmyselfand

thebikethroughourpacesto

makesurewe’rereadyforthis

bigadventure.

Whichhasledmetothinking

a lotaboutweight.Bothmine

andthebike’s.I’mona planto

losesomeexcesspoundsto

maketheclimbinginWhistler

a biteasier.AndI’vestarted

assessingwhetherI canshed

somepoundsonthebiketoo.

Weighinginat14kg,theRocky

isn’tanoverlylightbike.Butlet’s

notbetootough,though,it

is analloyframeafterall,andis comparable

toitspeers—suchastheTBOTYcontendersonp58.

Probablythebestplacetodroptheweightis

withthewheels,asis sooftenthecasewhen a

bikeis builttoa competitivepricepoint.

TheShimanoSLXhubsandSunDuroc

rimscreatea solidbutheavywheelset.

There’salsosomeweighttobe

savedwiththeNXEaglecassette

byswitchingtoGX,onlypossibleif I

doswitchthewheelsasthecurrent

freehub body is not compatible with

SRAMGXEaglecassettesorabove,astheyalluse

anXDdriver-body.

Evenif webothmanagetoshedsomeweight,the

slackseatangleandshortchainstaysstillcombine

toproducesomefrontwheelliftonthesteeper

climbs.Theflip-sideofthislessthanoptimum

climbinggeometryis thatwhenyouhit

tight,twistytrailsonthedescents,the

bikeeatsupcornerswithitsplayfuland

livelyride.It’sgiveandtake,sofingers

crossedtheraceorganiserswillbe

kindtousandI’llbetakinginthe views

from the chairlift in Whistler.

whyit’shere

IsRIDE9 ideal

forlearning

aboutgeoand

suspension?

sPeciFication

FrameAlloy,

150mmtravel

ShockFoxFloat

DPSEVOL

ForkFox 36 Float

PerformanceEVOL

Grip,160mmtravel

WheelsShimano

SLXboosthubs,Sun

Duroc 35 rims,Maxxis

MinionDHF/Maxxis

AggressorWTEXO

27.5x2.5intyres

DrivetrainSRAM

Stylo6kEagle34t

chainset,SRAMGX

r-mechandNXshifter

BrakesShimanoSLX,

180mm

ComponentsRocky

Mountain780mmAM

bar,RockyMountain

35AMstem,Race

FaceTurbineR

seatpost,WTBVolt

Racesaddle

SizesXS,S,M,L, XL

Weight14kg

(30. 8 6lb)

Ge ome t r y

SizetestedL

Headangle65°

Seatangle74°

BBdrop14mm

Chainstay426mm

Frontcentre800mm

Wheelbase1,206mm

Downtube710mm

Toptube628mm

Reach 452mm

Awheelswapmaybe

onthecardsasLaura

looks for weight savings