34 Bikes of the New Zealand National Downhill Series

Jan 14, 2017
by Cameron Mackenzie  



Round two of the New Zealand National Downhill series seemed like the perfect opportunity to catch up with the riders and see what many of them are throwing a leg over for the 2017 season. With Napier being such a pedally course, it was of little surprise to see a few sporting the trail bikes this weekend.



NZ National DH 2017
Mike Evans and his Zerode G2.


NZ National DH 2017
Tyler Smith and his GT Fury.


NZ National DH 2017
Finn Parsons and his Banshee Legend.


NZ National DH 2017
Patrick Hale and his Specialized Demo 8.


NZ National DH 2017
Ashley Bond and her Commencal Supreme DH V4.


NZ National DH 2017
Anton Weatherly and his Intense M16c.


NZ National DH 2017
Young Robert Ennor and his Mondraker Summun


NZ National DH 2017
Isaac Ewen and his Lapierre DH527.


NZ National DH 2017
Louis Hamilton and his Commencal Supreme DH V4


NZ National DH 2017
Sam Robbie and his Wide Open Factory Team Spec Intense M16c. Built up with a Deity Cockpit, a Shimano Saint groupset and Chris King on Stans Flow MK3 wheels.


NZ National DH 2017
Liam Jackson and his YT Tues.


NZ National DH 2017
James Mcdermid and his Devinci Wilson.


Cole Lucas NZ National DH 2017
Cole Lucas and his Wide Open Factory Team Spec Intense M16c.


NZ National DH 2017
Daniel Cobb and his tricked out Yeti SB6c with a Push Industries shock.


NZ National DH 2017
Brendan Regan + DH family and his Scott Gambler.


NZ National DH 2017
Guy Johnston and his Transition TR500.


NZ National DH 2017
Peter Bethell and his 2017 Scott Gambler.


NZ National DH 2017
Blake Ross and his out of the box build Pivot Phoenix.


NZ National DH 2017
Keegan Wright and his custom Giant Glory.


NZ National DH 2017
Alex Kennett and his stealthy Devinci Wilson.


NZ National DH 2017
Shania Rawson and her Devinci Wilson.


NZ National DH 2017
Dane Nimmo and his Devinci Wilson.


NZ National DH 2017
Lloyd Jenks and his Custom S-Works Demo.


NZ National DH 2017
Logan Jensen and his Santa Cruz V10.


NZ National DH 2017
John Richardson and his Pivot Phoenix.


NZ National DH 2017
Leonard Sonntag and his YT Tues.


NZ National DH 2017
Carson Rayner and his Giant Glory.


NZ National DH 2017
Josh Reilly and his GT Sanction.


NZ National DH 2017
James Carley and his Specialized Demo.


NZ National DH 2017
Bradley Sloane and his Cube TwoFifty.


NZ National DH 2017
Jack Humphries and his Santa Cruz V10.


NZ National DH 2017
Watch out for this little shredder, Coming to a DH race course in NZ in about 10 years time!


NZ National DH 2017
Callum Sprosen and his Specialized Demo sporting perfect orange trimming and custom colour kit to match.


NZ National DH 2017
Matt Hunt and his Yeti SB6c.


NZ National DH 2017
What would have been - Connor Hamilton and his Commencal Supreme DH V4. Heal up quickly mate!




Mentions: @cameronmackenzie


Author Info:
cameronmackenzie avatar

Member since Mar 6, 2011
66 articles

113 Comments
  • 190 3
 Yeti, get back in the DH bike game. K,thx.
  • 114 2
 Yeti... for when you kinda want to DH. But only just Kinda...
  • 60 1
 So yeti's Enduro bikes have to double as dh sleds I feel sad for the team to have to show up to a dh race like that. Like the first comment says bring back a full on dh sled Yeti!!!
  • 22 6
 Maybe the engineers that made the bike and the guy riding them know what they can and can't do.
  • 26 1
 I'm just glad any bike companies make DH sleds, it can't be a very profitable line of bikes to manufacture and produce. I could be wrong though.
  • 21 1
 Pretty sure its just a couple of enduro guys giving the DH race a crack.
  • 25 0
 @hetfield1: No, you're spot on. They require the most R&D and make up the smallest % of sales. If a company is approaching it correctly they treat it as a halo project to attract people to the brand. If it holds up and goes fast then it strengthens consumer confidence when considering the company's trail/AM bikes, which is by far the better seller. It's indirect marketing, but in a niche business based on performance you have to convince buyers that it's more than just a pretty face with no trousers.
  • 7 0
 I'd love to see an SB bike scaled up to 8".
  • 3 0
 @dthomp325: I think there's a racer in the pro GRT who did that in 2016. I saw him at Mountain Creek with an SB and a Fox 40 on it. I can't remember his name though
  • 3 0
 @cool3: I think that was Graves.
  • 1 0
 @strikeeagle17: I could be wrong, but I think that's just a SB6c with a dual crown, not a 200mm frame.
  • 2 0
 @dthomp325: @strikeeagle17 Both of you are right, Ian, I believe the character you are thinking of is Shawn Neer, www.yeticycles.com/ambassadors/shawn-neer I saw him 2-3 times this past season running the Dual Crown on a SB6c.
  • 1 0
 @dthomp325: You're right, but that's the closest thing you'll see to a full DH sled. Yeti is focusing on the most popular category(ies) right now: enduro and trail bikes. From a business perspective, I fully understand what they are doing. They don't have the big $$$ to develop DH bikes that won't sell in big figures like Giant or Trek, so they aim to stay on top of their game in the market segments they're best known for and sell the most.
  • 1 0
 @zulki-fly: Yep, you're right. Graves it is. Smile
  • 1 0
 @dthomp325: That's exactly what I was thinking. Even 7" with a DC fork would be mean.
  • 1 0
 @ncrider5: Yes, it was Shawn Neer, that's correct.
  • 46 0
 Kids these days..
  • 7 0
 Daniels getting fuckin roasted
  • 36 2
 Pink bike you should do a "34 sprinter vans of (_________) race." Screw the bikes. And more short shorts.
  • 15 0
 I'm not quite so sure I'd go as far as saying screw the bikes...maybe do both vans and bikes?
  • 1 0
 @wpplayer18: Shawn Neer
  • 25 0
 A banshee bike at a race amazing!
  • 16 0
 Banshee in NZ have one of the biggest local teams, along with Giant and Devinci.
  • 27 2
 Wow, not one single Trek.
  • 5 16
flag wanleggedwinston (Jan 14, 2017 at 13:34) (Below Threshold)
 Looks like a session
  • 44 5
 Us kiwis have taste...
  • 7 2
 @Kiwiplague: not enough to keep 'Specialized' (sic) out!
  • 17 0
 This is fucking awesome! Love seeing so many young guys AND gals getting into DH. DH ain't dead......not by a long shot.
  • 3 44
flag jclnv (Jan 14, 2017 at 14:42) (Below Threshold)
 DH is dead.
  • 5 0
 Who said it was dead? theres new parks opening every year here on the east coast
  • 4 2
 @jclnv: DH will only die if all the courses can be ridden on #endurobikes.
  • 17 1
 Hi Cam, these Commencal bikes are not "Meta V4" (Enduro) but "Supreme DH V4"!
  • 12 0
 Good catch - it's been updated.
  • 13 0
 Only 3 single crowns (not counting the adorable kid with the green push bike), the New Zealand guys know what bikes you need!
  • 3 0
 I thought you were talking about me for a second there haha
  • 13 0
 So many High Rollers and Minions... I think I only saw one Shalwebersrt tyre.
  • 10 0
 Yeah. I make it Maxxis: 22, Schwalbe: 3, Bontrager: 2, Spesh: 1, and Maxxis/Schwalbe: 1
  • 4 0
 @iamamodel: haha someone did count
  • 2 0
 @RedBurn: And I can also report that it was lucky that one person was running a Schwalbe on the front, otherwise, in New Zealand, photobombing would be just as popular as Schwalbe tyres.
  • 16 3
 Matt Hunt would've sounded nicer as Mike Hunt.
  • 7 0
 I actually had a school teacher called Mike Hunt. He only taught primary school funnily enough!
  • 6 0
 Haha, you seen porkies? "Has anybody seen Mike Hunt?"
  • 28 0
 The amount of times iv heard that in my life! Haha. Also to those wondering about the bike choice, I also have a zeroed dh bike but honestly thought that on that particular track I'd be faster on the trail bike, the tracks not that rough, and the steep loose bits were about as steep and loose as what i usually rode on the trail bike anyway. A bit more pressure in the suspensions and tires, a few more clicks compression and rebound and the sb6c was mean.
  • 3 0
 Mike Hunt loves Harry Bush
  • 3 0
 @Rainozeros: Mike Hawk loves it too
  • 10 1
 those of us lucky enough to know Mr Hunt don't bother with word play, we just straight up call him a cunt, most of the time he's a good cunt, but occasionally we just call him a cunt, because calling someone a cunt is funny
  • 12 0
 awesome piece Cam!!!! love it!
  • 6 0
 @loganjensen Thanks for all your support Bro!
  • 3 0
 @cameronmackenzie: hells yeah bro! Top shit!
  • 18 7
 Man Buns, When a dude wants to look like a Girl.
  • 11 4
 Or in transition?...i cant keep up..oh the kids these days.
  • 2 0
 Skinny jeans the slope riders where would complete the look.
  • 6 0
 Trailbikes are pretty competitive on this track, not a lot of flat out steep sections, just all about linking up big jumps and carrying speed across flat skid sites. Super fun track on any bike.
  • 7 0
 5 - count 'em - 5 Marzocchis! Makes my heart pitter pat just a little. Please don't kill the brand!!!
  • 8 1
 Does anyone know if those Yeti's are running 170mm forks?
  • 9 0
 160 on mine I think Daniels is the same
  • 5 0
 I gotta give it up to the kid rocking the green bike. No suspension, brakes by flinstones, wearing cool kit, and probably a damn bit faster than me.
  • 1 0
 And the expression on his face - kid KNOWS he's good..!
  • 6 2
 Gotta love all the smiles, gear, and bikes. The ambulance in the background looks like one very old and hopefully unused Benz.
  • 6 0
 Let's play, count the Stans Flow
  • 4 0
 Count the envy s (easy one ) ... they re intellingent not to pay the price in NZ !!
  • 1 0
 Yeah I thought that too. I thought there'd be more Flite wheels in the mix. But as far as I know they only have one DH rider, Bryn Dickerson, and it doesn't look like he raced.
  • 1 0
 People prefer reliable wheel, and cheap to replace rims. No Bryn this time around, Not sure what his plans are for the rest of NZ Season yet, Hopefully he will show face soon!
  • 6 4
 Does it bother anyone else that people show the chain side of the demo when they could show the exposed shock side?
  • 11 0
 Nope
  • 6 0
 Haha he wanted to show the shock side too! But me and cam told him that's not how it's done so he turned it around.
  • 3 1
 Hi Leonard, Sunday. (Yep, it's a good one)
  • 2 0
 First x bikes of x race of the year! Woop!
  • 1 0
 Is Brook Mac on a GT 29er DH rig for a his race? Can't make it out on his Instagram page.....
  • 1 0
 Nope. Good ol' 27.5
  • 2 1
 Good to see James Carley, keeping a good work life balance of cashies and racing
  • 2 0
 Can't believe no one rides a Maiden
  • 6 0
 Technically you can only do that once..
  • 1 0
 @KeithReeder: Technically, that depends on the definition.

But it made me laugh anyway. Well played!
  • 2 0
 Smart guys rides marzocchi forks
  • 1 0
 Ouch. Alex Kennett and his devinci looks too much like Stevie. I had to do a second look.
  • 9 7
 where are the best dh bikes, "canfield jedi"?
  • 2 0
 Cube TwoFifty? New model?
  • 1 0
 That bike looked like a whole different deal, like a crazy Mashup of a DH sled, enduro rig and slope style bike. Wonder how it rides...
  • 2 0
 Carson Rayner has the right pose. Long live Chain Saw!
  • 2 0
 james carley ftw because of his stihl tanktop
  • 2 0
 Commencal's look good.....
  • 1 0
 Does anyone know how the enduro bikes did in terms of placing in the race?
  • 1 0
 There at least one on the open men, and masters 30+ men podiums.
  • 1 0
 nice photos - feel like I was in the pits.
  • 1 0
 Any info,on the Australian race,or no ?
  • 2 0
 Where is WynTV ???
  • 1 1
 How do these kids afford 6k to 10k bikes? Can't tell me its all sponsors....
  • 2 0
 Work a lot...and sponsors
  • 1 0
 If your not hooked up with sponsors, it's still pretty easy to get a good deal on a bike in nz. Plenty of ways around having to pay retail.
  • 1 0
 Great coverage @cameronmackenzie - woo!
  • 1 0
 didn't see any trek sessions
  • 1 0
 Great pics of a cracker day. Nice work Cam
  • 1 0
 awesome article! you can truly see how happy everyone is just to be there!
  • 9 9
 Who is the fox-clad lady on the photo w brendan regan?
  • 57 3
 She's known as Ms. Youhavenochance.
  • 17 3
 Shes about 15..
  • 10 1
 @jailbait
  • 33 0
 @Lkeenan22: Im actually 17 going on 18 thankyou very much
  • 2 1
 @Lkeenan22: way to be bud...
  • 2 1
 Busted !
  • 2 0
 @Powderface: made my night, thanks bro
  • 1 0
 Well, she's got the right socks!
  • 1 0
 150mm for the win!
  • 2 3
 No dropper posts? Except on the Yetis.
  • 3 0
 this is a DH race
  • 1 2
 That man bun tho, 1st pic lurking behind main subject. Eewww
  • 1 2
 Geeks and freaks
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