Myles Rockwell Bike Check - Yeti ARC DH bike

Jul 5, 2012 at 0:06

Jul 5, 2012

by Colin Meagher

This bike was on display at the Fort WIlliam round of the World Cup DH circuit and we just had to get Myles to tell us a bit about it. He informed us that this exact bike was at one time his race bike and that it's been all over the world - it's seen time in the trenches of European DH racing, too, including Kaprun. The parts are more or less original, except that he typically raced on a 56T chainring. Learn more about this race machine in the pics below.

Myles Rockwell with a replica re-build of his old Mammoth Mountain Kamikaze DH bike that was on dislpay at Fort William. The front end was a glorified version of the Manitou 1 as it was called the Manitou 2. The travel was an honest 3 of unrestricted non dampened rubber grommet pogo stick bull ride travel. The rubbers would frequently explode into bits and change things mid run. The obvious other attributes are to be honest the direct cross over of cross country parts. We ran 100 the same equipment apart from possibly the wheels but that may be it as the cross country bikes. Ti spindles 23 bars Paper thin Yeti Fro IRC tires. I might ad that at the time I was running 55 to 60 psi in order to make it down the hill without pinching. I am confident that that bike has gone over 60 on dirt at the Kamikaze and Reebok Eliminator.I won 5 000 cash. You Tube Rockwell vs. McRoy I also made my first European appearance on that machine in Kaprun Austria.Three chain rings for all around riding. We fitted a Manitou bumper inside the front derailier as a fix to losing the chain. No back pedaling in those days. Rim brakes with brake boosters for stopping quick ha.

Myles Rockwell stands with a replica re-build of his old Mammoth Mountain Kamikaze DH bike that was on display at Fort William. "The front end was a glorified version of the Manitou #1, as it was called the Manitou #2. The travel was an honest 3" of unrestricted, non dampened, rubber grommet, pogo stick, bull ride travel. The rubbers would frequently explode into bits and change things mid run. The obvious other attributes are, to be honest, the direct cross over of cross country parts. We ran 100% the same equipment apart from possibly the wheels, but that may be it, as the cross country bikes. Ti spindles, 23" bars, Paper thin Yeti Fro IRC tires. I might add that at the time I was running 55 to 60 psi in order to make it down the hill without pinching. I am confident that this bike has gone over 60 on dirt at the Kamikaze and Reebok Eliminator races. I won $5,000 cash - You Tube Rockwell vs. McRoy. I also made my first European appearance on that machine in Kaprun, Austria.Three chain rings for all around riding. We fitted a Manitou bumper inside the front derailier as a fix to losing the chain. No back pedaling in those days. Rim brakes with brake boosters for stopping quick, ha."

Nothing like a nice, skinny, flat bar for optimizing control at breakneck speeds.

"If I am not mistaken the stem was a 135mm, 17degree rise. It was machined down and scalloped out for weight. There to my knowledge were no other choices in our arsenal. Ride the front end baby!"-MR

Yeti grips, of course. And old school SRAM grip shifters.

Front brake booster detail shot and detail of the 2.1 IRC Claw Comp.

Front hubs to match the rear hubs.

The travel in the rear was said to be 3 . I am a little skeptical but it seemed to be a big improvement over the little bike that they were claiming 1.5 -Myles Rockwell

The travel in the rear was said to be 3". I am a little skeptical, but it seemed to be a big improvement over the little bike that they were claiming ran 1.5" -Myles Rockwell

I actually raced with a 60 tooth ring rather than this 64 tooth monster.

"I actually raced with a 56 tooth ring, rather than this 64 tooth monster."

This bike had both a front and a rear brake booster to help Myles keep things under control. Sort of.

Faux bar suspension. In the shot of the cranks you can see the pivot in line with the granny gear where the chainstays mate to the BB shell.

Sun Ringle hub, anodyzed a nice blue to match the rest of the bike.

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78 Comments

Score Time Who Faved

+ 74

SwintOrSlude (Jul 5, 2012 at 0:22)

Awesome blast from the past. More like this PB!

+ 15

coloradoboy (Jul 5, 2012 at 0:36)

I agree this was the best thing I've seen here in a while! And that's saying something!

fullbug (Jul 5, 2012 at 6:41)

it would be nice to see riders and rigs from the past a segment like tech tuesday.

zorba73 (Jul 5, 2012 at 7:05)

You could call it 'Down the trail' a la MountainBikeAction.

callumr321 (Jul 5, 2012 at 7:11)

Should race them against the current model, Like MBUK magazine did with the new GT downhill bikes. Good to see how much the technology has come on! I wonder if the we will look back on current bikes in the future and see them like this.

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+ 20

killboy911 (Jul 5, 2012 at 2:40)

Where all of dat chain goes when front deraileur is on lowest cog ????????

DARKSTAR63 (Jul 5, 2012 at 4:56)

That is a good question, i don't think you are supposed to shift down to those, lol.Not sure why the middle and granny cogs are mounted.

firsty33 (Jul 5, 2012 at 5:44)

I believe bikes had to have a triple chainring setup to be UCI legal in those days.

DARKSTAR63 (Jul 5, 2012 at 5:50)

Interesting, that would explain it. Im sure they had to on there for some reason.

flowyridestilltherestofmylife (Jul 5, 2012 at 5:51)

@killboy 911: It becomes a chaindog. Or the chain cat. Well the upper one. Big Grin

zrider79 (Jul 5, 2012 at 7:12)

Middle ring was probably kept in place to keep the spacing correct with the hardware they had.

fraserbritton Plus (Jul 5, 2012 at 10:26)

You'd keep a middle ring on for a few reasons. One is for spacing, as mentioned. They other is a lot of those cranks were pretty flexy, and the chainring/hardware attached in the lower bolt holes helped stiffen things up a bit.

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+ 11

jaame (Jul 5, 2012 at 0:19)

I dreamed about having one of these back in the day. I think I still have a pair of those claw comp lite tyres at my parents' house. Are the x ray shifters an anachronism though? I would have thought that bike would have had an srt500 or 500r, plus the 737 spds... still, it's a great artical.
Haven't downhill bikes come a long way from those 50mm travel beasts of the past with their 71 degree head angles.

[Reply]

Yetifancom (Jul 5, 2012 at 6:53)

Glad you like the bike folks. The pedals were just put on to ride it down to the pits. It should have the first generation xt on there. It was awesome to get Myles to check out and sign his old bike. Was great to finally meet him.

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scottlink (Jul 5, 2012 at 11:59)

The kids of today have noooo clue how it was back then. Riding pogo-stick no travel bikes are what made some of the fastest racers ever! All of us older guys can appreciate this great bike!

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DavySprocket (Jul 5, 2012 at 4:01)

Awesome Article!

Incidentally, those forks are pre-production Manitou 3s. See the blue anodised adjusters above the fork crown? Manitou 2s had their adjusters at the bottom of the fork leg. Pretty sure the black teflon coating came in on the Manitou 3s as well.

cuban-b (Jul 5, 2012 at 10:34)

yeah i remember when the 3s first came out. at the time, your choice was the Manitou 3 or a Rock Shox Mag 21 with elastomers, that bronze colored fork before the Quadra and Judy line came out

hampsteadbandit (Jul 5, 2012 at 12:54)

I have fond memories of converting my Rockshox Mag 10 using a "Long travel kit" from 2" to 2.3" = wow!!

here was my bike using this fork: www.pinkbike.com/photo/5488153

mduste (Jul 6, 2012 at 7:29)

I remember mowing lawns all summer to outfit my XC rig with a RockShox Mag 21. I freaking loved that thing.

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jaame (Jul 5, 2012 at 21:30)

PB I would love to see a blast from the past article about the Scott CAT carbon DH bike with internal shock. Used in 1992-1993 by Jurgen Sprich and Rune Hoydahl?

imageshack.us/f/93/numriser0045xn2.jpg

This is the bike, but I couldn't find a side on shot.

I'd love to see a group test with some old bikes like the Yeti ARC, Scott CAT, and Cannondale DHF.

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rgeniec (Jul 5, 2012 at 15:31)

That is nothing. I raced the Kamikaze in 1992 on a GT Zaskar with a Manitou bumper fork. To have rear suspension would have been a luxury for me. Where are the bar ends>? I had mine! There were no DH bikes back then. You raced XC then put on some moto pants and rode your XC bike with your XC helmet on the Kamikaze.

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bike68 (Jul 5, 2012 at 2:30)

Real rad!

Remeber those days. Grafton cranks & brakes. Breaks which didn't stop while racing Kaprun!
Having a great time with Myles, Missy, Watson aso. while supervising the guys & girl from Marin, GT and Yeti in Austria ;-))

Still have a Ringle (no Sun) Superbubba running on my Singlespeeder ;-))

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Keiron (Jul 5, 2012 at 15:05)

Maaan that brings all my old skool youth memories, saved my paperround money & bought myself a bright blue brake booster, triple compound brake blocks and these tioga tyres, I thought my bike was the sickest thing ever haha! Good times

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Sapinhoo (Jul 5, 2012 at 15:04)

The corrent make parkour dude !!!

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davidstuartkelly (Jul 5, 2012 at 1:37)

What a blast from the past, Jason Mcroy was mentioned too. Ooooh the memories, live to ride or ride to live if iremember??, Jason is sadly missed by all still..

boo86 (Jul 5, 2012 at 2:19)

Jason McRoy - representing the original Washington ! Home-town legend.

hampsteadbandit (Jul 5, 2012 at 12:52)

JMC = legend

my first team mate at "Hardisty Cycles" of Newcastle (Byker) 6 months before he got signed to Specialized USA following his trip to the States with his Dad

really rad guy, super nice with time to speak to everyone

sorely missed by everyone who knew him, and by those who never knew him, but were infected by his radical riding in the magazines and videos

[Reply]

estonianpunk (Jul 5, 2012 at 8:33)

The anodizing is strong in this one...

[Reply]

vince29 (Jul 5, 2012 at 19:09)

After 20 years all our fancy carbon bikes will be look as junk to other(younger) bikers. But for the owner it's gonna be still his beauty!

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hockeyyetiboy (Jul 5, 2012 at 2:57)

damn i miss that bike out of all the the yetis i've owned.that sure was a sweet step up from racing the yeti as down mt snow...but sure isnt the 303!

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marcellogiraldi (Jul 5, 2012 at 6:34)

Please Yeti, return to traditional racing colors!!!!!!!

cuban-b (Jul 5, 2012 at 10:25)

With the current trend in mtb colors on frames and apparel - with the bright neon and pastels - I bet Yeti can make a yellow/turquoise look cool and modern to today's aesthetic zeitgeist if you will.

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webhead (Jul 5, 2012 at 12:00)

This is hilarious - why'd they even put a front derailleur on it? Could that mech even shift it up and down? Would the chan not then drag on the cage? HA!

trailhacker (Jul 5, 2012 at 14:19)

That was the "chainguide" of the day...

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dydanz (Jul 5, 2012 at 3:34)

that chainring set up, so huuuuuuge.. :o
armstrong's speed at tour de france might be nothing compared this. :p

[Reply]

Pabail (Jul 5, 2012 at 19:19)

Apart from the stem which gives me the shivers, I think its still a handsome piece of engineering!

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thatpeskylimey (Jul 5, 2012 at 10:07)

Needs more purple Smile

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kev1n (Jul 5, 2012 at 9:38)

oldie but a goodie!

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thebigschott (Jul 5, 2012 at 8:55)

60 mph down loose over hard-moon dust covered ski resort access roads with that bike!?!? Insane!!!

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smileyboy (Jul 5, 2012 at 5:09)

we have come a long way mates, just imagine what would DH bikes look like after 10 years..

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DrPhilmmkay (Jul 5, 2012 at 1:36)

Way, way, way before my time, but there's nothing but respect for how clean it's kept and the history it carries. Rock on!

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loganjensen (Jul 5, 2012 at 0:51)

a1gp of dh, everyone gets the same bike, but a classic?? maybe even sundays so the speeds would still be good ish.

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jimbobcress (Jul 5, 2012 at 0:27)

Give it to Gwin and see how fast he is then!

HalfOrange (Jul 5, 2012 at 0:35)

Give one to each of the current world cup DH racers. It´d be a great race to watch although a circuit like last week would explode this bike.

+ 11

chyu (Jul 5, 2012 at 0:48)

I believe Peaty still able to handle this myth monster.

[Reply]

neale1978 (Jul 5, 2012 at 0:22)

makes me think of the girvin flexstem for some reason haha

richierocket (Jul 5, 2012 at 3:00)

Still have one, also a 1991 pro-flex. never leaving my shop! lol

gavlaa (Jul 5, 2012 at 5:28)

I remember my flourescent yellow Flex stem- the little rubber shock crumbled into pieces after rinsing down a fireroad in Kielder. Good times!

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sam-davies (Jul 5, 2012 at 3:39)

In 20 years we'll be looking at a 2012 Demo/Glory/Session and thinking how outdated they are.

[Reply]

romich (Jul 5, 2012 at 2:54)

I wish it were more such articles

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taletotell (Jul 5, 2012 at 3:46)

love the detail that went into this rig. It's beautiful!

[Reply]

gavlaa (Jul 5, 2012 at 5:27)

Anodised Brake Boosters FTW!

[Reply]

azonicjake (Jul 7, 2012 at 11:28)

looks alot better than a trek session 8, Trek Session 8's are just ugly!!

[Reply]

ChrisBrown1981 (Jul 6, 2012 at 10:34)

Someone find one of Peaty's old Lobo's. That would make a great read!

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DakarSaint (Jul 5, 2012 at 15:42)

im diggin the dinner plate sprocket.

[Reply]

hfranklin (Jul 5, 2012 at 21:07)

I built that frame!

[Reply]

dreamsflyinhigh (Jul 6, 2012 at 22:01)

Hella old school.. That little of travel is narly. Props

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pinkbiker14 (Jul 5, 2012 at 23:08)

quite the dinner plate hes got on there

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Eddie-boy (Jul 5, 2012 at 8:28)

Stem design looks kinda a similar to the Thomson elite haha

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badburke (Jul 5, 2012 at 8:40)

crazy

badburke (Jul 5, 2012 at 8:43)

gp1.pinkbike.org/p4pb7496423/p4pb7496423.jpg

manitou three's grafton cranks prostop carbon

[Reply]

willems (Jul 5, 2012 at 0:13)

Awesome rig!

[Reply]

santacruzLOCal (Jul 5, 2012 at 10:58)

FTW design. The secret towards success

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twozerosix (Jul 5, 2012 at 9:07)

All respect.

[Reply]

tomer747 (Jul 5, 2012 at 0:20)

how much does it cost today

deeeight Plus (Jul 5, 2012 at 1:32)

A lot.... mint condition vintage parts fetch as much or MORE than they did when new twenty years ago. The white 1990-91 Onza Porcupine 1.95 tires run typically $500 EACH if you list an NOS one on ebay. Which is about 12 times the price they cost retail back then, and that's for a tire that never lasted more than 3 runs down a typical DH course of the day (we didn't measure tire durometers back then but the total absence of carbon in the rubber probably put it somewhere around a 25A). I gave a pair of NOS ones to a buddy as a birthday present around 1993-94 (not knowing then of course what they'd be worth ten years later), and he got TWO practice runs down the MSA DH course out of them.

WAKIdesigns (Jul 5, 2012 at 4:01)

I'm after NOS RD952 XTR rear mech the one just before this reversed spring nonsense. Super hard spring, strong and precise mech, together with 952 shifters (I already own yes) it's a one precise cling! clang! clong! set - it's like who the hell needs a clutch - just bring back that mech!

fullbug (Jul 5, 2012 at 8:37)

@ waki-just sold one of those and v-brakes at a swap meet. still in the original box!

cuban-b (Jul 5, 2012 at 10:29)

@ WAKI there are a ton of those M950 & M952 on ebay. Love the color too. i just bought one here on PB for about $40. I also have two RD-M900 rear mechs (pictured above on Myles bike) which go for less $ than M952 on ebay and work just as well on 9-speed.

iffoverload (Jul 7, 2012 at 7:12)

old XTR stuff just keeps on going, still got the orig FD on my Marin , many many miles in UK conditions, no slop, perfect shifts and still looks like new!! the XT pods as well after what must be 10,000 changes at least.

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fr2011dh (Jul 5, 2012 at 1:08)

Did I miss the year he raced this bike?

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raph11 (Jul 5, 2012 at 7:10)

64 tooth :O

deeeight Plus (Jul 5, 2012 at 7:22)

I own a near mint ActionTec titanium ELS 56T x 110mm 5-bolt pattern chainring, i've used it before. It'll essentially never wear out given its heat-treated Ti 6/4 and that'd be even if I used it on my daily commuter. All these new drivetrain trends are to smaller cogs, smaller chainrings... faster wear and more frequent replacements. Bring back the old days I say.

shawshaw (Jul 5, 2012 at 12:06)

But take into account that the bigger the chainring the closer it is to the floor, giving you more chance of it hitting the ground and then you'd have to replace it...

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HaydenCali (Jul 5, 2012 at 8:58)

I want those QR axles!

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Schmitty (Jul 5, 2012 at 18:45)

Zesty!

[Reply]

natasha4 (Jul 5, 2012 at 10:07)

that bike looks like shit!!!

dzeeboy (Jul 6, 2012 at 7:05)

"that bike looks like THE shit!!!"

fyp

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