Video: Nukeproof Mega – All Mountain Adventure

Aug 22, 2012 at 12:01

Aug 22, 2012

by Cut Media

The guys from Nukeproof, including Nige Page and Al Bond, head out on an absolutely epic All Mountain trip. How does a 3700m summit sound for you? Check the incredible footage and scenery! Top enduro rider and Nukeproof UK man Martin Astley talks you through the trip...

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The concept for the trip was simple, assemble a group of like-minded riders from a variety of backgrounds and disciplines and send them to the top of the biggest, most epic mountain we could find that is rideable all (or very nearly) the way down. Ash from Trail addiction was the man with the knowledge and he hooked us up with mountain man guide Ben Jones and a team to support this mission to the Summit of Aguille de la Grand Sassierre 3, 747m

The route for the Grand Sassierre; 3747m of epic right there!The crew
We were an eclectic bunch on this trip, from different backgrounds and niche’s within mountain biking. The one common thread between us was a love of riding bikes and a sense of adventure.

Nigel Page
ChainReaction Cycles/Nukeproof team manager Nige has been around forever. His background is in DH racing and BMX both of which he competed in to a World Class level for many years. Nigel still rides a lot and is heavily involved in the development of products for the Nukeproof brand so this ride was a perfect opportunity for him to give his Mega some serious testing.

Nige Page takes in the view!

Al Bond
Al was the new guy on the CRC/Nukeproof team for 2012. Coming off a great year as a privateer in 2011 winning the overall BDS Al headed out to Cali for the winter to train with the Atherton’s. Unfortunately Al broke his Collar bone just before the World Cup in South Africa meaning he couldn’t hit his first full World Cup Season with quite the punch he had hoped. Nonetheless Al has turned heads across the globe with his amazing riding talent and aggressive style. The best thing about Al is he LOVES a good adventure; actually I’m yet to come across anything that Al doesn’t like?

Al on the rocks

Ben Jones
Lovingly referred to as THE Ben Jones by his friends and colleagues for his ever expanding reputation as one of mountain bikings’ top guides. Ben is guiding company Trail Addiction’s head guide. What Ben doesn’t know about life in the mountains, safety and great trails in the Haute Tarentaise isn’t worth knowing. Ben’s enthusiasm and leadership kept the team going when things got tough.

The full crew together! Left to right: Martin, Nige, Al and Ben

Martin Astley
Your author for today. With a background in DH I made the switch to gravity enduro a few years ago and haven’t looked back since. With a busy work schedule looking after the marketing for Nukeproof and the other brands in the Hotlines portfolio you are more likely to find me with my head stuck in my e-mails than a full face helmet. However, I am always up for riding great trails and like Al I love a good adventure.
So as I said, the aim of this trip was simple, the execution not so much. The climb to the peak was a challenge for all of us; Pagey in particular was feeling the effects of altitude when we broke through the 3000m barrier.

It wouldn’t be right to finish the write up without mentioning camera man Stu Thomson of MTBCut. Stu has an impressive list of results from his racing past including a World Cup podium. He still shreds hard when he’s not making big time million plus hit edits and wins the award for gnarliest huck on this trip, shame it wasn’t on camera! I’ll leave MTBcut’s great edit to tell the full story but in a nutshell we rode some truly amazing, very technical, trails in the most exposed location any of us had ever ridden with the best views ever. It was 2 days of solid riding, a surprise night in a mountain refuge, lots of laughs and some great memories. Enjoy....

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88 Comments

Score Time Who Faved

+ 35

wildwood (Aug 22, 2012 at 13:58)

I have said it before and I'm about to say it again. I love when trail/AM/short travel bikes are shredded. I could be biased or it could just be totally sick.

+ 13

OldSkoolAK (Aug 22, 2012 at 14:07)

Gotta agree- I love the concept of the "swiss army bike", and that bike is different for every rider.

+ 10

nhlpat (Aug 22, 2012 at 15:37)

i agree. i love my 120mm

+ 11

kfitz (Aug 22, 2012 at 18:19)

unless you live close to a bike park, its the best way to get a lot of time in on a bike

driftmonster (Aug 23, 2012 at 6:59)

Foot dab at 8:05 !
Whole ride didn't count ! Lulz

scottrallye (Aug 23, 2012 at 15:41)

Dude, I eventually sold my downhill bike because I have so much fun shredding my trailbike. I agree, it's just totally sick! Smile

OldSkoolAK (Aug 23, 2012 at 23:59)

There's a reason Yeti calls their ASR-5 the "cheater bike". Alot of us want more (travel) than we really need.

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+ 20

mozz (Aug 22, 2012 at 14:42)

This is great! For me truly sums up the essence of mountain biking, adventure, beautiful scenery, discovering great trails with friends. Well done Nukeproof, demonstrating the capability of your products without pushing them on viewers, but still entertaining and inspiring in the process. Bravo!

gunners1 (Aug 28, 2012 at 23:43)

Couldnt agree more, great marketing for the company, just showing people getting out there on their bikes in cool places and having a blast!

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+ 16

mtblemming (Aug 23, 2012 at 2:43)

Nice Video, was on the top of this summit 2 weeks ago and the trail is awsome. BUT, the way you ride there might be fun but is not helping us at all. You can do excessive drifting in the bikepark, but not somewhere on a hiking trail just on the border of a protected area. Try to leave as less marks on the trail as possible. I want to be able to ride these trails still in 20 years but when high mountain trials used for bikepark shredding style it is just a question of time unless we will get banned from these trails and that's something nobody wants.

sik853 (Aug 24, 2012 at 2:31)

I totally agree! Drifting in a national park? Really? Nukeproof should think about what this says about them. And how people see mountainbikers when they watch videos like this. This "adventure" doesn't do us riders any favour.

swoop (Aug 24, 2012 at 2:38)

We are all just guests and should treat the environment with respect. Flora is very sensitive in these altitudes, so go out, have fun, enjoy nature, but please avoid skid marks as much as possible!! Ride on!

leelau Plus (Aug 25, 2012 at 19:12)

Yup - its a good video and the guy with the blue backpack's obviously a good rider. Gratuitous cutties/skids add nothing and piss off t the types that would punt us off trails

inthebigmountains (Sep 1, 2012 at 4:50)

sik853, I must correct you, the location of the trail all the filming is on is NOT in a national park, where it would be illegal to ride. It borders a nature reserve, where riding is in-fact permitted.

Although I can understand and appreciate some of the concerns raised above about the style of riding. I must admit in this situation, I feel it is unwarranted, there are trails where skidding would have a dramatic effect on trail erosion, however, the rocky shale that makes up the trail to the top of the Grand Sassiere is fairly resilient to erosion as it is made of rock, not fragile loamy soil.

Unfortunately, a video of riders riding slowly just wouldn't look great - and therefore carefully picking a high-mountain rocky trail where signs of erosion would be minimal I think is a good decision in this case. I would certainly rather this, than see shredding down a loamy natural forested trail which would display signs of erosion and even a few riders could lead to enough damage to promote water channelling and rutting.

There is a time and a place for riding loose, and with no walkers around, in the early evening, on a rocky trail, I think is the time and the place to get a bit sideways for the camera. :-)

freeride-addict (Sep 9, 2012 at 5:00)

Hey Guys. As the founder of trailAddiction, and someone who loves these trails and mountains dearly, I feel obliged to comment here.

Actually, I agree with the comments about an inappropriate style of riding shown in the video - when I saw the final cut, one of my first impressions was one of unease at the amount of "shredding" (in the sense of trail-erosion, not awesome riding!) that was shown.

What I can honestly say is that this was not actually how the trail was ridden - rather deliberate edits for the sake of the film itself - as others have commented. Thanks to inthebigmountains for the balanced view on the actual errosive effect - Id like to echo those comments strongly.

These mountains are a privilege to ride in, and whenever I find a new trail up here I see it as an honour to ride a trail that may well be previously untouched by bike tyres - perhaps EVER......and the sense of being one of a very few to experience that is actually a big part of the trailAddiction guiding experience. Noting that without natural, pristine trails up here, we'd not have a product worth selling, its very much in our interests to protect the natural environment around us.

In practise this means riding respectfully - limiting which trails we ride, and how often - choosing to avoid certain trails when erosion would be more damaging (e.g. after heavy rain, a loamy, mossy, fragile trail might be substituted for a harder-packed, one). All of our guides will teach proper, respectful riding technique and this includes correcting a customer's "skidding" rear wheel switchback/cornering style.

Alistair
Co-founder / Owner of trailAddiction.

leelau Plus (Sep 12, 2012 at 8:50)

Thanks for coming back to say this Alistair - much appreciated

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blackforest (Aug 23, 2012 at 11:21)

Nice vid and beautiful riding, but I absolutely agree with mtblemming. This kind of riding is not suitable for these trails. The alps are a highly used area (hiking, farming, winter tourism) with a very high population density for such a vulnerable environment. You can not compare the alps to canada or regions in Great Britain.

Some month ago politicians in Bern wanted to ban mountainbiking in the alps. Please keep in mind, where you are riding. These trails are build by hikers and are mostly maintained by hikers or farmers, sometimes they are older than 2000 years. Please ride with care and without skidding and sliding.

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koneko (Aug 24, 2012 at 0:54)

TRAIL ADDICTION BIG BIG WORD !!!

After watching the video, at the beginning i would say that they've got the spirit, going on beautiful trails, watching the view, but after a few minutes it's what i see every time in les Arcs.
Where they rode after passing all is desolation. All tracks are in bad shape, damaged roads, trenches.
Just a reminder that the trails were made for hikers and mountain bikers that are allowed to use a few rules.
Respect the nature.
stop riding fast for skidding after, just for the style who cares.
Years after years, the Malgovert's forest trails are worse and worse because of this kind of behavior.
So trail addiction, thank you for respecting our mountains and people who build the trails.

TRAIL DESTRUCTION I should say !!!!

En français :

Je roule sur les arcs depuis 6 ans et sur Tignes depuis une dizaine d'année. Chaque année je vois les chemins se détériorer à grande vitesse, la cause : ce genre de groupe et de comportement.
Trail addiction a coutume de rouler par groupe de 6 à 8 personnes, alors vous imaginez lorsqu'on arrive à fond et que de bloquer la roue arrière pour faire des dérapages, ça fait "le style" mais pas pour les chemins. Tranchées, racines, pierres etc... sont mis à vifs. Alors passer après eux, merci les dégâts !!!!
Belle esprit de venir d'un plat pays pour y apprécier nos belles montagnes mais si il n'y a pas de respect il n'y aura plus de rien.
Partir de la Sassière, comme mis sur l'article de "ricil", n'est pas à la portée de tout le monde. Et je le rappelle, cet itinéraire est en bordure du parc ce qui veut dire, et comme sur tous les chemins de montagne, que les vvtistes sont tolérés mais avec un minimum de respect de l'environnement.
Donc les Trails Addiction, merci de respecter nos montagnes sinon on aura plus le droit à rien !!!

gravitysgirl (Aug 28, 2012 at 14:15)

Vous n'avez pas vu tous les autres qui roulent sur les petit chemins à malgovert?! je suis d'accord que les chemins sont plus endommagé que l'avant, mais 'il était les vttistes français qui construisaient les chemins avec le "north shore" et après ils roulent à malgovert, pas juste des personnes qui sejournent avec Trail Addiction. Par ailleurs, vous oubliez l'existence des autres compagnies des vacances vtt, et les vttistes habitant à bourg st maurice qui ont pas d'association avec Trail Addiction. Si seulement ça c'est pas le cas, mais c'est vrai que les chemins à Malgovert se détériorer. Cependant, on a besoin de verifier les faits avant on écrit ici. C'est juste plus facile de pointer le doigt vers la compagnie qui est le plus visible aux Arcs.

Desolée pour le mauvais français, mais je dois le pratiquer! ... corrigez moi si vous voulez! Smile

koneko (Sep 2, 2012 at 9:07)

Généralement, je ne parle pas de ce que je ne vois pas. La plupart du temps quand je vois ces groupes anglais, ils sont par 8 - 10 personnes et je vois bien leur façon de rouler. Je doute que des groupes comme l'UCPA s'aventurent dans la forêt de Malgovert ainsi que le Club Med de Pessey.
Je n'ai rien contre les anglais ou autres mais simplement un peu plus de respect du mileu.

gravitysgirl (Oct 18, 2012 at 14:30)

"un peu plus de respect du mileu." oui, je suis d'accord. Si seulement il était plus facile pour maîtriser quelques des membres de ces groupes. :/

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OldSkoolAK (Aug 22, 2012 at 13:53)

Nukeproof... thumbs up if you remember the days when their sole offering were carbon shell hubs!!!

richierocket (Aug 22, 2012 at 17:30)

Still have a pair on my Pro-Flex!

wallheater (Aug 22, 2012 at 20:38)

I remember drooling over those hubs, but Nukeproof these days is just a trading name for ChainReactionCycles and nothing to do with the original brand.

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shimyshalka (Aug 22, 2012 at 13:49)

Did the one guy really say "It's like we're in the wilderness."?

WAKIdesigns (Aug 23, 2012 at 1:15)

Yup it sounds a bit riciulous in Europe, gets harder and harder...

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milanulrich (Aug 22, 2012 at 22:53)

I'm in love with my Mega. It's one of the best bikes I've ever ride. Nice to see some epic biking on it. I have to say, this bie is faster and more capable then me, but it makes me to be faster and better rider. This bike wants and needs punishment.

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pholange (Aug 22, 2012 at 21:36)

rad. terrain wise, this is what the big day looks like for me and my friends in the four corners region states of the US. (caveat: these guys kick as*!) i absolutely dig what happened this past week at crankworkx, but this vid represents where i find myself with my riding and my riding buddies. thanks for the great vid!

[Reply]

superbikes (Aug 22, 2012 at 14:25)

I enjoyed the vid really glad they did not spoil the vid by pushing nukeproof in our face evry 5 mins . Thow I am thinking of getting a N P frame now

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groghunter (Aug 22, 2012 at 17:14)

Hey Martin, I noticed you broke the back end loose quite a bit in the shots you were in, is that just your personal style, or something to do with the terrain/tire choice? I ask because I'm a big fan of the gettin squirly with the back tire, (skidding a bike is the fountain of youth) so i dug a lot of the shots that included it.

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kdyer (Aug 22, 2012 at 15:44)

I wonder how many punctures they got.

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alex-belgium (Jan 20, 2013 at 3:25)

Nice vidéo, but I hope you will understand why the local people don’t show the similar image on the WEB.
Have fun and long life to Trail addiction, you are professional and I know, It’s not your intension to have those tracks closed but it will be case. Some people will use your video to send request. All the best for 2013 and see you on the tracks.
Best regards. Alex

[Reply]

racerfacer (Aug 22, 2012 at 20:42)

Awesome shredding, when most people would be grabbing their DH sleds. Everyone on here owes it to themselves to ride scree. More in common with skiing pow than riding down blown out steeps. Hike-a-bike is a game changer because it opens up so many potential trails that don't have a road or lower angle trail to the top.

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dhdude15 (Aug 22, 2012 at 13:23)

I bet Al doesn't like fat chicks....

scott-townes (Aug 22, 2012 at 17:09)

but there's nothing wrong with porking a sea hog every once in a while.

uphill-blues (Aug 23, 2012 at 0:36)

hopefully the shame doesn't kill you the following day

kinkmister (Aug 23, 2012 at 10:02)

Big gals need lovin too

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finnrambo (Aug 22, 2012 at 18:09)

could just say 3.75km... and that mega is a sick bike, can't remember the price but I remember it being miles cheaper than anything else

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WillYumKlem (Aug 22, 2012 at 19:04)

Some serious riding, so jealous of the terrain there. What pack is Pagey wearing? It looks sick!

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Ricil (Aug 23, 2012 at 12:09)

They were in the local daily newspaper : nsa29.casimages.com/img/2012/08/23/120823065113533189.jpg

Why this canadian flag next to my nam as I'm french ?

[Reply]

mp11 (Aug 23, 2012 at 14:15)

I went out to france with Trail Addiction last summer as part of a school (yes, a SCHOOL) biking trip, we rode HEIDI, my god it was the best 50km of my life!

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DHrider939 (Aug 22, 2012 at 16:24)

Dear people who go to these awesome places please make a long movie I would enjoy watching it.

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Nygaard (Aug 22, 2012 at 13:40)

Wow, these guys got some skills! Smooth and effortless riding down rough singletracks like that is a thing of great beauty.

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bill238 (Aug 22, 2012 at 14:58)

Just in the process of building my Mega up now. Having watched that I can't wait to finish it off. 5 more weeks and its ready. Bring it on!!!!!

max14221 (Aug 23, 2012 at 3:02)

I have just ordered my Mega am pro and cant wait , roll on Tuesday

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fantaman (Aug 22, 2012 at 13:36)

Wow that was amazing that is what pure alpine riding is all about.

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llarrggee (Aug 22, 2012 at 14:34)

Been thinking about getting a Mega. I would just prefer a coil shock on it.

OTehNoes (Aug 22, 2012 at 15:34)

I've got one and ran it with both air and coil shock and both feel fantastic Smile

llarrggee (Aug 23, 2012 at 3:25)

What coil did you put on it?

OTehNoes (Aug 23, 2012 at 4:23)

Only a Fox Van R as I swapped shocks with my brother for a while, but even that worked great!

[Reply]

uphill-blues (Aug 23, 2012 at 0:35)

8:52 - 8:56
I'm surprised the bike didn't break. I guess those bikes are nukeproof indeed!

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DBomberMan (Aug 22, 2012 at 16:41)

Dude with the yellow helmet has some serious skills on a bike....but throws like a girl

paulskibum (Aug 22, 2012 at 21:04)

He rides DH on the world cup circuit so....... Still Pagey rides pretty well too! Even if he looks like he's been dressed by his mum in that jacket and helmet.

[Reply]

NAPALMJEFF (Aug 22, 2012 at 13:59)

this makes me more determined on the planing of the big adventure.

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OTehNoes (Aug 22, 2012 at 15:40)

Awesome video! Can't wait to get better and get my fitness up, then I can give my Mega some real abuse! Big Grin

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peelman (Aug 22, 2012 at 15:32)

Alpine riding is always best done in the Alps in my opinion.... Wink

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Craigusse (Aug 23, 2012 at 10:10)

This is what true mountain biking is really all about. Love them AM flicks!

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digthemlows (Aug 22, 2012 at 13:34)

Very cool, some crazy tech stuff in there........Skilled riding for sure!

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luis-beri (Aug 24, 2012 at 11:30)

lucky guys!! alps... and thats it!!

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rismtb (Aug 22, 2012 at 16:12)

Great flick,funny men thanxs eh

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stucon (Aug 23, 2012 at 1:57)

fantastic vid..... would love to do that trip!!! VOD.

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RVD604 (Aug 22, 2012 at 20:02)

Sweet vid and sweet riding. Nice work.

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gnarbar (Aug 22, 2012 at 16:28)

nice, very nice. well done Pagey for pushing on. really enjoyed this vibe

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bobob74 (Aug 23, 2012 at 22:52)

Bellissimo!!!

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cubeboy321 (Aug 22, 2012 at 13:38)

BOND u legend

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boardmanman (Aug 22, 2012 at 14:57)

Too much talking not enough riding... Smile

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Danntana78 (Aug 22, 2012 at 21:37)

Yeaaah... dudes rip!

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Below threshold threads are hidden

Pabail (Aug 22, 2012 at 13:25)

great bikes but nukeproof is a strange name to call anything, i wish they had branded it differently. its just sounds childish IMO ...i expect 200-300 neg props for saying this...

morbiking (Aug 22, 2012 at 13:37)

I agree, and if u dropped a nuke on one i guarantee it would not survive :L

BrigadierBuege (Aug 22, 2012 at 13:39)

Eh, I mean yeah you are entitled to your opinion, but I think it's a pretty badass name personally!

shredds (Aug 22, 2012 at 14:00)

I don't think it will ever live up to it's name.

fedz (Aug 22, 2012 at 14:07)

They've cracked it in my opinion, the trick with brand names is coming up with one that'll stick in peoples minds ... Nukeproof does the job nicely !

OTehNoes (Aug 22, 2012 at 15:20)

I think its a pretty badass name, and the Black and Yellow colour schemes are so unique they just look awesome! Not to mention their awesome performance! My Mega has never let me down!

finnrambo (Aug 22, 2012 at 18:12)

is it just me or does nukeproof xc abd intense xc sound counterintuitive? I dobt think either make xc frames but itd be pretty classic if either did

finnrambo (Aug 22, 2012 at 18:14)

*and *don't, f*ckin ipod

OTehNoes (Aug 22, 2012 at 18:20)

I guess Nukeproof could but I don't think it'd be their thing, they seem to like make more hard hitting frames for the more extreme ride types.

finnrambo (Aug 22, 2012 at 18:27)

ya their bikes are the scalp mega and pulse? all of those look super durable to me, idk if they make other ones

OTehNoes (Aug 22, 2012 at 18:40)

Well. the Pulse isn't actually out yet but it will replace the Scalp, and they also make the Snap which is a 4X hardtail, but still goes with my point!

lurchh (Aug 23, 2012 at 1:00)

And a new dirtjump hardtail and the Rook

OTehNoes (Aug 23, 2012 at 4:22)

That's a slopstyle full sus actually Razz

lurchh (Aug 23, 2012 at 8:38)

No shit. I said they have a new dirtjump hardtail and also the Rook. I didn't say the hardtail was called the rook.

OTehNoes (Aug 23, 2012 at 9:29)

My mistake, misread!

Adym (Aug 23, 2012 at 10:27)

Also the nukeproof logo is pretty awesome too Smile

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TouchMeslowly (Aug 22, 2012 at 14:33)

That bike frame looks EXACTLY like a Santa Cruz Blur.

scissors888 (Aug 22, 2012 at 14:35)

Except for the completely different suspension design.

TouchMeslowly (Aug 22, 2012 at 14:36) (Below Threshold) show comment

Yes and also no where near as good

jamielee1 (Aug 22, 2012 at 15:00)

Could you show us to a video with better riding on a Blur please? State your reasons why it's not as good?

OTehNoes (Aug 22, 2012 at 15:37)

Well yeah in the same way an Ibis Mojo looks a bit like a Santa Cruz V10. And considering a Santa Cruz Blur is more of an XC bikes, it'd take a huge beating on trails like these whereas the Mega could easily hold its own. If you want a Santa Cruz that compete with a Mega I'd be thinking more along the lines of a Nomad.

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