Aaron Chase Bike Check: Pivot Point
Aaron Chase has been a freeride fixture for a couple of decades now, and while he's about as versatile a rider as they come, it's been the sturdy and simple dirt jumper that has provided the mountain bike world with some of his best moments. Whether it was years of street and dirt thrashing throughout the "New World Disorder" days, or more recently featured digging and riding alongside longtime friend Adam Hauck in "Builder", Aaron has shown us, time and time again, that every rider should spend some time on these simplest of rides. Dirt jumpers are relatively inexpensive, they last forever (in mountain bike years), and you can have fun on them in any season, regardless of where you call home.
2017 will be Aaron's third year as a Pivot athlete, and the Tempe, AZ-based brand likes to keep things simple when it comes to their dirt jumper offerings. The Point is the Pivot's singular representative, and the steel hardtail is sold as a frame only, with one size (M/L), and one colorway (Black w/Neon Lime). But d.j.'s aren't intended to be complex, do-it-all machines. They're built to do primarily one thing, and that's hit steep and lipped jumps.
Aaron's Point is beefy, yet relatively lightweight for this type of machine. At 6'1" and 172 lbs, Aaron might typically expect to find himself on a LG or XL frame, but the Point is a "one size fits all" deal. According to Aaron, "It's a smaller bike than I usually ride, but it feels great." Chase even has the weight down to just under 25 lbs, which might not be all that important to a lot of riders building up their own bikes, but when you pick up a bike like this, there's inevitably going to be a bit of envy.
Aaron's Point is in keeping with the minimalist frame styling, with virtually no flashy accents, just clean lines and a bullet-proof build.
Aaron runs a 36-tooth, narrow-wide RaceFace Atlas crank with RaceFace Chester pedals underfoot.
"I'm back on DT Swiss and I am stoked! DT-Swiss EX471 hoops on the 240 hubs look and feel great, and they complement the bike's minimalist style. Less is more!"
Aaron's cockpit controls come with a 785mm wide, uncut RaceFace Atlas bar with a 1 1/4" rise, attached to the steerer tube via a 40mm stem. "I'm a tall guy," he says between basement laps in his Vernon, NJ home. "And I like having my bars a little higher too. I've always thought that if you can keep the fork and headtube low, and bring up the height of the rider with the handlebars, it will provide you with greater leverage for tweaking."
Aaron keeps everything relatively firm on the Point as well, including his Fox 36 fork and his Maxxis DTH Skinwalls, the latter of which he prefers to run at 55 psi up front, and 65 psi in the back. The longtime Red Bull athlete has been on Maxxis rubber for the entirety of his career, and these particular tires "Make the bike look and feel so good."
Aaron keeps everything relatively firm on the Point as well, including his Fox 36 fork and his Maxxis DTH Skinwalls, the latter of which he prefers to run at 55 psi up front, and 65 psi in the back. The longtime Red Bull athlete has been on Maxxis rubber for the entirety of his career, and these particular tires "Make the bike look and feel so good."
The brake cable routing is indicative of Aaron's propensity for bar spins.
MENTIONS: @pivotcycles / @briceshirbach
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trialsracer is right, I saw this headtube with my own eyes the DMR logo is casted with the part.
EDIT :
Seen on DMR website : "DMR Investment cast tapered head tube"
Too many unanswered questions
That is, it will be unlike the DMR 898.
is it a DMR or a PIVOT?
Yeah, those are the two things that always pop into my head when I think about getting one (fun and learing skills). We'll see.. I'm sure I will. Just gotta start saving.
Who said anything about boost? boost really only helps with bigger wheels and what not. I would assume this bike is a 26" bike since it's a dirt jumper.... And I can't see anything being wrong with producing a carbon DJ bike.
Lots of guys out there that are strictly dirt jumpers and pump track rippers, are they not allowed to have nice things too?
P.s if there's any bike where wheel strength matters it's your DJ. How many people do you see trying to 360 their endurbro bikes? That being said, please keep DJ bikes 135 and start making straight steer forks again if you're going to run integrated headsets. Damn you pike DJ!
Luckily with 8 inches of plus travel my knee can just about deal with it.