Cross-Country Tech - World Cup XCO 2, Germany

May 20, 2016
by Mike Kazimer  
World Cup XCO 2 Germany tech
The course in Albstadt isn't overly technical, but that's not stopping Lea Davison from running Specialized's Command Post XCP. The post only has 35mm of drop, which seems miniscule compared to the 125, 150, and now 170mm options seen on all-mountain bikes, but things are different in the XC world; dropper posts are still a rarity rather than the norm due to the weight penalty they carry over a fixed post.


World Cup XCO 2 Germany tech
Partially obscured by that mud is Rotor's Rex1 aluminum crankset and oval QX1 chainring.


World Cup XCO 2 Germany tech
A peek into the Ghost trailer revealed a Lector hardtail with a rigid fork awaiting further assembly. If there was a course that could be ridden sans-suspension this would be the one... We'll have to see how this ends up come race day.


World Cup XCO 2 Germany tech
Trek's racers will be on Bontrager's new Kovee XXX wheelsets. Handmade in Wisconsin, the carbon wheels have a 29mm internal width and are said to weigh under 1400 grams for the set.
World Cup XCO 2 Germany tech
Given how muddy the course is, the Kovee XXX's wide rims may be a wise choice, allowing riders to run lower pressures for more traction on the greasy trails.


World Cup XCO 2 Germany tech
Narrow wide chain rings and clutch-equipped derailleurs have nearly eliminated dropped chains, but nearly doesn't cut it when a World Cup podium is on the line. Ceetec make some of the lightest chain guides in existence - this direct mount model weighs less than 20 grams.


World Cup XCO 2 Germany tech
Haibike's team members will be riding the latest version of the carbon Greed hardtail equipped with German-made carbon wheels from Bike Ahead.

World Cup XCO 2 Germany tech
Weight saving is a priority in cross-country racing, and this minimalist seat clamp does just that.
World Cup XCO 2 Germany tech
The Biturbo RS wheels use six large carbon spokes and weigh in at an extra-light 1189 grams.

World Cup XCO 2 Germany tech
Tire choice and pressure are going to be critical this weekend if trail conditions don't improve, but hopefully the forecasted sun arrives to dry up the super-sticky clay that's been wreaking havoc on drivetrains.


World Cup XCO 2 Germany tech
Martin Gluth has both a hardtail and this full suspension model from Silverback on hand to choose from before race day.

World Cup XCO 2 Germany tech
This seems to be the go-to design when it comes to creating an superlight seat post. In this case, the post itself is carbon fiber, and titanium bolts are used to shed even more weight.
World Cup XCO 2 Germany tech
Get low. Long, negative rise stems are a rarity on trail bikes, but remain commonplace on XC race machines.

World Cup XCO 2 Germany tech
The Silverback SBC (Superbike Concept) has 90mm of travel delivered via a link driven single pivot design.
World Cup XCO 2 Germany tech
Aivee hubs are laced to carbon rims from Knight Composites.



Visit the gallery for additional images from this article.


Photos: @mdelorme

Author Info:
mikekazimer avatar

Member since Feb 1, 2009
1,716 articles

120 Comments
  • 132 6
 Has negative rise stem but leaves huge conical spacer...
  • 17 6
 I honestly don't know what it means
  • 5 4
 Gotta look cool
  • 19 0
 That is more of the dust seal for the headset
  • 11 0
 @mtrogers-trailrun: Minimalist dustcaps are readily available in the aftermarket, not sure how sponsorship affects using aftermarket parts but they are out there
  • 7 0
 @thumsup: Cane Creek makes both low-rise and high-rise uppers. FSA headset but still.
  • 15 25
flag erbsforlife (May 19, 2016 at 22:00) (Below Threshold)
 Uh, actually dude, I think he has the tall "conical spacer" so his handle bars wnot hit his top tune if say he crashed. Good possibility to have your bars get wedged over the top tube and or break your shifter(s) or brake levers.
  • 16 1
 @erbsforlife: I don't see any difference als he uses the stem to get the bars down. That puts them in the same position to hit the top tube (or not).

A flat dust cap + shorter stem would be lighter but most likely his sponsors wouldn't agree...
  • 29 2
 "Negative rise." A ridiculous term!
  • 3 2
 "Negative rise stem" : isn't it a rise stem that is just inverted? I inverted mine but makes me wonder again whether it's dangerous or not
  • 2 1
 Maybe a sponsorship thing?
  • 5 0
 Or... more likely keeping a range of bar height options, depending on the course (notice also the large spacer on top of the stem).... or.... the spacer on top could indicate a hastily assembled bike that isn't in full race trim just yet
  • 2 1
 Alex Trebek "Haibike Greed hardtail"

a100steaksauce - "What is what a Power Ranger rides?"
  • 12 0
 the only thing missing in that combo is riser bars...
  • 3 0
 @Uuno: nah, most of them are designed to be flipped--a lot of manufacturers even print the labels so they're readable either way. yours is fine.
  • 9 1
 Maybe he just doesn't want to cut the steerer so he can post the fork on pb buy & sell after the race
  • 1 0
 @Uuno: I've ran inverted stems on my rigid Bmx bike for years and never had an issue there are bigger stems but waaaay bigger impact so I'd say you're good
  • 82 9
 XC seems to be quickly becoming the hardest MTB discipline. These guys are practically riding Enduro courses at some parts on 80mm travel bikes with seat posts shoved up their butts while practically dying from exhaustion. Most impressive.
  • 45 8
 They should. For years all that XC tracks at most races were not much more than smooth gravel paths. The should ride true off-road terrain, not dirt road bike courses. It is mountain biking after all.
  • 5 1
 @bman33: I think it's pretty telling that you aren't really hearing complaints from the riders about these gnarlier courses, either. It seems the racers are just as happy about it as us spectators.
  • 3 0
 @groghunter: Totally agree. I haven't raced XC in years. However, I went to several in the early 2000's and it was embarrassing the courses were so lame. Mid 90's were some good courses. Where I started in the Southeast, lots of roots, rocks, mud, etc. Great to see the 'mountain' coming back to mountain biking for the XC crowd. I understand they shouldn't be full on DH courses. However, modern bikes of all types, even XC, are so much more capable than the bikes were even 10-15 years ago.
  • 6 0
 @bman33: You probably haven't known older race courses. Back in the time (let's say in the 90's), the tracks were super technical where I was (i.e. Mont Sainte-Anne) and other places too, with roots and rocks everywhere so much so racers had to dismount and hike their bikes in several places. If there ever was some "smooth gravel paths" under their wheels, it must have been for a short time, and I'm glad to see that we're back to the "essence" of XC, meaning a mix of technical and rolling terrain + new school features like doubles and small drops here and there for the show.
  • 6 0
 @cool3: Totally. I am 42 and raced both local and the NORBA series in the 90's. The 90's had some gnarly XC courses. I was at MSA back in that time. Your XC and DH were beasts of courses. My comment about the lame gravel path type courses reflects early 2000's XC stuff around the US an several of the World Cup courses back then.
  • 3 0
 @bman33: Yeah, when we got the influx of the roadies the courses changed to reflect that.
  • 2 0
 @bman33: props given. Smile
  • 4 0
 @zutroy: Actually the influx of roadies was in the early 90s. By the mid-90s and early 2000s XC racing was primarily done by people who grew up mountain biking.

The "lame" XC course is a trend has happened and still exist in certain areas.
  • 2 0
 @cool3: Thanks, you as well!
  • 31 4
 Magnetic chain ring. There, just eliminated chain guides.
  • 7 1
 Fuckin genius
  • 33 1
 @dazzhotchkin: Except now you get unstoppable chainsuck...
  • 4 0
 @Socket: put a lower roller bearing chainguide on, but on the wrong side of the chain. totally defeats the point of having a magnetic chainring, but at least no chainsuck
  • 3 1
 @GumptionZA: If I was SRAM or Shimano I'd just tweak the strength of the magnet used, it might not be perfect but I'm sure you could reach a compromise. With a suitably magnetised, narrow wide ring with a clutch derailleur, it should be enough to go without a chain guide.
  • 7 0
 What? and waste all those precious Watts???? Smile
  • 5 2
 @dazzhotchkin: the magnets on the top half of the chainring should attract, the lower ones should repel. No? I'll see myself out XD
  • 2 1
 @Sontator: You do know chainrings rotate, right?
  • 40 15
 what the hell's a 35mm dropper gonna do? may as well bite the extra 100g and go full drop
  • 57 7
 A lot. They aren't downhillers and don't need the seat slammed. 35mm is probably exactly what they need , get the saddle down out of the power position, but enough to make tech sections easier.
  • 14 1
 @TheOriginalTwoTone: actually probably more like spesh only makes a 27.2mm dropper with 35mm drop- for their cx bikes. Interesting to see whether or not we'll be seeing larger drop droppers in xc soon enough.

The thing's 400g, may as well get a real 27.2 dropper
  • 21 3
 I wonder how many different positions a 35mm drop has
  • 5 1
 @bikingbayarea: Probably at least 60
  • 3 2
 @bikingbayarea: hahahahahahahaha!!!!!! Just what I was thinking!
  • 6 0
 Most of the benefit of a dropper (for XC) comes in the first cm or two IME. The geometry of the bike has your body in a very different position to a longer travel bike and you are never going to sit "in" the bike in the same way as a long, slack, descent focussed bike so you only need that extra smidgen of seat clearance to get behind the saddle a little easier/ give that extra margin for error. Long drop on a *proper* XC bike actually feels pretty ungainly due to the geo/ body position (again IME)
  • 8 1
 @TheOriginalTwoTone: you may actually find that most DH pros run their seats very high.
  • 4 1
 I would love a 35mm dropper post. I find I only need to lower my seat about 2" tops to get the position thats best for descending. Anything beyond that feels awful to me.
  • 1 0
 @Ninjasstolemytv: Ain't many 27.2 droppers out there!
  • 2 0
 @willapajames: KS LEV 272 has 100mm drop. Love it on my rigid XC whip!
  • 2 0
 @yzedf: Yup, that's about the only I've ever seen. Some day I'll have a modern bike with this new stuff I apparently can't ride without...
  • 19 1
 Has anyone ever measured how much 200 grams saved on the bike actually matter in a pro XC race? Does it even amount to seconds in the final time? Surely the added security of riding tech sections with the seat down must be worth the weight penalty of a dropper?
  • 10 1
 Dunno, but if they commonly use 3 bolts instead of 6 to fix disc rotors in order to shave few grams, 200g must be for Pro racer big deal...
  • 17 1
 Save 200g in 5 places and you've just shaved a whole kilo off your bike! I imagine once you get to the pro circuit where the riders can't really stand to lose weight, and they're all at a pretty high fitness level, they have to save every dime if they want to win!
  • 16 0
 There is actually a formula somewhere I have seen that equates weight to power out put when climbing. Everything matters when smashing vertical meters apparently.
  • 15 11
 @Kaspy: As far as I know they do that to change rotors easily, not for weight.
  • 16 1
 @Kaspy: Keep in mind that weight savings on wheels/rotors has more impact than on a dropper

It surprises me that we don't see more guys trying to make up time on the downs by trying a legitimate dropper here and there. I know the XC guys are good at riding with their saddle high, but have to imagine they could charge with it dropped.
  • 16 0
 @nvranka: Im not an XC guy by any means, but i would think there are more overtaking opportunities on the ups/flats rather than the downs, making it more valuable to not have a dropper.
  • 19 1
 For an elite level female racer, 200 grams is about 10-15 seconds over the course of race. Less for guys.

It isn't the weight that stops XC racers from using droppers, it is the decision making. This is a hard one for most to wrap their head around but it is a significant factor.

Plus a dropper on an XC bike just doesn't make the difference that does on a trail bike. With XC geometry the seat isn't in the way like it is on a trail bike. On my XC bike I have no need to put a dropper on it, my trail bike on the other hand is terrifying with the seat up.

Just about every XC racer uses a dropper on their trail bikes in the off season but when it comes to their race bikes they are tending (for now at least) to stay with straight posts.
  • 3 2
 @WhatAboutBob: makes sense. Ive never ridden a bike (except dh obv..) without a dropper, sounds scary!
  • 30 1
 @nvranka: The other thing people don't realize about is the need to change your tire set-up if you a dropper. With a dropper you can hit lines, and make moves that are beyond the capacity of XC tires.

If you look at Australia the riders who ran droppers flatted; Absalon, McConnel, and Davison all flatted.
  • 6 0
 @WhatAboutBob: ha! That's actually a great point, didn't think about that at all
  • 6 0
 @passwordpinkbike: You're 100% correct, sorry you're getting neg'd for it!
  • 3 0
 The other thing I've heard is that it is psychological - when you are racing if you think the other guy/girl has a lighter bike it somewhat kills your mojo!
  • 14 2
 I take a dump before the race and save the whole pound.
  • 6 0
 These guys and gals don't need "extra security" to ride anything they race on. As someone has already said, it is a question of speed, simplicity, decision making, etc

@karoliusz: a) You need to stop eating whatever gives you 1lb dumps, b) You think these racers haven't had a dump before racing with the light bikes too Wink Smile
  • 1 0
 Double post
  • 8 0
 The biggest thing is that in an xc race, you spend a relatively small amount of time descending. So something that makes you 10% faster going down has a much smaller effect on your overall time than something that makes you 10% faster going up. And if the things that make you faster going down also make you slower going up, there's very little point in using them. Even if the time penalty isn't that big, the amount of time spent climbing means that you could easily cancel out your downhill gains with the uphill losses.
  • 15 2
 I'm sorry but neither Haibike nor their parent company Winora are based in Taiwan, as both have their headquarters in Germany.
  • 12 1
 You're right - my mistake. The caption has been corrected.
  • 9 0
 I NEED one of those seat clamps. I can't even calculate the energy I've wasted in my life lugging around one of the typical boat anchors.
  • 3 0
 Available at all Motorist shops.... Personally I think someone forgot to pack a proper seat clamp!! Its a band clamp as used on many vehicles to attach coolant pipes.
  • 1 0
 @W4ld0: I agree. It's quite a strange sight to see on such a seemingly extremely high end team bike.
  • 11 5
 Few things I've thought about this, -you don't need a chain guide at all, i haven't dropped a chain in about a year with a shadow plus rear mech riding pretty rough stuff and having any chain guide is a weight penalty. -Having ridden a lot of cross country routes recently, some of which are world cup courses, I know that 200g is a lot. The fastest guys I see are all on hardtails, literally trying everything they can to save weight. -Lastly, I think we all know that a steeper seat tube angle helps not only with climbing but with general riding, I'm surprised there's so many slack seat tube angels and the riders are obviously compensating with their saddle position. It's late and i'm drunk which is why this is my first post. Loving the xc coverage.
  • 18 1
 Yes, you do need a chain guide. Chains are never dropped in training but for some reason when racing they are.
  • 7 2
 So basically, you are telling the worlds best riders that they are all wrong and you are correct. Why has nobody signed you up to be team manager yet?!
  • 6 0
 theteamrobot.blogspot.co.uk/2014/11/things-to-never-say.html "If you never drop a chain, it's because you suck".
  • 3 0
 @L0rdTom: Correct, if it hasn't dropped ride harder
  • 8 1
 Just did my first xc and damn I respect the hell for top level xc mountain bikers and any top level rider for that fact
  • 7 1
 That carbon post looks a lot like the old Syncros design with a little mass removed from the rail clamp
  • 8 1
 that haibike is badass, with the sweet powermeter and wheelset
  • 7 0
 I feel sexual attraction towards that bike
  • 3 0
 I was actually going to post that that is the most heinous bike I've ever seen right down to somehow making an SRM look butt ugly... funny how opinions can vary so much Smile
  • 6 3
 Realistically, most of these are show bikes with sponsors and mechanics showing off just because they can. But why not? I'm for it if it brings more attention to these brands (and it's working given this article). Realistically, Nino and Absalon would probably still win a WC on a top spec factory bike provided it was fitted to same dimensions as their normal bikes.
  • 3 0
 People whining about the weight saving methods need to actually take a moment to appreciate the incredible engineering genius that goes into making something so light able stand up to the chaos that is the modern XCO course. They are so technical now that they could certainly give the DH tracks of old a run for their money. I'm a DH guy myself but as as a scholar of aerospace engineering, I'm absolutely fascinated by the ideas the bike manufacturers come up with. Aviation can learn alot from these guys... After all the Wright brother's were bike builders first Smile
  • 5 0
 "Creetec make some of the lightest chain guides in existence"
Its "ceetec" not creetec.
  • 4 1
 is it worth to buy $3k in wheelset?? that bikeahead looks sick.
and theres a similar type that intended for trail riding only weight about 1300g+
  • 4 0
 Over 100 grams in rotational weight is quite a lot for these guys
  • 3 0
 For an amateur rider it is never worth paying 3k for wheels. For a sponsored rider who doesn't pay for their equipment it is worth having the best, even if it saves a quarter of a second it could make a difference.
  • 6 0
 Makes your wagon wheeler look like an actual wagon wheeler! That alone makes them worth considering!
  • 1 0
 Spend thousands shedding grams and then add 1kg of water bottle!! But seriously it is interesting to see the tech and lengths teams and riders must go to to gain that extra advantage, in racing every tenth of a second counts!!
  • 4 0
 Any serious racer never has more than 300g of water in their bottle. They'll get another one at the feed zone every lap or two.
  • 1 1
 Does anyone believe that Haibike can make a bike without any f****ng e-motor? I guess they have put the motor into the frame like this termal imaging camera has revealed latley in pro street cycling.


www.radsport-rennrad.de/race/profis/beweis-fuer-mechanisches-doping


(it is german but you will get the idea by the pictures)
  • 1 0
 I don't know about the extreme, negative rise/flipped stems, but I suppose they have exercise physiologists and fit specialists so it's probably more than just looks. Not very comfy at all!
  • 2 0
 Ah the original syncros seatpost head design...still popular nearly three decades later...
  • 3 0
 Can we get insight into XC racer/DH racer diet and supplementation?
  • 6 1
 I think you might want to be careful asking about "supplementation" in Elite sport Wink Smile
  • 2 0
 Bike ahead *aerospoke mountain bike division*
  • 1 0
 HED used to do aero mtb wheels back in the day. I saw a set for sale the other day and was really tempted to get them
  • 3 1
 I don't think Aerospoke has wheels that weigh under 1200gr for the pair.
  • 3 1
 @abtcup: I don't think Aerospoke has wheels that weigh under 1200g for ONE.
  • 1 0
 @abtcup hi Lee!
  • 4 1
 Dat dropper
  • 3 0
 I will take two.
  • 1 0
 All the silverback riders on the wc seem to ride with their seats slammed forward
  • 1 0
 For the uphills
  • 2 0
 The sight of mud on a bike must be daggers to a weight weenie xcer...
  • 1 0
 Maybe they coat the key bits - downtube, seat tube - with some sort of oil that stops or reduces mud sticking? Future secret tech to expose on a pit walk?
  • 2 0
 @AyJayDoubleyou: PAM... Not the garlic kind though. Been done for years...
  • 1 0
 @AyJayDoubleyou: Pledge furniture polish. Lemon scented works best! Old dirt bike trick for the inside of fenders to help keep the mud from building up. Bike cleanup is faster too.
  • 1 0
 Was using neverwet under my mud guards, worked really well but doesn't last long. Would be perfect for a race weekend but not day to day use, too much of a pain to follow all the coat steps
  • 1 1
 Guys - people are buying new hubs but reusing the really expensive rims they bought a year ago, how do we stop this?
Lets make a one piece carbon wheel
  • 1 0
 Love them spindly mags. Look like the £20 acorn mags from the uk back in the 80's for bmx.
  • 2 0
 27.5 mags for the win!!
  • 2 0
 Put 'em in the freezer if you bend 'em!
  • 1 0
 Those bontrager wheels look good, super light too! did PB do a review yet?
  • 3 3
 Seat clamp weight penalty.....
  • 1 0
 That Haibike is mint
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