GT Bicycles Announces 2009 Team Roster
by Tyler Maine
Oct 29, 2008
Source: GT Bikes
GT Bicycles today announced the new 2009 GT mountain bike team. The team is gravity focused and consists of DH connoisseur Marc Beaumont from the United Kingdom and the young and promising DHer Kevin Aiello from southern California. Swiss rider Roger Rinderknecht and Aussie Luke Madill will be riding 4X and BMX and freerider Tyler McCaul round out the team.
GT Bicycles today announced the new 2009 GT mountain bike team. The team is gravity focused and consists of DH connoisseur Marc Beaumont from the United Kingdom and the young and promising DHer Kevin Aiello from southern California. Swiss rider Roger Rinderknecht and Aussie Luke Madill will be riding 4X and BMX and freerider Tyler McCaul round out the team.
Marc “Slugger” Beaumont, the wily downhill ace out of Craven Arms, England, is one of the most consistent and respected World Cup racers on the circuit. The 24 year-old Beaumont has proven his consistency over the last few seasons making him a front runner to be on any World Cup podium. Another factor in Marc’s success is that he is a protégé to another UK DHer and former GT superstar, Steve Peat. After starting off the 2008 season with an injury, Marc is now getting back up to speed and will be doing full throttle testing on the new GT carbon DH bike… the Fury.
Kevin Aiello is just 17 years-old, but he has already tested out his skills on the World Cup circuit. Kevin has dominated the Fontana, California series in Downhill and 4X as well as winning a few west coast NORBA races. Kevin will also be testing the new GT carbon Fury.
Roger Rinderknecht has been on the World Cup circuit for a few years dominating both 4X and BMX courses. Roger won the silver medal in 4X at the 2008 World Championships and his recent and most prestigious accomplishment was competing in the 2008 Olympics!
Luke Madill has primarily focused on BMX racing in the past, but this year Madill will compete in both BMX and UCI SX races, as well as MTB 4X races on the World Cup circuit. Luke represented Australia and GT Bicycles in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing and took third place in 4X at the UCI World Cup in Canberra.
Tyler McCaul has certainly come out of the shadow of his older brother Cam. Not only has Tyler proven himself on the dirt jumps, he’s been holding his own on the DH race course as well. Look for Tyler in 2009 to be killin’ it on the new GT Fury.
“We are certainly excited and proud to have such great athletes on our team moving forward,” said Sarah Ostermeier, Sports Marketing Manager for GT Bicycles. “We’ve got a great combination of talent for 2009 which certainly solidifies GT Bicycles commitment to our brand and to the sport.”
The team’s schedule for 2009 includes; hitting all of the World Cup races, some select American races, Crankworx, UCI SX Racers and a few others in between. Keep an eye out for the new GT Bicycles team and check for updates on www.gtbicycles.com.
GT Bicycles is part of the Cannondale Sports Group Division of Dorel Industries (TSX: DII.B, DII.A).
About GT Bicycles
Built on its race-proven performance products, GT Bicycles has been designing technologically advanced bikes in the road, mountain and BMX categories since 1973. For more information about GT Bicycles, please visit www.gtbicycles.com.
Kevin Aiello is just 17 years-old, but he has already tested out his skills on the World Cup circuit. Kevin has dominated the Fontana, California series in Downhill and 4X as well as winning a few west coast NORBA races. Kevin will also be testing the new GT carbon Fury.
Roger Rinderknecht has been on the World Cup circuit for a few years dominating both 4X and BMX courses. Roger won the silver medal in 4X at the 2008 World Championships and his recent and most prestigious accomplishment was competing in the 2008 Olympics!
Luke Madill has primarily focused on BMX racing in the past, but this year Madill will compete in both BMX and UCI SX races, as well as MTB 4X races on the World Cup circuit. Luke represented Australia and GT Bicycles in the 2008 Olympics in Beijing and took third place in 4X at the UCI World Cup in Canberra.
Tyler McCaul has certainly come out of the shadow of his older brother Cam. Not only has Tyler proven himself on the dirt jumps, he’s been holding his own on the DH race course as well. Look for Tyler in 2009 to be killin’ it on the new GT Fury.
“We are certainly excited and proud to have such great athletes on our team moving forward,” said Sarah Ostermeier, Sports Marketing Manager for GT Bicycles. “We’ve got a great combination of talent for 2009 which certainly solidifies GT Bicycles commitment to our brand and to the sport.”
The team’s schedule for 2009 includes; hitting all of the World Cup races, some select American races, Crankworx, UCI SX Racers and a few others in between. Keep an eye out for the new GT Bicycles team and check for updates on www.gtbicycles.com.
GT Bicycles is part of the Cannondale Sports Group Division of Dorel Industries (TSX: DII.B, DII.A).
About GT Bicycles
Built on its race-proven performance products, GT Bicycles has been designing technologically advanced bikes in the road, mountain and BMX categories since 1973. For more information about GT Bicycles, please visit www.gtbicycles.com.
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93 Comments
- - 3
blinddk
(Oct 29, 2008 at 14:55)
nice kinda il ride it
sounds like you are the prick and you should get your facts straight before you go running your mouth. He doesn't own any part of ibis
im not sure if blinddk is talking about the bike or this roger character. lets hope he means the bike...
yer man, the new GT nike looks so dam nice! accomplishing what they have failed to do in the past with the looks
[Reply]
Carbon is stronger than aluminum. Nearly as strong if not stronger than steel.
Its been proven to work on both BMX and dh frames in the past.
Fact is carbon is brittle when it comes to impacts... so is your body. IE if you bail hard generally your bike and you will break... so in other words your not losing anything. You still get boned when you fall hard enuf.
other than that the carbon GT frame should be stronger than anything else on the market just do to the simple fact of carbons strength.
Its been proven to work on both BMX and dh frames in the past.
Fact is carbon is brittle when it comes to impacts... so is your body. IE if you bail hard generally your bike and you will break... so in other words your not losing anything. You still get boned when you fall hard enuf.
other than that the carbon GT frame should be stronger than anything else on the market just do to the simple fact of carbons strength.
carbon fibre is stronger lb per lb than aluminum and steel and gt is using it for strenght not weight so frame should weight the same or maybe a little lighter than the DHi but it should be nearly ten times stronger.
beauty of CF is that you can decign the frame to be stiff where it needs to be and to flex where it needs to depending on how you lay the CF sheets
beauty of CF is that you can decign the frame to be stiff where it needs to be and to flex where it needs to depending on how you lay the CF sheets
i agree that on paper, and in strength that carbonfibre is stonger, but im syaing that when you bail off of a bike, for me i want somethign thats not going to be compromised if there is one dent or even deep sratch in CF, it compromises the strength a lot more than aluminum or steel. thats why when you buy a CF helmet, they stongly recomend if its dented even a litte, that you replace it. for me, im sticking with aluminum bikes.
maybe i havnt but from what all these people are saying about how carbon fiber is great dont be so sure of yourself.
and flex doesnt mean that its not strong it means that it flexes where it needs to and where it doesnt it is insanely stong. im sure gt has the highest technology for making CF frames.
CF is stronger than ALU indeed in most mechanical characteristics, when looking at wieght/strength rati. However as it was partially mentioned CF has almost no resistance to hits. It does not snap, it does not break, it falls apart. CF frame will withstand huge drops, flat landings, short landings, rockgardens - far better than any alu frame with same weight. Though, at higher speeds it will just fall apart when some bigger stone will hit it, flying from under the front wheel...
therefore, it might not be the best material to use on DH frame, at least not on swingarm which is especially exposed to flying stones and hitting the stable ones in rockgardens.
it all depends on how you lay it and what type of CF it is. CF isn't as brittle as it once was & i'm sure a big company like GT has put a lot of R&D into this, and wouldnt bring out a DH bike that cant handle DH. they aren't retarded.
I am not a material enigneer to debate that in detail, I am just an architect after some material characteristics courses on civil engineering studies. My father builds and flies RC models, I have seen what happens to extremely strong wing construction from CF. It can handle lots loooots of force and stress, but not hits... And regarding GT- I do not think they are retarded - I just think they do that bike from marketing reasons, however each design like that carries a certain level of development with it what is good, so let it be: let them take one for the team... but nobody is going to love them for frames falling into pieces.
Carbon is stronger. My old Remec DH crack just in AL parts. The carbon is integer and riding until today. See the photo of my friend jumping it last week:
http://www.pinkbike.com/photo/2583176/
http://www.pinkbike.com/photo/1775877/
http://www.pinkbike.com/photo/2583176/
http://www.pinkbike.com/photo/1775877/
Dorados are flexy just like any other 32mm stanction fork. My shivers with no crows and a stainless axle are stiffer than 40's. Its the stainless axle that made the diff.
now on to lcstay10 most of the time you won't get up from a dh crash if you are really pinning it. Every time I fall I break something on my bike and myself. Aluminum or carbon if will have to be replace if you fall hard enuf. Now if you don't fall your not pushing it hard enough
now on to lcstay10 most of the time you won't get up from a dh crash if you are really pinning it. Every time I fall I break something on my bike and myself. Aluminum or carbon if will have to be replace if you fall hard enuf. Now if you don't fall your not pushing it hard enough
for those of you who question carbons ability to be made into a dh frame check out http://bcdracing.com/frames/frameindex.html
BCD racing. These guys have PROVEN it works and PROVEN it can take one hell of a beating.
BCD racing. These guys have PROVEN it works and PROVEN it can take one hell of a beating.
Let's remember, F1 race cars and the newest Americans fighter aircrafts, inclusive the main structures, are made of carbon fibber. There are several combinations of carbon and resins, and several process of fabrication. The mistake is to think that carbon DH bikes are made of the same carbon used for XC and roads bikes. It is possible to make ultra strong carbon for DH bikes because the carbon affords more options of construction than the aluminium. The price is the only carbon's problem.
carbon is only strong in the strength to weight ratio. a super light xc bike made of full carbon is actually very weak. an alluminum dh bike is very strong, but its heavy. for example, i cracked a carbon spacer a month ago. i switched to an alluminum one, and i know it'll last longer because it weighs a little more
what about CF downhill helmets??? they are tough as f*ck! they wouldnt be allowed to make them if they were brittke and broke if they got scratched!
thats because only the outer shell is carbon and its covered in platic so it DOESNT shatter. the actual inside isnt carbon
no gfbitter its not. Nothing is ever plastic on a frame. Maybe a composite but never a plastic. Any educated person would know that.
btw gfbitter check out BCD bikes if you think a carbon dh frame needs plastic in the middle not to fracture. Why are people stuck in the stone age with carbon tech. Carbon has come A LONG ways since 10 and 20 years ago. Carbon doesn't break and shatter like it used to.
BCD bikes - well, they are unknown worldwide and I do not think that suddenly people from all over the world will start ot buy their bikes just because they do carbon bikes that work... these bikes are far from being a good esthetic form design - they look like a garage manufacture prototypes therefore they do not look solid and reliable - I m speaking just from the marketing point of view. So I need another example of a reliable carbon fiber DH bike... for now I think it's still 10:0 for Alu...
I think it's called the GT flight or something. Its the replacement for the DHI?!?! sweet bike though, they haven't dropped any weight but the bike is ten times stronger! GT's are waaayy to underrated!
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[Reply]
love the business jive talk at the bottom from the "sports marketing manager". i wonder how many times shes used that blanket statement. i don't figure dave turner, lance canfield or dave weagle use "sports marketing managers". point is- great bikes are made by great bike people, who are passionate about the sport. i wonder what the life expectancy is on that plastic DH bike. never liked full sus GT bikes- won't ever ride 'em.
Just the fact you called carbon fiber plastic shows you have 0 clue. Its not the same stuff as their old thermoplastic frames.
I think a simple physics and or chemistry class will show you that carbon is superior to metals in most cases when it comes to sheer strength. Time for people to wake up... we are not living in the 70's anymore. Carbon has come A LONG way since then.
I think a simple physics and or chemistry class will show you that carbon is superior to metals in most cases when it comes to sheer strength. Time for people to wake up... we are not living in the 70's anymore. Carbon has come A LONG way since then.
"never liked full sus GT bikes- won't ever ride 'em." - How the hell would you know if the GT's sucked if you will never ride them? too many people talking out their A$$'s
I grew up on GT bmx bikes and love the company. They are one of the last pioneers to the sport left.
It is the GT Fury but the Team edition is black but if you want to buy it then it will be white and black, look at my faves for the shop version. Tried ordering this direct from GT 6 months ago but am still awaiting some news. Nice considering I raced for them once???? GT make the bikes like they always have but the backroom dept needs a good effin kick.
An awesome bike that Sarah Ostermiere should have had in the shops for xmas??? Bad marketing im afraid but another fantastic bike from GT
An awesome bike that Sarah Ostermiere should have had in the shops for xmas??? Bad marketing im afraid but another fantastic bike from GT
[Reply]
[Reply]
t3h1337r (15 mins ago) (Below Threshold) show comment
Carbon is stronger than aluminum. Nearly as strong if not stronger than steel.
Its been proven to work on both BMX and dh frames in the past.
Fact is carbon is brittle when it comes to impacts... so is your body. IE if you bail hard generally your bike and you will break... so in other words your not losing anything. You still get boned when you fall hard enuf.
other than that the carbon GT frame should be stronger than anything else on the market just do to the simple fact of carbons strength.
The difference being that "usually" we heal. The bike doesnt, and can get awfully expensive. Personally I have never had an issue with aluminum/steel. It has worked on my hardtail, my dh bike, and my dirtbike why change it up now.
Carbon is stronger than aluminum. Nearly as strong if not stronger than steel.
Its been proven to work on both BMX and dh frames in the past.
Fact is carbon is brittle when it comes to impacts... so is your body. IE if you bail hard generally your bike and you will break... so in other words your not losing anything. You still get boned when you fall hard enuf.
other than that the carbon GT frame should be stronger than anything else on the market just do to the simple fact of carbons strength.
The difference being that "usually" we heal. The bike doesnt, and can get awfully expensive. Personally I have never had an issue with aluminum/steel. It has worked on my hardtail, my dh bike, and my dirtbike why change it up now.
when I fall I break frames and parts. If your not falling hard enough your not riding hard enough IMO. Why do you think I dumped my 40lb downhiller and got me a 50 lb tank. I don't have to re buy parts every time i go flying 50 feet over the bars.
now if you question carbon check out BCD bikes.
now if you question carbon check out BCD bikes.
"Just the fact you called carbon fiber plastic shows you have 0 clue. Its not the same stuff as their old thermoplastic frames.
I think a simple physics and or chemistry class will show you that carbon is superior to metals in most cases when it comes to sheer strength. Time for people to wake up... we are not living in the 70's anymore. Carbon has come A LONG way since then."
I dont think anyone is denying that Carbon is worse than most metals, people really are not as dumb as you think they are... The point you seem to be missing, even though you mentioned it in your last post, is that carbon is fragile. Carbon is strong, and one advantage is you can tailor were you want the strength in the weave BUT it still does not have the impact absorption of steel. If carbon was such a fantastic material for the kind of stuff we use it for moto guys would have been using it for awhile now. It is great for race cars/roadbikes/xc bikes, but not for anything that takes a ton of impact.
I think a simple physics and or chemistry class will show you that carbon is superior to metals in most cases when it comes to sheer strength. Time for people to wake up... we are not living in the 70's anymore. Carbon has come A LONG way since then."
I dont think anyone is denying that Carbon is worse than most metals, people really are not as dumb as you think they are... The point you seem to be missing, even though you mentioned it in your last post, is that carbon is fragile. Carbon is strong, and one advantage is you can tailor were you want the strength in the weave BUT it still does not have the impact absorption of steel. If carbon was such a fantastic material for the kind of stuff we use it for moto guys would have been using it for awhile now. It is great for race cars/roadbikes/xc bikes, but not for anything that takes a ton of impact.
pinner41 no need to give me neg props.
anyways, I know its a discussion wich I took part on, and just expressed my mind.
I think its a good thing for the sport to progress and look for alternatives
anyways, I know its a discussion wich I took part on, and just expressed my mind.
I think its a good thing for the sport to progress and look for alternatives
http://bcdracing.com/frames/frameindex.html
Check that link ERIC. Its been proven to work for dh. I've personally seen some of the crap carbon can take. Carbon is NOT good for motorcross because of all the different things that play into dirtbikes. Its comparing apples to oranges. Its like saying well if a bike has carbon why isnt car chassis made from em. You can't compare the 2 just because they have 2 wheels. They are in no way alike.
Check that link ERIC. Its been proven to work for dh. I've personally seen some of the crap carbon can take. Carbon is NOT good for motorcross because of all the different things that play into dirtbikes. Its comparing apples to oranges. Its like saying well if a bike has carbon why isnt car chassis made from em. You can't compare the 2 just because they have 2 wheels. They are in no way alike.
We have using carbon on are steering rods and axles for Mx and GP ATV racing for the last three years, without one problem or even replacing rods after a wreck. The nice thing about carbon is the damping it gives you when you need it. vibration sucks. This bike should feel super stable at speed.
Bike likes nice yes of course guys but I'm sure that thing is very heavy. I need a lighter bike to have the right control
[Reply]
has anyone besides me ever seen carbon explode on impact? its not pretty, its kidna like a hand gernade going off between your legs from all the crbon material flying everywhere. if that thing fails, your going to the hospital. period.
actually, that is not correct. The "grenade" effect you speak of is called catastrophic failure and carbon is TODAYS carbon is not prone to catastrphic failures like Carbon of days past. Head tubes do not pop off TODAYS carbon frames like a weld failure on TODAYS aluminum frame. The thing is, carbon is an evolving technology that continues to improve the furthur it gets developed and applied.
But all you carbon haters are right, we as an industry should not attempt to evolve and push limits. I say lets start making DH bikes out of steel since so many here are compairing carbon with steel...
But all you carbon haters are right, we as an industry should not attempt to evolve and push limits. I say lets start making DH bikes out of steel since so many here are compairing carbon with steel...
ya i dunno im sure not convinced yet, dont feel like being the test dummy either. lol. i saw a guys easton carbon dh bar break in half about two weeks ago and it tore a hole the size of cell phone in his leg. it was nasty.. i guess it could have been his error by overclamping his lever or something but im still pretty scared of it, at least for dh and fr.. steel all the way!!! improvement in heat treating processes and tube butting will make a big difference in the steel game. as far as carbon, just not the right tool for the job when it comes to dh. but thats just my 2 cents.. so if you like it.. buy one!!
hey hey hey dyerroad swd chromoly frames are siiiiick.
Steal is real.
But carbon still has its place.
And chronic freeride I'll post this one more time just for you.
http://bcdracing.com/frames/frameindex.html
tell me its not proven.
O and btw the "heat treating" processes you speak of have not changed in the last 50 years. Its the same thing. Carbon HAS changed though.
Steal is real.
But carbon still has its place.
And chronic freeride I'll post this one more time just for you.
http://bcdracing.com/frames/frameindex.html
tell me its not proven.
O and btw the "heat treating" processes you speak of have not changed in the last 50 years. Its the same thing. Carbon HAS changed though.
I thought that was cam at first to my horror. I always keep forgetting about tyler who looks exactly like him
I like the bike and all but GT has made some pretty brudal bikes in the past couple years, i have ahd 2. now don't get me wrong, they make pretty good street bikes, but im not sure if i'd trust them for DH. know what i mean
? Their top end dh rigs were fine what are you smoking. You probably baught a 400$ bike thinking you could ride DH on it. Good bikes cost a load of money and there was 0 wrong with their top tier bikes. 0 wrong.
kevin is the man. sickest kid i know ahha
he looks at a sections hucks the whole thing and says i found the line.. he gets buck nasty haha
he looks at a sections hucks the whole thing and says i found the line.. he gets buck nasty haha
friggen people argue for the sake of getting props to make themselves feel good....for the most part. You can tell who's 15, and who knows what theyre actaully saying. PROPS PLEASE!!!!!........
they are 32mm stanction to save weight DUH.
Unlike the others they have stayed tried and true to the 32 mm stanction allowing them to really master the making of them. But with metals ever changing its possible to make bigger, thinner stanctions that stiffen the forks up and still save weight.
Unlike the others they have stayed tried and true to the 32 mm stanction allowing them to really master the making of them. But with metals ever changing its possible to make bigger, thinner stanctions that stiffen the forks up and still save weight.
It is still a type of SINGLE PIVOT, carbon or not= braking induced suspension movement, pedal feed back "helped by GT frame design though", and worse square edged hit performance than many other designs. That is why I would not buy one. I have nothing against carbon it is the way the bike industry is heading. The only reason the big three don't make carbon DH bikes is because no one would buy them aka too expensive and people worried about them as seen in all the comments on this post. Also the smaller bike companies don't use it because the testing required to finalized a layup schedule and design of a carbon frame on a bikes is way to expensive. Specialized breaks more frames in their test lab every year than many companies make in a year. For example they spent over 2,000,000 USD to develop and finalize the new 2009 Epic (which won worlds by the way this year).
Basically probably wont see mainstream carbon DH frames for 3-6 years
Basically probably wont see mainstream carbon DH frames for 3-6 years
its i-drive...used to have an i-drive 7 and got 0 suspension feedback from braking or pedalling. went single pivot now though and it just feels so much better to ride.
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