Jared Graves - Over a Decade with Yeti Cycles
It’s not an exaggeration to say Jared is one of the best bike racers of all time. He’s won world championship titles in 4x and enduro, competed in the Olympics in BMX, won a bronze medal in downhill at the World Championships (on a 6” bike even!), won an Australian national round or two in cross-country, and even beat up on unsuspecting roadies at local pro road races. He’s a machine in turquoise.
He was instrumental in the development of our most recognizable products: the 303 DH, 4x, SB66c, SB5c, and, most recently, the SB6c. When he wasn’t helping us develop products, he was helping us develop talent. Many of our best athletes have benefited from his guidance along the way, including the enormously talented current EWS World Champion, Richie Rude.
So how do you say farewell to an athlete like Jared? You grab a beer and start searching the archives for a slideshow as big as his Yeti career. No surprise, we found some great stuff.
Thanks for the good times, Grubby. You’re going to another team, but we all know you still bleed turquoise.
The champ's bike. Vintage shot // 2005.
2006 Sea Otter Classic. Grubby won the DH for the second consecutive year. He went on to win many more.
Sea Otter dual slalom 2006.
The view is always better from the front. Grubby getting it done on his home turf. World Cup, Canberra, AUS.
Le Bresse, World Cup, 2009. Although many were specializing in 4x or DH, Grubby continued to race both disciplines.
A young Jared Graves in Le Bresse in 2009. The number plate is from his 4x win the previous weekend in Belgium.
A working man's racer. Jared double checking tire pressure before his race.
Classic Grubby style. 2010 World Championships, Mt. Saint. Anne.
After dominating 4x for the previous two seasons, Jared was gutted when he lost at World Champs in 2010.
Kids, corner like this.
You don't win championships without making some dust.
Jared's no stranger to the box. After finishing the EWS season 2nd overall, he followed it up with a bronze medal at the World Championships in Downhill, which he raced on his 6" travel SB66c.
Top of the World, Whistler EWS 5, 2013.
Jared looking fast on his way to winning Valloire EWS in 2014.
To the victor goes the spoils.
Jared charging a technical section on a dreary day in La Thuile / EWS 4 / 2014.
Always at home in Colorado, Jared thrived in dry, dusty conditions. He was the man to beat when the EWS arrived in Winter Park, CO.
One of nicest guys on the circuit, Jared is serious about racing, but always quick with a smile.
One of our favorite EWS races. Jared and Ritchie went 1-2 in Winter Park. Jared was racing on a prototype SB6c and Richie was on the just released SB5c.
Racing is in our blood. Hanging out with the whole crew in Winter Park after a 1-2 finish.
In his second year racing enduro, Jared added another world championship title to his resume in Finale Ligure. He finished 2nd on the day, but won the overall title.
Yeti's 30th Anniversary. Jared won the final race of the season, Richie won the EWS overall. Couldn't think of a better ending. Thanks for everything, Jared and good luck. See you at the races...
MENTIONS: @yeticycles / @jaredgraves
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Enduro racing is much more like real world riding than downhill, and I'm sure that the EWS results sell bikes. Heaps of bikes.
Spesh have not done well in Enduro. Spesh does not compete to make up the top ten, they are there to win. The other riders they have had seem like good guys, but have not achieved the results that Spesh would demand. Therefore, Spesh need new talent.
So, who could they get? Most of the top 10 EWS racers are French, and while they are all fantastic riders, a French accent wont sell bikes in the US of A. So, who's left?
Richie Rude is a Young Gun, and Yeti would have died in a ditch to keep him in turquoise. Both Joe Barnes and Greg Callaghan are great riders, but would not build on brand Specialized as a one Mr Graves. Multiple 4X winner, strong competitor in downhill, and EWS winner. He may not win in 2016, but will compete very, very hard, with a preparation that is second to none. He will bring another rider on the team up the rankings. He will speak well but also speak his mind. He will still ride Fox. And, will have good input to he next round of Spesh bikes, where the investment pays off for them.
For Jared? He is now a 30 year old bike racer, in a highly technical disciple. No one lasts forever. I for one, could never blame him for making this move and helping secure his future. Good luck to him I say. He has earned it.
And, he has strong competition, from Richie Rude (who Graves has been talking up for some time) and many of the fine French riders who regularly feature in the top ten. All in all he has a good chance, but is no certainty...
For what it's worth I was just talking to a bike designer who designed a lot of mass produced frames of all kinds for various companies and He did say that Demo's axle path is indeed a draw back. A little one but still. But having said that I must say that I also saw, in person, Aaron and Troy riding and I can assure everyone that even if they had a pivot at the height of the bottom of the chain ring, world stands no chance. At least right now and Especially Gwin. I watched top 10 riders on what looked to me like the steepest, longest and harshest rock garden of the whole Val Di Sole track and his upper body was leveled as if he was riding on smooth surface. The bike seemed bouncing on very tops of each bump with little effect on fore/aft pitch. It seemed as if his bike was cutting through everything, as if rocks were made of soft loam lying around
Nevertheless: Demo will make your dick fly off
@beerhunter isn't Minaar like 35, and he was the closest person to win the overall after Gwin, with a broken hand in the offseason and velcroing his hand onto the bars for Lourdes?
He is switching to Sram and Rockshox.
The new Enduro has been ready for a while.
I'm not discussing the actual quality of the bikes here. Riders have done well on several of their bikes last season so they shouldn't hold anyone back that much.
I do see Spech signing with Jared, I am actually interested on what Engineering Changes he might propose for the Enduro. I guess it will be worth waiting a couple of years before I replace my Stumpy.
And yes, you're right that Graves will probably podium at the very least and that will get them exposure. Specialized should get that exposure bit sorted though. Anneke Beerten won loads last season, not to mention the podiums she got. It just didn't appear on the Specialized front page of their website. That said, I'm from The Netherlands and her wins and titles didn't make it to the newspapers either, not even the fine small lists at the edge of the sports pages. Mountainbiking results in the newspapers implied XC results, cycling implied road cycling. BMX racing does make it, but 4X and enduro results just didn't make it to the newspapers. So if Graves is doing well (or any of their riders for that matter in any of these less mainstream disciplines), Specialized should really decorate their website.
I think it was 2010 ?
As for the floating brake, it doesn't get much love nowadays but I always thought it was a clever way to be able to taylor how the brake interacts with the suspension. No matter how much you lean back, the fork will always dive a little if you decelerate due to braking. Especially on a steep descend. That, or you have some nifty low speed compression damping taking care of that or you have a fork layout that cancels it like what USE used to make. I actually appreciate that on such a single pivot system (like his Orange or my Cannondale Prophet) you can feather the rear brake to compress the rear suspension a little so that the bike stays level. People who are heavier on the rear brake may feel that it compresses too much and may use a floating brake to change it a little. Apparently Peaty was happy with how it behaves. Or he was indeed not using it
Jared is now Special
All the best next season Jared. (Your "boot sale" wheels are brilliant, thanks mate).
If he goes to Specialized I hope he can motivate them to figure out how to design a bike that doesn't blow up its rear shock like the current Enduro. I'm on Cane Creek shock #3 and won't be surprised when this one bites the dust. To me, the move to a custom Ohlins proves this is a known issue. Whether its the leverage ratio, fixed yolk, or lack of pixie dust, it doesn't matter.
I had a Twitter exchange with @themasterlink (their tech twitter account) where they said "We have had a positive experience with most manufactures using our shock design". So they are using riders for trial and error? Instead of owning it they are waiting for the owners to destroy shocks before doing something. This isn't the kind of experience I expected from Specialized and in my opinion they should: issue a recall and not sell current 2015 stock with the DBInline.
The silence from Specialized on this issue is disappointing and has caused me to reflect on all of the Specialized haters...maybe they are right?
Cane Creek must have signed off on using the In-Line on the Enduro being satisfactory .............I think its fair to say Spec and CC probably got the DB in-line wrong. Does anyone know how the Monarch Plus is working out on the 2016 non-Ohlins bikes??? That might give an additional insight on the lateral flex issue...
I cant see an all new enduro until its been fully developed... but no doubt they will modify the existing one for boost and swap the pike for a lyrik for stiffness. No doubt there will be a fattie version!
My next bike purchase will be with a company more concerned with durability than market share.
What I don't get is why they don't push ahead with consistency...... Why redesign the stumpy and put a 142 rear axle on the 29 and 650 but use the latest boost 148 on the 650 plus fattie??
www.youtube.com/watch?v=i94neryXFGI
p.vitalmtb.com/photos/forums/2015/12/16/3030/s1200_1623639_10154461533778266_3448359830955544842_n.jpg
I hope they find a good rider (Graves?) to improve the bike and make a decent 650b model
WILL JARED RIDE AN ENDURO 29ER FOR EWS NEXT YEAR?