Sam Hill's Nukeproof Pulse - Hafjell World Cup
Hafjell, Norway
SAM HILL'S
Nukeproof Pulse
Nukeproof Pulse
WORDS Mike Levy
PHOTOS Fraser Britton
Sam's Nukeproof race bike may appear to be a standard Pulse in team colours, but as you might expect, that is far from the case. From a one-off hybrid frame that is half way in size between a medium and large, prototype 'First Ride' tires from Schwalbe, and a healthy dose of very special BlackBox suspension from RockShox, this is one machine that deserves a second look. Lovingly looked after by Brooks Cardwell, Sam's mechanic, the blue, yellow, and white bike weighs in at a claimed 38 pounds even, which is certainly a few pounds heavier than some of the flyweight rigs on the World Cup circuit, but having spent a considerable amount of time on a Pulse test bike of our own we can attest to the bike's brawny "I can go straight through that" personality. Think more along the lines of George Foreman in his prime rather than Muhammad Ali and his fast footwork.
 | He did the first half of the year on a stock medium and is now riding the (custom) medium/large to see if he prefers it. - Nigel Page, team manager |
The medium-sized production Pulse that Hill raced aboard during the first half of the year features an effective top tube length of 605mm/23.8", a number which is pretty much inline with many other production frames on the market. It sounds as if Hill was looking for a little more real estate up front, though, as the frame that he is now racing has had its top tube stretched out by 12.5mm to 617.5mm/24.3''. That may not sound like much, but it goes along with the current trend that is seeing racers looking for a longer front-center, and therefore a slightly longer wheelbase as well. This last number has been further increased by the Nukeproof AS1 fixed, angle-adjusting headset that slackens the Pulse out from its stock 63° to what we would say is a pro-only 62° number. Not trying
 |
Suspension Design
Hill's Pulse is equipped with a BlackBox-spec Vivid R2C shock from RockShox that undoubtedly has some special tweaks hidden within it that meet Sam's needs, and a 400lb titanium spring is used to shave a few precious grams. The bike's single pivot, linkage activated suspension design uses a compact and nearly hidden linkage, and it certainly appears that the designers have put reliability and rigidity higher than light weight or designer looks on the priority list. The two short, stout links that connect the swing arm to the rocker arm are home to four angular contact bearings, two on each side, as well as C-clips that act to keep the bearings from shifting in their bores over time, and steel and aluminum hardware holds everything together. The one-piece rocker arm rotates from above on a captive pivot, and the bike's shock mounts via a steel bolt and an easily replaceable nut on the non-drive side.
 |
The build kit
Not surprisingly, Sam's bike is spec'd with a number of signature parts from Nukeproof, including a 38mm rise alloy handlebar that measures in at 760mm wide, and a direct-mount stem that sits atop what looks like a 5mm riser plate. All of the above makes for a tall cockpit compared to how most of the average downhillers set their bikes up, and it likely takes a pretty aggressive approach to make work, something that a rider like Hill certainly has no problem doing. His seat uses uses a pleated top cover to keep him from sliding around in nasty conditions, although Sam seems to run it year round, including during the fast and dusty Pietermaritzburg World Champs in South Africa a few weeks ago. Platforms are on the bike, with Hill running a set of Nukeproof Neutrons with titanium axles. The only carbon on Hill's Pulse is a set of X0 DH cranks from Truvativ and the BlackBox brake levers that bear his name, with Hill preferring to use a set of X0 Trail master cylinders paired a set of four piston Code calipers from Avid. While there were countless words put down online and in print going over Hill's move from Specialized to ride the Pulse, most ignored the fact
that he was also going from using Specialized's own rubber to German tire company Schwalbe. Many of us are quite particular about the tires we use, with riders often swearing by one brand or another, so it's no small thing for a pro contending for World Cup wins to switch it up. He is obviously getting along quite well with the Schwalbe rubber, though, as we've seen plenty of the tricky inside lines that he's known for during this season.
The drivetrain is a mix of off the shelf components and bits that mere mortals can only dream about... for now, at least. Sam is running a LG1+ Turbo guide from e*thirteen that offers maximum protection compared to the trimmer LG1+ guide and its taco slider, and like many World Cup racers his cassette is trimmed down by a few cogs and features a guard to keep the chain from going into the spokes during a worst-case scenario. The bike's derailleur may have the markings of an XX1 unit, but its shorter than stock cage signifies its intentions as a downhill-only item, as well as a component that is only available to BlackBox racers.
The drivetrain is a mix of off the shelf components and bits that mere mortals can only dream about... for now, at least. Sam is running a LG1+ Turbo guide from e*thirteen that offers maximum protection compared to the trimmer LG1+ guide and its taco slider, and like many World Cup racers his cassette is trimmed down by a few cogs and features a guard to keep the chain from going into the spokes during a worst-case scenario. The bike's derailleur may have the markings of an XX1 unit, but its shorter than stock cage signifies its intentions as a downhill-only item, as well as a component that is only available to BlackBox racers.
| Sam is using Code calipers for a bit of extra power on the big World Cup tracks, but he likes the feel of the X0 Trail levers, so uses that combo. - Nigel Page, team manager |
 |
www.chainreactioncycles.com
www.facebook.com/TeamChainReactionCycles
Want to ride with Sam?
Author Info:
Must Read This Week
Sign Up for the Pinkbike Newsletter - All the Biggest, Most Interesting Stories in your Inbox
PB Newsletter Signup
And I like a number of riders more than Gwin but so many idiots like putting him down. IMO Blenkinsop is the most stylish rider. Effortless.
I like smooth and flowy by the way, id prefer watch both Gee and Gwin ahead of CG, his style doesnt do a lot for me.
Once you reach the top, you can only go down.
Gwin is a poor example mainly because he was on the wrong frame size at the start and his still be changing the bikes geo, his clearly not happy with the geometry.
Would that mean gwin would be on top at trek who knows but he may be a little bit better off.
At the end of the day the rider is what matters 100% agree but at the top level these small percentages the bike makes is a bigger difference, say the bike is only worth 2% for a 4min run that is 4.8seconds. Its a big factor at that level so even if someone is trained higher than another rider their kit can still let them down.
This would assume a perfect run from each rider though and in the world of downhill there is no perfect run. rider>bike but bike is still a factor
I think the bike does have a huge impact but not the way people often claim. There is no perfect geo, it's more about finding the geo that suits you. Hill dominated on a demo and people worshipped the demo until Gwin got on it and now people are saying the demo is a shit bike. Wait, what?
On the other hand, there was a massive backlash at the fury for years and now that Gee is winning with GT, people seem to be taking their sweet time to swallow their pride.
Edit: judging by his other comments, he might be a hater after all.
http://youtu.be/Wsldc1IriVU?t=24m41s
My mate has one and its the sickest bike iv ridden. Shame there as expensive!
Sam is better than he was back in 07 its just so is everyone else.
(that's so nerdy, I'll get my coat...)
Great looking bike BTW.
Didn't know this was 2007 again where Paris Hilton was relevant.......... for all of 10 seconds.