Bike Check: Martin Maes' DH-Configured GT Force - Maribor World Cup DH 2021
Martin Maes has had one hell of a season so far. He became a father right at the start of the EWS season and returned to racing for EWS round three, where he was sitting in third until a crash in the final stage took him out of round four due to concussion symptoms. Now, he's back to racing on a new bike for the Maribor World Cup, where he's sitting 37th in the UCI Elite DH rankings, thanks to a 9th place result at the first Maribor World Cup last year and two 13th place finishes at the back-to-back Lousa events.
Martin's new bike is a Force that's tweaked to a downhill setup, which suits him, his coach Steve Spencer said, because he prefers a bit shorter travel than most on both his downhill and enduro bikes. While the Force comes stock with a 170mm fork for enduro mode, Martin prefers to run it at 160mm to keep the bike nimble. "He can choose very good lines," Spencer said. Similarly, instead of a 200mm fork, he's running 190mm up front to prioritize maneuverability over a monster truck feel.
Martin's new bike is a Force that's tweaked to a downhill setup, which suits him, his coach Steve Spencer said, because he prefers a bit shorter travel than most on both his downhill and enduro bikes. While the Force comes stock with a 170mm fork for enduro mode, Martin prefers to run it at 160mm to keep the bike nimble. "He can choose very good lines," Spencer said. Similarly, instead of a 200mm fork, he's running 190mm up front to prioritize maneuverability over a monster truck feel.
Martin Maes // GT Factory Racing
Age: 24
Hometown: Liege, Belgium
Height: 183cm / 6'0" (estimated by mechanic Mark Maurissen)
Weight: 72kg / 159lbs
Instagram: @martin_maes5
Age: 24
Hometown: Liege, Belgium
Height: 183cm / 6'0" (estimated by mechanic Mark Maurissen)
Weight: 72kg / 159lbs
Instagram: @martin_maes5
Details
Frame: GT Force (large)
Shock: Fox DHX2, 160mm, 425lb spring and "average" settings
Fork: Fox 40, 190mm, 73psi, rebound "very average" and LSR 10 / HSR 6
Wheels: 29" Stan's Flow F & R
Tires: 29" Michelin DH22 F & R
Drivetrain: Shimano Saint
Brakes: Shimano Saint, 200mm rotors F & R
Cockpit: OneUp bars at 780mm width, 20mm rise, RaceFace Atlas direct mount 50mm stem
Size: L
More info: GT Bicycles
Frame: GT Force (large)
Shock: Fox DHX2, 160mm, 425lb spring and "average" settings
Fork: Fox 40, 190mm, 73psi, rebound "very average" and LSR 10 / HSR 6
Wheels: 29" Stan's Flow F & R
Tires: 29" Michelin DH22 F & R
Drivetrain: Shimano Saint
Brakes: Shimano Saint, 200mm rotors F & R
Cockpit: OneUp bars at 780mm width, 20mm rise, RaceFace Atlas direct mount 50mm stem
Size: L
More info: GT Bicycles
 | We’re always trying new stuff just seeing what the capabilities are of certain bikes. Martin and the crew have been trying a couple different things out and we’ve been making a lot of learnings with the current setup and are looking to apply things down the road. It’s kind of just testing options and what works because every track is different and some bikes, you need a little more, a little less, a little more maneuverability, so we’re just finding out what the limitations are of the bike. They’ve been having a good time on it. |
Martin likes to keep his setup relatively consistent and runs the same brakes whether he's racing enduro or downhill, but he did switch to 200mm rotors front and rear for this race rather than his usual 180mm.
It's powered by a Saint 7-speed setup, with the recent addition of an idler wheel of course.
GT's chainstay adjustment lengthens or shortens the rear end by +/- 10mm. Martin has opted for the longer setting, putting the chainstays at 445mm.
By running shorter travel front and rear than most riders on the World Cup track, Martin can play to his strengths with an ultra-maneuverable bike.
A RaceFace stem and seatpost round out the build along with a Fabric saddle.
We expect him to have a lower number plate the next time he races a World Cup.
Author Info:
Must Read This Week
No wyn tv on on pinkside
I think it maybe the end of the world!
@suspended-flesh:
It really works for the fork manufacturers to be able to sell 2 sets of forks for 1 frame. Doesn't work so well for the frame manufacturers apart from streamlining their portfolio.
Having been there with my VPfree, a Dh bike is faster than an Enduro/all mountain freeride as it was back then bike with a Dh fork on. So for pure racing Dh racing, the Dh bike is faster, bit not by much, a couple of seconds on a track at the top level probably, which can be a lot of positions.
For average Joe, doing a few Dh races, spending thousands on a Dh rig doesn't really make sense these days.
It works for the consumer too, if it gives you more options with one frame, why not. And as you say, most people, even if they enter a couple DH races per year, probably don't need a purebred DH bike.
Lewis Buchanan did Hardline with his enduro bike with a few changes and finished 12th despite being all beat up from the crash in practice.
if the Sanction will be 170-180, as long as the atc of the 190 Fox40 is around the same numbers as the 180 Fox38.. then, yeah, this bike could be exactly that and showcase the potential of fhe Force(/futurevSanction) frame.
I find that hard to believe, maybe check units :^)
And, if @wardo7 had any sense of humor, he'd have used "road bike" instead of "running" in the last sentence.
Also, it's not unreasonable to expect a professional writer (somebody who gets paid to write) and content publisher (Pinkbike) to have significantly higher standards than the typical Pinkbike commenter. :-)
/rant>
with 29" wheels....................
I said it before, I will say it again: quality of PB reviews is going down...
Also, just an opinion: I guess main reason to run dual crown fork with 190mm travel not 200mm is to maintain original geometry, designed for 170mm single crown.