Tommy Wilkinson is a name you may well know. World Cup photographer, race organiser, agency-runner, and affable charismatic joker are but a few of his titles. In 2013, Tommy sustained a life-changing injury that pulled all the peripheral nerves out of his spinal cord. This meant he lost the function of his right arm entirely. In fact, they were detached with so much force that they actually damaged the central cord at the C3. Interestingly enough, a consequence of Tommy's injury, and a testament to the complications of the human body and its nervous system, is that whilst Tommy still has full mobility in his left leg, he no longer feels temperature and has lost much of its sensory function.
After the injury, Tommy wished to get back on his bike quite quickly. However, the consequences of the injury were far reaching. It took him around six months to learn to walk again and it wasn't until a trip to New Zealand many months later that things really clicked with bicycle riding again.
Tommy rode the Old Ghost Road on a modified Giant Reign by Paul "Pang" Angus, who's a friend from their days on the Clan DH team. For Tommy, this seems to have been something of a watershed moment. It got him back out there, enjoying the trails with friends. Although that bike did an admirable job, there's a large gulf between that setup and Tommy's current one.
With the help of SRAM, Tommy has worked out several key changes that have large knock-ons in terms of both ease of use and ultimately performance, and isn't that what we're all aiming for?
The BuildA mid-travel trail bike offers a good compromise for Tommy and the technical trails he likes to ride.
The SRAM Code's master cylinder displaces enough oil to operate both Level calipers.
Frame & WheelsTommy rides a size large Santa Cruz Tallboy CC. When I asked "travel?" Tommy "yes, it will happily do 15 miles on a Sunday morning". With the top draw dad-jokes out the way and onto the suspension, the comparatively micro measurements are 120mm in the rear of the bike paired to a 150mm fork. Ample for a trail bike. Tommy stands at 182cm and runs the bike in its low setting.
The main draw of the bike is the one-sided brake and the steering damper. Steering dampers are common in other two-wheeled pursuits although less so in mountain biking. They essentially mute the trail feedback and aid stability. Think of it a bit like hitting a curb with your wheel - the handlebars act as a lever to magnify this force and the Hopey headset will help resist that sudden jolt. Similarly, it will add a degree of weight and precision to rider inputs.
Tommy runs Zipp 3Zero Moto wheels shod with Maxxis Assegai and DH2 combination. Tommy uses the Tyrewiz and 22PSI front and rear. The Zipp Motos are a wheel famed for their vertical compliance, and it seems very fitting for this application.
Headset & CockpitTommy uses not only a steering damper but also a whole contingent of parts from SRAM. The AXS Reverb seatpost he uses is 150mm in drop.
BrakesThe single-sided brake lever is the Code RSC and it manages to operate two SRAM Level two-pot calipers. Because of the Code's comparatively large master cylinder, it means it can displace enough oil to operate both calipers. A ramification, which is something of a double-edged sword, is that it's unlikely to achieve the piston pressure to lock either wheel. This, according to Tommy, works well but it is something you have to consciously set up for. He now spends less time with the bike undergoing hard braking and tends to brake for a longer duration at a lower intensity.
To have this system running optimally, Tommy feels it needs to be run with a lower amount of lever throw. This isn't just a preference for braking feel but also because, with just one hand having to provide both grip on the bar as well as operating the controls, the different bite point will affect Tommy's hand, wrist and subsequently body position.
There is a 200mm rotor on the front of the bike and a 180mm one on the rear. The Level T calipers use SRAM sintered pads.
The all important brake divider.
SuspensionTommy explains that because of his rather unique demands, fork setup can be tricky. He tends to weight the fork in a more passive manner, and subsequently find that there is quite a small window in terms of setup. The performance is there, it just takes some tinkering.
DrivetrainTommy found that the lack of left-sided rear shifters to be a sticking point, let alone running both brakes and a dropper from the same side. Initially, Tommy ran an upside-down gripshift. Whilst this did help it also had two main problems. Firstly, it meant his outer fingers were having to do even more gripping on a shorter length of grip. It also meant that whilst braking and using his weight to drive the bike through compressions, His wrist could begin to rotate on the mechanism and it would also start changing gear. Neither of which were particularly helpful.
Instead, he now uses the AXS lever which controls his dropper and the Blips system to control his gears. The blip buttons, which are more commonly found on road bikes, have been incorporated to the cockpit and held securely with simple electric tape where needed.
To follow Tommy and his adventures, you can find him on Instagram.
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www.tartybikes.co.uk
www.tartybikes.co.uk/disc_brake_levers/hope_tech_3_duo_lever/c556p13802.html?pos=31584&search_params=YTo4OntzOjg6ImluX3N0b2NrIjtpOjA7czoxMjoiY2F0ZWdvcnlfaWRzIjtOO3M6MTY6ImNhdGVnb3J5X3JlY3Vyc2UiO2I6MTtzOjg6ImtleXdvcmRzIjtzOjQ6IkhvcGUiO3M6OToiYnJhbmRfaWRzIjthOjA6e31zOjQ6Im1vZGUiO3M6MzoiYWxsIjtzOjQ6InNvcnQiO3M6OToicHJpY2VfYXNjIjtzOjEwOiJjb3VudHJ5X2lkIjtzOjI6IjQxIjt9
Left hand doesn't work.
www.nrgenterprises.com
www.hopetech.com/products/brakes/cross-country/tech-3-x2-uno
This is definitely the way to go, a shop that is a dealer will be able to special order them for you. Last I knew Hope is around three months out on new orders.
I have done a few setups for a customer with the Tech3 Duo. Prior to this we had him setup using a pair of stacked SRAM brake levers. He is much happier with the Hope configuration because of the adjustability and lever positions. Since he has a left hand setup we had to run the AXS shifter upside down, on the top. Fortunately Hope makes matchmakers and the shifter functions well for him this way. On his road bikes they’re converted to flat bar and configured for synchro-shift, AXS is really a game changer in that regard.
If you are having a lot of trouble getting a brakeset send me a DM and I’ll see if I can help out!
Also, one thing to point out is this type of system would result in 1/2 pressure to each brake.
I have met them a few times and they are a good crew.
Also get hold of Hope directly, whilst they are larger than they used to be, I found them excellent to deal with when I wanted some custom stuff done in 2001 (wow twenty years ago).
And as far as small scale machining for the brake adapter if you don't find anyone you trust locally then reach out to James at "The Fix" in Whistler or Pete Fowler at "Pinner Machine Works" in Whistler. They have both made excellent small parts for myself and a lot of other riders in the past.
www.rootsandrain.com/photos/3518378/rider/21312
@TommyWilkinson what is that brake splitter you are using or was it custom built? I looked into Outbraker but the thought of one brake failing and all brakes fail freaked me out. I currently have G2 RSCs stacked (and the Hope Tech 3 X2 Duos on a different bike) with an upside down dropper lever.. luckily my left hand atrophied into a fist so it pseudo-grips the bars on the left. I feel like I'm thumb-wrestling my bike sometimes with everything so spread out but does the trick for now.
I have an outerbraker, but I was extremely to be offered this Sram custom before I got a chance to use it. Sram custom made the splitter but I assume Outerbraker would work in a similar way.
I stacked Codes for 6 years or so, and it was fine, but the single lever has been an eye opener. I also think really hard about the long term implications of an altered grip position and strain on the hand that a stacked set up causes. The single lever, I hope, will protect the long term health of my only hand. Biking is important, but I can’t work if I end up with a very arthritic hand.
The arthritis bit is a good point... Didn't think too much about that. The X2 Uno by Hope seems to be a similar concept to your deal (not sure if these came out around the same time as the dual lever single caliper X2 Duos..) www.hopetech.com/products/brakes/cross-country/tech-3-x2-uno
Always pondering ways to make it cozier..
Cheers,
Tommy V4
But yes the Tommy thing is a bit creepy.
1 in 12 is quite a hit rate. I suspect the percentage of people who meet living, or unliving, experiments is less than 1 in 12. When people ask "I'm alright" I usually reply that I'm 2/3rds left these days. Never gets much of a response. When I tell people that I might get it amputated, pickled and framed that does usually get a response, but not quite as I imagine it in my head. Oh well!
As for the arthritis.....probably best to enjoy first and consider second.
there are two riders ive bumped into with adapted bikes because of losing the use of an arm.
Tom Wheeler and Tom Banister and now Tom(my) Wilkinson...
www.hopetech.com/products/brakes/cross-country/tech-3-duo
I have a couple in my parts bin from the distant past. Very cool design that did exactly what it was supposed to do. Made it harder to get deflected off centre, but would come back to centre with no damping.
it's super helpful for tech sections/ highspeed chop/ places where people tend to over grip with their hands and sections where keeping your line is more difficult. it's nice because the harder the impact the more it works to help, but for slow movements like with you hands it has mush less resistance.
I'm not saying it's for everyone, but it's definitely helpful for a specific rider type
I don't have one these days, but seeing this article makes me want to get one again!!!
I’d turn the T fitting 90deg for more elegant cable route
It works really well with the match maker set up, dropper and shifter all operable with one hand.
Probably even better with your electronic setup!