Even More Tech Randoms: Fort William World Cup DH 2024

May 3, 2024
by Jessie-May Morgan  
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Practice day in Fort William brings with it a few bike modifications that weren't on display yesterday...

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In addition to that thin CrMo steel chainstay, Amaury Pierron's Commencal Supreme DH is now equipped with an intriguing cover on the non-drive side, adorned with the letters "KODS". That stands for "Keep Our Device Secret". Your guess is as good as mine.

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Brother Antoine's Supreme DH is a little more stock, with the regular aluminum chainstay.

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Industry Nine has made some custom hubs for Antoine...
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...and Austin Dooley.

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Team mate Pau Menoyo is running that yet-to-be-named prototype from Schwalbe - on the rear only.

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It looks like Minnaar is testing out some prototype brake levers from TRP - an update to the current DH-R EVO perhaps.

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More prototype Schwalbe tires at the Propain Positive pits - this one a new compound for the Tacky Chan on a team-only version of the Newmen Beskak 30 rim.

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The Propain team riders prefer the ride feel of the Rage CF with a 500-gram diving weight cable tied to the bottom.

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Vali's Rockshox Boxxer is now home to a Flight Attendant system...

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on the fork, and on the Super Deluxe Ultimate coil shock.

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An idler pulley is the additional accoutrement on Vali's bike.
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It looks to be mounted via the chain device. Who wants one?

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Myriam Nicole's Red Bull helmet - it's great to see her back at a World Cup.

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Shimano now has a spider-less Saint Crank to allow them to fit an OChain (a device proving very popular at World Cups). They're also the shortest Saint cranks yet at 160mm.

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Matt Walker's Saracen Myst DH Bike.

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Almost Myst this, but Walker's frame is home to a flip-chip at the front shock mount that alters progression without altering the bike's geometry - this flip-chip is not present on the production bike.

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First-year Junior Taylor Waite is riding a prototype from Yeti. It runs the same SixFinity linkage as their eBike and has multiple adjustable parameters

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Reach can be adjusted +/- 6mm

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Chainstay length can be adjusted +/- 5mm

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And there's a flip-chip at the lower shock mount that controls overall progression - Taylor Wait opts for the 21% progression setting. The Yeti team were fairly tight-lipped about pretty much everything else.


Posted In:
Racing and Events Randoms DH Bikes Fort William World Cup Dh 2024


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69 Comments
  • 82 9
 How about an article showing the juniors bikes, the non-pro-pit bikes, the ones used week in week out in muck, mud, slop.... It's great seeing pretty new bikes, but i'd love to see some well used and loved bikes.
  • 50 0
 That's a great idea for later in the season! Early rounds are the best opportunity for us to document what's happening on the cutting edge, as the elite racers and teams debut all their off season updates.
  • 35 1
 John Candy got banned from the sport for adding weight in Cool Runnings... what is going on here?
  • 28 0
 They gotta name that tire Samuel L. Traction.
  • 4 0
 Hold onto your butts
  • 14 2
 Samuel L. Traction as a front tire and a Mudderfucker as a rear tire
  • 5 0
 @Loki87: Royale with Beads
  • 22 1
 We aren't going to tell you anything about this bike but what we will tell you is that our rider runs exactly 21% progression.
  • 14 0
 Interesting to see Amaury's bike with a steel chain stay. Wouldn't this typically be more flexy than aluminum? No clue what's under that cover unless its connected to the shock somehow?
  • 10 0
 Yes, he is looking for the most grip possible at the rear
  • 2 0
 @Grovy: interesting choice for such a fast track. They look like the stays on my Reeb trail bike.
  • 2 0
 Is it possible the KODS is just a simple guard to prevent anything getting into the adjacent idler pulley? Keep out dangerous sh*t?
  • 1 0
 @Grovy: I'd say it is more for compliance/comfort than grip, the steel will absorb the high frequency vibrations better than aluminum which is super helpful on a rough track like this one.
  • 1 0
 Probably (due to the smaller tubing diameter). How much this will actually change the stiffness? No clue, but since it's just one link out of the whole system, I'd lean towards not much.
I wouldn't be completely surprised if it was actually to change the length of the chain stay and steel was chosen either because you can make it smaller in diameter for the same strength, or being a bit easier to fabricate with.
  • 1 0
 @Struggleteam: in MotoGP, swingarms are torsionally very stiff, but laterally very soft, to absorb bumps while they are leaning into corners. Similar thinking could apply here. Maybe not so much leaning into corners, but sideways hits.
  • 7 0
 I reckon they should make the high pivot ISCG device into an off the shelf product. Would be a good thing to test out.
  • 3 0
 Mondraker also has one for the “old” bike, Ronan was running it at hardline
  • 2 0
 @jokullthor: Mondraker seem like they have their finger on the pulse when it comes to custom components, they've been making 70mm rise bars for Dak "The Stack" too. I really want to see if the extra chain length and drive train friction is worth it for better suspension performance?
  • 2 0
 You mean an idler device, a bolt on piece could not make a bike into a high pivot. You would get the benefit of less chain feedback but not the other benefits of a high-pivot. Idlers are just on high pivot bikes to negate the drawbacks of the high pivot.
  • 1 0
 Rulezman makes one for Banshee Titan.
  • 1 0
 @Buggyr333: wouldn’t it just be a simple pedal kickback solution?
  • 1 0
 @ShopMechanic: Yes
Not a high pivot.
  • 7 0
 To be a Junior riding a prototype Yeti with Mic Hannah has to be unreal
  • 1 1
 Did I miss something? Is Mic no longer associated with Polygon?
  • 5 0
 @thekaiser: Third year on Yeti now
  • 3 0
 @thekaiser: technically retired as well. However that works.
  • 7 1
 Those silver rims on the Propain, so good!
  • 2 0
 Those are some cool Propain accessories.
  • 2 0
 Ah that time of year again, lots of beautiful dh bikes on PB, time to sharpen up the old pencil. Let's see, at $175 per day DH rental, with no tire o wheel problems, that $3,500 2018 lightly used DH bike on PB buy and sell will be paid for in 20 days at the park! All the business experts in the comment section please double check my math
  • 1 0
 Can confirm, might as well spring for the YT Tues Core 2....
  • 3 0
 Who besides Canfield and Brooklyn Machine works was doing high pivot with idler 20 years ago so I can give them credit for being way before their time? I find it amazing that all the brands seem to doing that these days.
  • 9 0
 Balfa
  • 1 0
 Is that a Saint Di2 derailleur on the Myst? The cable leading into the derailleur looks around the same thickness as my XT Di2 cable and not the same thickness as a standard outer.
  • 1 0
 It’s the normal cable version. The housing has an extra sleeve on probably for noise damping.
  • 3 0
 Good use of the word "accoutrement" haha!
  • 4 1
 I heard that unnamed tire is called a Scwalbe “Assegai”
  • 4 0
 Maybe it will become the Ben Dover?
  • 2 0
 Butt-man
  • 2 0
 Magic Mary II, This time it's personal.
  • 2 2
 @jessiemaymorgan do you mean the Yeti has the same rocker as SixFiniity? From what I can tell looks like a “normal” high pivot 4 bar but wondering if I’m missing something from the angle of the pictures.
  • 2 0
 Yeah that angle doesn't do it justice. It's a sixfinity just like the 160E, with the difference being that the vertical link that connect the upper and lower links goes through the tunnel in the seat tube.
  • 1 0
 @reindeln: I can see it now. Thanks.
  • 1 0
 The color of that boxxer reminds me of my old RockShox Boxxer World Cup 2010, maybe who has it today
  • 1 0
 is the junior bike yeti a single speed?
  • 3 0
 No you can see a cable housing going to the derailleur and you can just barely see the largest cog behind the seatstay. My question is the caption says “ First-year Junior Taylor Waite is riding a prototype from Yeti. It runs the same SixFinity linkage as their DH bike and has multiple adjustable parameters” is this not a dh bike from yeti lol?
  • 1 0
 what is a "diving weight"?
  • 5 0
 Ctrl + V: Weight belts or other weight systems help scuba divers maintain neutral buoyancy underwater. The amount of weight you need to achieve neutral buoyancy depends on several different factors. There isn't a simple formula to calculate exactly how much weight you need, but you can take certain factors into consideration when estimating how much weight will be ideal. A general rule of thumb states that you will need 8 to 10 percent of your body weight for saltwater dives, and 6 to 8 percent of your body weight for fresh water dives. Always refer back to your scuba training manual for specific buoyancy guidelines.
  • 5 0
 There's gotta be a more elegant way to add some weight!
  • 1 0
 Weight for scuba/free "diving", you put them on a weight belt to reduce your buoyancy so you can submerge easier....I had to read it twice, out of context "diving weight" was strange.

Interesting concept but I've always been of the opinion that weight can help with stability....especially down low like this.
  • 1 0
 That Yeti chain line looks like it needs some adjustment, no?
  • 1 0
 That Yeti is one refined-looking "prototype".
  • 1 0
 Commencal mint green and fox orange are a marriage made in heaven!
  • 1 0
 Love seeing the chainstay adjustment.
  • 1 0
 Beskak...
  • 1 0
 Yea... Looks like an R there. Im thinking Star Wars reference to Mandalorian Beskar steel
  • 1 0
 The Schwalbe Tiddeman.
  • 1 0
 Schwalbe Tittsman
  • 1 3
 Silver rims should not be allowed
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