PRESS RELEASE: SCOTT-VelosolutionsFor 2018 the SCOTT-Velosolutions team continues with Brendan Fairclough, Gaetan Vigé and team owner Claudio Caluori, but the SCOTT Gambler is coming out fighting with a host of new components to get the job done.
SCOTT-Velosolutions welcomes BOS Suspension, TRP Cycling, DMR Bikes and Leatt.
| After over 9 years with Shimano and Fox suspension, moving away from these partners was no easy decision and we are grateful for all their support. But when races are decided by fractions of a second, every team has to try to find their own winning formula and we believe we have done just that.—Claudio Caluori, Team Owner |
As soon as the 2017 season was over, Brendog and Vigé were out in Switzerland and the South of France testing new products to try and find the optimum set up. With an impressive back catalogue of results and a product portfolio that has always challenged the industry, BOS suspension will be the official suspension partner of SCOTT-Velosolutions moving forwards. As the only team running the newly developed OBSYS inverted fork, BOS will be found alongside the SCOTT-Velosolutions pits providing the team with dedicated suspension tech support at each round.
| Any change to a bike can take time and suspension is so important but there is something special about the new OBSYS fork and I believe it can deliver. I have worked with Olivier and BOS Suspension before and I am confident they can help me and Bren get on the podium in 2018.—Gaetan Vigé |
Over the past few years, SCOTT-Velosolutions has seen the rise of companies producing individual components and believe that through a combination of partners they can build a race winning formula.
Brendan Fairclough’s partnership with DMR has been hugely successful with the Brendog Vault and more recently the Deathgrip. In 2018 The entire SCOTT-Velosolutions team will be running DMR Deathgrips, Brendog remains on his signature Vault pedals whilst Gaetan and Claudio will opt for the new V-Twin clipless pedal. The team will also be running the Blade chainring and DMR Axe crank which has been designed to handle the biggest DH hits with the race-ready weight of an enduro crank.
| DMR are like family to me and to have them join my other family, SCOTT-Velosolutions is amazing. I am so excited to have Gaetan and Claudio running the Deathgrips. Switching to new products is always a challenge but with DMR I have complete faith in their products.—Brendan Fairclough |
TRP Cycling will also join the SCOTT-Velosolutions team in a move that will see them be the second team to run the product on the UCI World Cup circuit. Given the development and testing that TRP brakes have been put through there was no doubt in the team’s mind that TRP and the G-spec brake is the product of choice.
SCOTT-Velosolutions also welcome their new head mechanic, Gavin Black who joins the team from Radon Factory Racing. He replaces Benoit Vergnaud who worked with the team for over 7 years. Benoit’s commitment to SCOTT-Velosolutions was second to none and greatly appreciated. As the team embark on this new journey, Gavin is certain to be a valuable and talented addition in 2018.
| The opportunity to work with a collective of brands of this calibre is an incredible one for any mechanic. TRP have proven themselves as winning brakes and I am beyond confident that this partnership is going to help drive the team forwards.—Gavin Black, Head Mechanic |
In a final twist for 2018, the SCOTT-Velosolutions team have joined forces with Leatt as the official kit and protection partner of the team. Gaetan and Claudio will be riding in the full range of DBX gear and helmets.
2018 is a big year for the SCOTT-Velosolutions team and the team are proud to welcome their new partners. SCOTT-Velosolutions have always challenged the status quo and now have the chance to work with a collective of industry-leading partners who love this sport as much as they do.
The team is excited to continue to partner with industry leading brands Schwalbe, Syncros, Deity and e*thirteen. These companies have provided invaluable partnerships and they offer the very best product the team could hope for.
SCOTT-Sports and Velosolutions remain the driving force behind the team. SCOTT’s commitment to the team is stronger than ever and with the combined passion of Velosolutions, 2018 is set to be their strongest year to date.
| SCOTT Sports is committed more than ever to downhill racing and we are working as close as possible with the riders across the board to ensure that 2018 is a year to remember.—Ben Walker, SCOTT Sports |
MENTIONS:
@SCOTT-Sports @Velosolutions
Regarding the story: Do you think that
a) Scott went shopping around because they thought they needed a different suspension to get better,
b) Fox told Scott they did not want to support them anymore (for whatever reason, lets say they are downsizing) or
c) BOS asked Scott if they wanted to work with them because they wanted to be present in the WC again?
I still see a terrible bike frame..oh wait..
You Can Do IT!!!!!!
On a more serious note, ist always refreshing seeing big Teams changing things up..for example the GFORT withe DVO.
The bike industry is full of great products and tech...letting pro riders do the R6D for those companies (especially on WC Level) will always be a plus in my book.
Good on you Scott and all the best für 2018...
From what Ive read so far Atherton racing are off Shimano, Santa Cruz Syndicate are off Shimano, now Scott-Velo? Im struggling to believe that all of them have walked away from Shimano and found other sponsors out of choice / got better deals. Its not as if there are many options out there for shifters and mech's. So why all the change and only in teams that historically have been associated with Shimano?
Performance-wise I also couldn't support your opinion, except for the better feel of shifting using SRAM. Not even to mention the lower risk of tearing it off bc of Shadow+ and also you can modify the Shimano cassettes to your needs.
Call a person who owns a lathe, get yourself some spacers and you get a cassette that's far lighter than all of the SRAM cassettes or if you want it cheap, buy a 7-speed conversion spacer, you'll end up cheaper and lighter than with a low-end SRAM 7-speed cassette.
Try using zee for three days at Northstar, see what happens to your beloved derailleur.
There isn't a downhill cassette lighter than the stock Sram one piece either.
Do you try and tell people your cart and buggy is better than their Mercedes too?
If you look to get the most weight saving, you'll have to. Otherwise the pieces of plastic will do the job just as fine, as long as you order the right size. My 5-speed Setup beats the SRAM Setup by far on the weight side. Good luck changing cogs on a X-Dome cassette. I raced all the iXS Cup races using it last year, additionally ~30 lift access days in Lac Blanc or alpine venues. It failed not a single time. Depending on the track, I can choose the cogs I want, using 7-speed always saw me leaving some of the cogs unused, making them useless additional weight when you really consider it for DH only use.
In the end, it doesn't depend on some personal happenings. Both derailleurs are pretty common and they're both no piece of garbage. For me as a budget option, the Zee obviously takes the cake, the derailleur being a part that easily rips off clipping rocks in downhill racing. Also buying another spare Zee derailleur in case I rip it off in training won't hurt my budget more than buying one single GX derailleur. If I happened to get all my stuff thrown at me, then bring on the X01 DH.
When speaking about mech killer destinations, last year I also happened to ride 1 week in Zermatt. Pretty much the nightmare of every rim and derailleur and everything is just fine, whcih leasd me to the bottom line: If you set up your derailleur correctly, the only reason it'll fail will be clipping it on some rocks or similar, meaning it's the riders fault.
It's more like the comparison of a modified Supra featuring 1000bhp vs. an AMG SLS on a drag race. The Supra costs a fraction and will still smoke the SLS on the quarter mile. On the other hand, the Supra probably isn't very comfy to drive anymore and it's just missing the elegance of the SLS, being designed as a whole from the beginning. Pretty similar for the derailleurs. If you're willing to tinker, you'll have a Zee derailleur perform just as fine as a X01 DH while beating it weight-wise due to the ability to modify the cassette.
@hamncheez:
So I read that as Brendog will still be on TLD gear then...
Besides there are so many awasome brands out there.
Good luck guys!
I never wore one when I rode downhill back in the day; is there any actual evidence that they work?
Image of Brendog's new bike!
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www.decathlon.co.uk/flash-mtb-front-mudguard-bk-id_8327776.html