chriscocalis

Congrats RC! The mountain bike would not be what it is today without your innovations and contributions. I'm lucky to have known you all these years and honored to be your friend.

One other thing. The derailleur hanger is forged 7075 aluminum so from a shift stiffness perspective, it is equivalent to non-replaceable hanger, but it has a bend point designed into it so that it can bend before damaging the R/D. More design time and engineering goes into this then one would think. It's not a crappy off the shelf soft hanger. I think this is the pooint RC was trying to make as well.

Thanks for alll the great comments. Also, just a few clarifications and updates: The bike tested was during the transition between model years. The new 2012 has a 142 X 12mm through axle standard. Also, the bike actually does come with Kashima coat othe fork for the XTR, XT Pro, XX, and X/O builds. The standard rear tire is a 26 x 2.35 Slant 6 on the rear now and Nevigal front. It makes for a good all around fast trail combination, but I agree with Richard that for more agressive terrain, a tire with more tread then the Slant 6 would be more appropriate. Finally, the bike is offered in both 2X and 3X XT or XTR drivetrains and on the SRAM bikes the new X/O and X-9 bikes come with a 24/38 gear combination which is a really sweet combination. Finally, I have had the pleasure of riding with Richard, and I have seen him drop some pretty crazy shit at press camps where the vast majority of other editors wouldn't touch it. He can ride, he can write and he is a super talented engineer/designer, and builder in his own right.. To top it all off, as one other person mentioned, he was Mantis bikes and is the inventor of the elevated chainstay, separate (bolt on) front and rear triangles, and several other major innovations. The modern mountain bike would not be where it is today without his innovations. Most people dont know that but they should.