Madison Saracen DH Team Launched

Mar 4, 2011 at 7:57

by Jacob Gibbins

On the press day at iceBike*, the Madison Saracen downhill team was unveiled to a packed room of MTB media, sponsors, dealers and VIPs. The new squad is a development team made up of six riders, all under the age of 21.The new 6 rider Team which includes WC champion Manon Carpenter, Elite WC racer Harry Molloy, UK 2010 Expert winner Jack Geoghegan, English Champ Phillip Atwill, PORC series winner Josh Lowe and UK 2010 Juvenile winner Will Weston.

Madison/Saracen Team Launch

by jacobgibbins

Views: 15,827 Faves: 80 Comments: 6

Harry Molloy, 19, from Kent, also had success on the world circuit in 2010, with a 35th place at Leogang being his top result. They’re joined by reigning national Expert champ Jack Geoghegan, 20, from Hertfordshire; English champ Philip Atwill, 16, from Hampshire; PORC series winner Josh Lowe, 16, from Kent; and 14-year-old Will Weston, from Wolverhampton, winner of the Juvenile category of the 2010 Halo British Downhill Series.

Madison’s CEO Dominic Langan said: “The first year is mainly a development squad, with a couple of people riding the World Cup series. It’s a minimum three-year program, and hopefully we’ll be doing much more beyond that – the aim is to get more riders into the World Cup series. We hope to build that up, and hopefully we can get some champions. We just want to get good British riders out there.”

The 2011 Madison/Saracen downhill team with 2011 team spec Saracen Myst

The red team-issue Saracen Myst may have the same frame as the £2,300 production bike, but it’s decked out with some much fancier kit, including a Fox 40 RC2 fork and DHX RC4 shock, Shimano Saint bits and Funn finishing kit. The squad may be young but they’ll have full factory support, with a massive team truck, their own mechanic and coaching.

This is the 2011 Team issue Saracen Myst downhill bike with Fox suspension, Shimano Saint bits and Funn Finishing kit

First race for the team will be the first round of the BDS at Nant Gwrtheyrn on March 20th so come along and say hello!

Madison/Saracen Team 2011

by jacobgibbins

Views: 5,919 Faves: 71 Comments: 3

Author Info:

jacobgibbins

Member since Feb 23, 2007
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199 Comments

64 3

slandrews (Mar 4, 2011 at 8:47)

will weston looks a bit creepy haha

raak (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:04)

haha. spot on

14 2

Icculus19425 (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:37)

hair helmet'd

36 2

el-nombre FL (Mar 4, 2011 at 10:45)

Come on, give him some slack, the kids 14. If he doesn't have Justin Bieber sideways hair, the big kids will steal his lunch money.

20 2

raak (Mar 4, 2011 at 11:57)

I assumed that would only encourage them

19 1

raak (Mar 4, 2011 at 11:58)

I hear Saracen had a team put together JUST to engineer his fringe

Mtn-Bik3r (Mar 4, 2011 at 12:23)

Its awesome seeing a company putting out an affordable DH bike and sponsoring young riders. Yeah, Weston's hair looks like an XC helmet, the kid was born to ride! Hope they all have a good season.

DHDH (Mar 4, 2011 at 14:06)

Nice. I was just about to say something about no helmet necessary.

16 23

Fisnbone08 (Mar 4, 2011 at 15:10) (Below Threshold)

Wow, the two of you must be some good looking cats. (raak,frozone427) When did you start modeling anyways? Why don't you post up some pics of your pretty faces and beautiful hair so we can pick them a part too. I'd much rather be ridding with Westin any day than walking the runways with the two of you. Give the kid a break.

17 1

bunkey (Mar 4, 2011 at 20:38)

Its called banter mate. Chill out.

mtb1stdegree (Mar 4, 2011 at 23:21)

so beef!

jordilunn101 (Mar 5, 2011 at 0:46)

All aboard the fringe banter bus!

raak (Mar 5, 2011 at 5:52)

choo-choooo! Fisnbone08, my hair cut is very average, nothing to write home about - not really much to critisize TBH, just a regular haircut, standard issue. But that you'd rather be ridin wit ya boi Westin than tearing up the Milan/Paris catwalks with me is just..... just hurtful.

slandrews (Mar 5, 2011 at 8:43)

i wasn't meaning his hair really, he looks a bit like jimmy neutron

apachemauro (Mar 5, 2011 at 17:45)

@fisnbone08.- I TOTALY AGREE WITH YOU BRO.

stinker (Mar 5, 2011 at 20:14)

how would u feel if u were an ugly f*ck!? jk

raak (Mar 6, 2011 at 10:15)

:-)

22 1

Dominiclangan (Mar 4, 2011 at 13:10)

I own the Saracen brand and I thank you all for your good wishes but I want to clear up some facts.

1. Madison bought the Saracen brand name only 2 years ago
2. No factory for manufacture or frame design has been retained
3. We only sell Saracen through independentives bicycle retailers

As much as we love all the jibes about saracen (we expected it to be honest) it is simply all cobblers!

Madison is a professional company. We have designed all the new Saracen bikes from the ground up. We love what we do. I love what I do and we wanttbtye best for Saracen and the team.

We are investing heavily in the brand and we want to earn your support.

Dominic Langan

CEO Madison

sniperbob02 (Mar 4, 2011 at 17:52)

will those bikes be available in canada ? if so how much for that frame ?

Smells (Mar 5, 2011 at 7:55)

The bike looks like a worthy investment. Good luck with everything.

22 0

Downhill340 (Mar 4, 2011 at 8:36)

That bike is SEX on WHEELS

15 0

jordxgreen (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:35)

Looks like Saracen are really picking up their game!

kinggwarn (Mar 4, 2011 at 10:16)

Atlast...

Jcougarred (Mar 4, 2011 at 10:27)

This isn't saracen... this is madison using the name, old saracen your used to seeing is way long gone now, have a look at the whole range, ive ridden an ariel theyre kinda xc trail bike and its amazing aswell especially for the price.

jezzah (Mar 4, 2011 at 11:49)

So its saracen?

Downhill340 (Mar 4, 2011 at 12:26)

No I think what Jcougarred means is that Madison now own SARACEN but decided to keep the name...So its different owners doesnt mean they got rid of the designers....Well I think thats what he means.

1 11

done12341234 (Mar 4, 2011 at 13:05) (Below Threshold)

I heard that Iron Horse bought Saracen???? My friend told me....

11 0

Downhill340 (Mar 4, 2011 at 14:01)

Ironhorse went bankrupt 2 years ago

Jcougarred (Mar 4, 2011 at 15:46)

Yea pretty much like they have brought nothing from old saracen bar the name, saracen is just a brand madison designed and developed the frame.

zorba73 (Mar 4, 2011 at 16:28)

I haven't lived in the UK for ten years, but I remember Saracen being sold in Halfords. Did they get their shit together, or what?

steve4130 (Mar 4, 2011 at 17:36)

saracen had a couple of alright bike around the late 90s (trials bikes and a couple of DHs) but ended up just churning out cheap shit for a while. looks like the brand is back, or at least the name anyways. cool team lame ass T-shirts though. lol, but hey they are there to ride bikes not wear T-shirts i guess

Bjammin (Mar 4, 2011 at 18:46)

It definitely is a very attractive bicycle.

OllyJ (Mar 5, 2011 at 10:22)

Guys, its just the name thats changed hands. The designers are totally new, the bikes are totally new and the whole company is totally new! These are proper high level mountain bikes now, not halfrauds fodder

Shoe2190 (Mar 5, 2011 at 11:05)

I have the new myst frame set and its certainly very good value for money

done12341234 (Mar 7, 2011 at 14:29)

Sorry guys, i had no idea about Iron Horse. Im really sorry

jordxgreen (Mar 8, 2011 at 7:59)

It's okay, we forgive you ^

gloryhp (Mar 4, 2011 at 11:16)

Apachemauro your a slow ass punk! Philip Atwill is one of my good mates and we ride alot together, LOOK OUT for this boy, he will be on top of world podiums before long you mark my words, hes one crazy mofo! And if you think they are a 'boy band team' then you should see some of the shit philip and the other guys can do on a bike, it will make you cry! Philip and Jack reppin the berko massif!

snook (Mar 4, 2011 at 11:46)

Yeah man Phil kills it big time. Can't gate for shit but that's by the by in downhill.

royal-dh (Mar 4, 2011 at 12:27)

phil will win harry phil will WIN!

Dominiclangan (Mar 4, 2011 at 13:10)

Samarius (Mar 7, 2011 at 15:45)

fucking rights mate. love that a head honcho has got the balls to come on here and stand up for what they believe. well played fella. i'd have one anyday based on that principle alone.

Dominiclangan (Mar 4, 2011 at 14:12)

Sorry for my typos earlier on but I was on the train.

Please shed all your preconceptions about Saracen.

It is now owned by a new company. The only thing that is the same as the old Saracen is the spelling of the name. You can chose to ignore the facts and perpetuate the myth but for the last two years we have; created all our owned designs, worked with new factories and only sell through independent retailers. What Saracen used to be is irrelevant. Saracen is designed in the UK and undergoes the same quality control procedures in our facilities as Genesis and Ridgeback.

Saracen is a great brand and we will prove it to you and our motives for the team and ongoing brand development are genuine.

regards

Dom

jackbenn8 (Mar 4, 2011 at 15:17)

mate im sure people will come round but it's going to be like the old skoda stigma but since audi took over a few years back every 1 has forgotten the old and im sure it will happen with your bike mate as with skoda its now an audi with a skoda badge, just looking at the team and the bikes they where on last year between them all where on top dh bikes and i don't think they would of put pen to paper if the bike didn't work and they felt it wouldn't get reults. i help run the army down hill team and if i was offered this bike for my team we'd all snap your hand off it's good to see what your doing and the sooner people see past the name and into what the future holds they will come round with egg on there face. good luck this year mate

psyickphuk (Mar 4, 2011 at 15:35)

If the only thing the same is the name and this name has a poor reputation then why use it? Why not just come up with a new brand name?

madmacca (Mar 4, 2011 at 17:06)

Tbh i have never had any problems with saracen frames, I still to this day own n ride a X-ile mk1 and think its bomb proof! but still i have snapped 1 or 2 other saracen frames wont say make as it was my own fault doing dropoffs way to high one resulting in a snapped wrist

bad times

anyhow goodluck with new frames they do look the dogs dangalies

atb macca

Dominiclangan (Mar 4, 2011 at 23:18)

why buy Saracen and not start a new brand? because Saracen has huge brand recognition in the UK and for most of the volume models the consumer is very positive about the brand. There is only is only brand issues at the enthusiast end and we will eventually overcome that i'm sure but to create a brand from scratch is very difficult and very difficult to get retailer support.

jackbenn8 (Mar 4, 2011 at 23:55)

dom don't rise to it this is what pink bike is now it's kids with attitude and nothing to back it up by i think there worried there really expensive bike that DADDY bought is about to be beaten to the podium by oh no a saracen. kids what don't you get it's a saracen sticker and that is it nothing else any more it's a new brand new era. what these are all saying is about stuff from the past and hear say. i can see what you have done and are doing and so will many others apart from the narrow minded on here that have nothing else better to do than slag people down. your team will do the talking and you will be grinning at them all in no time, if some people had a clue about racing etc and new who mannons dad was then they might click on by thinking hmmm these must be good now because mannons dad wouldn't have let her sign for a team that wasn't going to take her to the top and give her a decent bike to use he will have looked at every detail inside out for sure. i bet any little shit on here who was offered this team ride would of said yes

jezzah (Mar 5, 2011 at 1:30)

Just as a side note Dominic - good thinking in getting lots of juniors on the team. Its teenagers that think of saracen as the typical halfords junk brand so if your getting it out there amongst that age group.. your on to a winner and lots of sales! Bike looks great.

jmbrit (Mar 6, 2011 at 2:57)

Domininc, bike looks way better in colours - hope you can maintain the low cost though and don't move into the £500 per a year hike like the rest when a little glory comes along-

all the best for the year AND FAIR PLAY for getting a team of young brits on the action!!! .

jackbenn8 (Mar 4, 2011 at 17:04)

people need to look at the bigger picture here it's a young team with a great future and the riders will move on in time to bigger and better deals

but right now they have a chance to be developed for that bigger deal and by doing it on a frame that doesn't cost the earth but sure looks like it works well which in turn will inspire other young kids to think actually i don't need a demo 8 or a v10 and there parents might be able to push 1400 on a frame not 2400 and get the same results from it and keeping this sport real and in touch with the real world,

it's only a name but it's whats under the bonnet now that counts and it seems the engine is there and all it's waiting for is some drivers to thrash it.

excuse me sir would you like this skoda? ha ha a skoda no your ok thanks keep it....

ok sir just thought you might like a car thats now made by porsche same badge of course but.......................

sarecen its the same badge how ever

racheluk (Mar 5, 2011 at 5:39)

I totally love that Saracen are going back to their roots and getting away from the "Halfords bike" reputation.

My first kinda "real" bike was a Saracen X-ile back when I was 12, got them to thank for me getting into the sport!

OllyJ (Mar 4, 2011 at 15:09)

Looks utterly sick guys, loving the new saracen bikes and glad they're back on top rather than the shit over the last few years everyone would rather forget about! Also so good to see that slightly less heard of (but nonetheless sick) riders are being given a boost, best of luck this season!

DH-Fatboy (Jul 20, 2011 at 16:34)

Will anybody really pay the money for that bike with the name "saracen" on it? to me any many of my friends the bike name saracen has always been linked to cheap sh*te? i'm currently looking for a new bike and i would never look at purchasing a saracen, when you have the likes of santa cruz, giant, specialized and commencal out there or is that just me? they would be better off selling the bikes as madison and removing saracen!

matko-cro (Mar 4, 2011 at 8:38)

you sure its harrry and not harry?

:S

btw good luck to all of the team members!

speedy-gonzales (Mar 4, 2011 at 8:51)

Yes josh! hahah gotta see your bike at porc soon, adam said he creamed when he saw it the otherday!

dingus (Mar 4, 2011 at 11:03)

It's just Harry...

likeomg (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:59)

will be interesting to see how they do against the steve peat syndicate... i know there slightly different but both have a lot of younger riders

nouser (Mar 4, 2011 at 11:00)

yeah bit of team rivalry will defiantly be going down , nathan vials and harry molloy espcially i think haha they are always neck and neck at races ive been at.

apachemauro (Mar 4, 2011 at 12:49) (Below Threshold)

THE DIFERENCE IS THAT SYNDICATE IS A REAL BADASS RACERS TEAM, NOT THE NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK 2011

zorba73 (Mar 4, 2011 at 16:49)

I think this apachemauro joker is a secret Justin Bieber fan (and look alike)

You really should just stop writing comments because every time you do, you make your self sound like a right clown.

apachemauro (Mar 5, 2011 at 8:03)

@ZORBA.- look your profile pic and shut your mouth.

zorba73 (Mar 5, 2011 at 9:09)

That obviously isn't me, retard.

apachemauro (Mar 5, 2011 at 17:27)

@zorba.- yes! thats you! and you are the retard! hahahahaha! just a retard will post that picture of this face. that means you!!

unclemiha (Mar 4, 2011 at 14:38)

Whats wrong with promoting a team and company?
apachemauro is just to old to be in young team like that.If you want to be sponsored you need to do what your boss wants.
Or you can ride local trails and be champion in your head.

apachemauro (Mar 5, 2011 at 8:01)

@unclemiha.- please! I dont want to be sponsored, please shut your mouth! I ride bikes for fun, I have money to pay my bikes and not to have a boss in what is my sport not my way to earn my food. big diference, so please shut your mouth!
I just say this is the METROSEXUAL TEAM.

llarrggee (Mar 8, 2011 at 3:52)

I think its nice to see people like Dominiclangan doing this sort of thing for the bike indistry. There are too many bike snobs out there. Yes Saracen were making bikes 15 years ago, but times change. I would have Saracen Myst any day. They look very good and affordable which is it very important.

slandrews (Mar 4, 2011 at 8:47)

wow 55kg what a lightweight!

nouser (Mar 4, 2011 at 10:16)

thats what i was thinking! he needs to eat something!

b4life (Mar 4, 2011 at 12:29)

whats 55kg in lbs?

SpecializedRiderRob (Mar 4, 2011 at 13:00)

121 Ibs

AmirB (Mar 4, 2011 at 13:34)

im 59 kilos

dh-freeeride (Mar 4, 2011 at 14:04)

he's only 5'4 ! cant get over that

b4life (Mar 4, 2011 at 16:53)

121 pounds, isnt that bad..haha im 5'11 and weigh 132

Porgehead (Mar 4, 2011 at 12:54)

Harry Molloy and Phil Atwill are TANKS. Harry Molloy gets the best time in the Aston Hill race and Phil Atwill gets like 2 seconds off and he's only in Youth!!!

northwestdhdad (Mar 4, 2011 at 8:38)

Sweet to see such a youthful team with already amazing results. Will be watching this team for sure.........

nouser (Mar 4, 2011 at 10:24)

as good as the new bikes may be... id be slightly unhappy moving from lappiere to saracen.. still a sponsorship is a sponsorship so you cant really complain

pslide (Mar 4, 2011 at 10:25)

Go Manon! The girl's got a serious shot at good WC results! (Hope your arm is all healed up from Windham...)

almostwise Mod (Mar 4, 2011 at 10:52)

Haha, just what I was about to say.

Sillybanshee (Mar 4, 2011 at 8:38)

Lots of potential for this team to develop. The young atmosphere seems like a lot of fun.

gannstarDH (Mar 4, 2011 at 12:46)

BIG IT UP FOR THE BERKO MASSIVE

F8L-DJ (Mar 5, 2011 at 1:22)

Manon Carpenter rode a Lapierre last year, this must be a good deal... Mind you, Madison have made it look like a sorted operation.

mountguitars (Mar 5, 2011 at 0:40)

manon carpenter looks hot!

OSA12 (Mar 4, 2011 at 10:23)

Will Weston ^^ , 2nd Bieber ^^ , życze mu powodzenia , ale niech sie zetnie , bo wyglada jak by hełmofona miał : D

inyunyyn (Mar 4, 2011 at 11:13)

Good luck! Nice bike, riders with some serious potential. Hope they knock out some (more) good results ...

HOJJJ (Mar 4, 2011 at 12:41)

I would mount Manon Carpenter.

transam711 (Mar 4, 2011 at 14:54)

BOOSH

nouser (Mar 4, 2011 at 12:41)

Where can you buy that bike stand?

apachemauro (Mar 4, 2011 at 12:43)

shit I just wathched again the video and you know what? GO TO THE HELL WITH THIS STUPID "FASHION DH AWARDS" it looks like they are in the mtv awards , hahahahahahaha! Im just having fun, and rigth now im gonna ride my bike!! I whish so much to crash inthe trees and get blood out of my body, and to hurt myself riding like a manic! i wanna hear heavy metal! HEAVY METAL !!
AND BREAK MY FKN LEG !

matko-cro (Mar 5, 2011 at 1:47)

theres something wrong with you

apachemauro (Mar 5, 2011 at 8:06)

@matko-cro.- HEAVY METAL!!! THIS IS A REAL BADASS TEAM JUST WATCH .- www.pinkbike.com/news/bikesupport-spanish-dh-team-2011.html

dobby (Mar 4, 2011 at 14:15)

Maybe Josh can now get Madison to sponsor the PORC race series! That would be great

tdoyle1995 (Mar 4, 2011 at 8:34)

f*ckking sick bikes

mtb1stdegree (Mar 4, 2011 at 8:36)

amazing bikes!

Downhill340 (Mar 4, 2011 at 8:41)

SEX ON WHEELS ------- The bike

sinkowski (Mar 4, 2011 at 12:44)

This may faworite bike Saracen its best bike ai riding Saracen RAW DX super!!!!!!!!!!!!

HellslayeR (Mar 4, 2011 at 13:37)

Come On Manon Carpenter, you are great you can do it! Im with you!

Railgunner (Mar 4, 2011 at 16:41)

Wow, apachemauro, what an idiot. Good work on the Team! More DH teams are always good! Cheers!

apachemauro (Mar 5, 2011 at 8:08)

@RAILGUNNER.- THIS IS A REAL BADASS TEAM. LEARN SOMETHING.- www.pinkbike.com/news/bikesupport-spanish-dh-team-2011.html

DownHillCooper (Mar 6, 2011 at 17:23)

the bike looks as if it would handle a rock garden well but i just cant see that thing being pedal efficient

ScrHeckler (Mar 4, 2011 at 8:52)

This looks promising for Saracen. Pretty good team on really good bikes.

4 18

apachemauro (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:16) (Below Threshold)

GOOD BIKES. weak team. are they playing with barbies, where is the real agresive Dh shit???? this makes me feel depress.

whitetux (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:50)

weak team? you need your head seeing to

Ridgeracer (Mar 4, 2011 at 10:11)

apashemauro stfu, looks like a pretty sick team, amazing sponsors! and Really really glad to see they have a chick on their team! Its always good to the the ladies wanting to rip downhill! Good luck to the team!

Ridgeracer (Mar 4, 2011 at 10:21)

" apashemauro, I just read more of your comment, Dude, your just pissed that your a washed up mountain biker, that you have no chance going anywhere, encourage the kids man, stop being a D-dag and encourage people to ride man, your making the sport look bad! So go ride your bike and have fun. end of story.

nouser (Mar 4, 2011 at 11:02)

GOOD BIKES. weak team?? what drugs are you taking mate!!! all the riders that i know on this team are mentally skilled on their bikes you crazy mother f*cker!!

royal-dh (Mar 4, 2011 at 12:30)

you think the team is weak?! im good mates with phil atwill and if you see him go down a hill you will be the one whos weak mate

nouser (Mar 5, 2011 at 2:10)

Nooo ahaha , i meant that as a quote from another comment that some twat wrote , Phil is crazy fast

DownHillCooper (Mar 5, 2011 at 5:01)

apachemauro is right those people are puny...

apachemauro (Mar 5, 2011 at 8:11)

THIS IS A REAL BADASS TEAM. LEARN SOMETHING.- www.pinkbike.com/news/bikesupport-spanish-dh-team-2011.html

DownHillCooper (Mar 5, 2011 at 17:34)

ya dude its called being a pro come out from under ur rock there are a lot of people like that take a trip to whistler and reconsider your thoughts.

apachemauro (Mar 5, 2011 at 17:53)

@YOU.- I LIVE IN WHISTLER, WE RIDE FOR FUN, REAL DH TRACKS, NO XC TRAILS.

DownHillCooper (Mar 6, 2011 at 5:50)

WELL MAYBE THESE PEOPLE RIDE TO RIDE, NOT JUST TO HAVE FUN. AND WHY DID U SAY THAT WAS A BADASS TEAM IF U DONT LIKE THEM?

apachemauro (Mar 6, 2011 at 7:33)

www.pinkbike.com/news/bikesupport-spanish-dh-team-2011.html you ll probably need to sign in yo see the link i posted.

DownHillCooper (Mar 6, 2011 at 11:36)

yea dude what the hell do u think iv been talking about.

coxydiver (Mar 4, 2011 at 10:19)

gona buy this frame 1400 is a really good price

apachemauro (Mar 4, 2011 at 12:36)

By the way, I respect the girl. she is very good rider.

nouser (Mar 4, 2011 at 15:33)

nicest downhill bike ive ever seen!!!!!!!!

jordiedude (Mar 4, 2011 at 16:18)

thats sick. I wish I had the chance to get sponsered

jordiedude (Mar 29, 2011 at 7:45)

Henribrown (Mar 15, 2011 at 8:43)

OH WOW IM GOING TO HAVE ONE

likeomg (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:37)

one reason i wouldn't buy a saracen is its name... there associated with rubbish cheap bikes in the UK i know its a bad way to look at it buy yeah... not for me

super-spence (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:40)

thats what you would think but i have one sat in my garage right now! trust me they are deffinatley not the saracen that we are used to! they are a bike that i would recomend!

Azrun FL (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:44)

agreed 100% it is an absolutely quality bike no questions asked

likeomg (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:46)

they have them at alpine cycles in innerlethion... wasn't my cup of tea... it really does look a little halfords up close im not one of those people who say my bikes the best btw... i think my norco isn't the best at jumping but it can plow like anything..

ltrumpore (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:49)

That's what everyone said about Iron Horse prior to 2004.

browner (Mar 4, 2011 at 10:08)

Both my flatmates have the Saracens - both the full build and a custom built. They are not plow bikes - they are light and nible downhill bikes while remaining slack. If I had one myself I couldn't ask for more.

Jcougarred (Mar 4, 2011 at 10:29)

One of the guys at my work brought a ariel and it was fantastic another guy in the shop just brought a myst and says it rides quite similar to a v10 but with more pop, i think it is a quality bike, if i didnt already have a dh bike and wanted to get into it then id buy one no questions.

dingus (Mar 4, 2011 at 11:02)

Saracen used to make quality bikes back in the day. Good to see them return to form.

road-psyclist (Mar 4, 2011 at 13:01)

^
Agreed, Saracen used to make some of the best bikes years a go, but they lost their reputation through Halfords.
Now Madison have re-newed them andthey have bought out some quality bikes; this DH bike being one of their best.
They have definitley upped their game since Madison took over.

zorba73 (Mar 4, 2011 at 16:45)

dingus 'Saracen used to make quality bikes back in the day.' Saracen never made quality bikes back in the day, they were shite Halfords bikes that never had a good reputation. The new ones look like sweet though..

dingus (Mar 5, 2011 at 2:53)

Before that though...

somemorestuff (Mar 8, 2011 at 12:33)

the saracen I had in '91 was superb, quad tubing, e-stay, maguras, DX groupset - way before v-brakes were around...
www.pinkbike.com/photo/5343110

browner (Mar 8, 2011 at 15:01)

Haha Somemorestuff, your bike history is absolutely top notch, nothing but the best for like 20 years

GyroShock (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:57)

55kg!? And I thought I was really lightweight being an XC racer!

radoon (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:58)

i'm feeling old

LukeCowley77 (Mar 4, 2011 at 11:21)

wow AWERSOME they rip those berms in that vid!

jamesrusby (Mar 4, 2011 at 13:50)

Why would you have a 14 year old on a team like this?

c2crider (Mar 4, 2011 at 15:48)

Investing in the future, if this is a long term project then they will be able to train up a seriously good dh racer for the next few years

sadfusde FL (Mar 4, 2011 at 14:08)

they have Justin Bieber on the team! xDD

DownHillCooper (Mar 5, 2011 at 17:38)

no just a fake one...like the many clones he has...

pokalface (Mar 4, 2011 at 15:43)

these kids are so lucky that they are sponsored!

Worm-Burner (Mar 5, 2011 at 1:36)

I wonder if Manon is 'des sources' of their inspiration..?

iamamodel (Mar 5, 2011 at 13:48)

So you wasted your youth in art house cinemas too?

DownHillCooper (Mar 5, 2011 at 5:00)

those people are so small lol were the hell are they from? rofl

apachemauro (Mar 5, 2011 at 8:09)

THOSE ARE "THE NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK"

DownHillCooper (Mar 5, 2011 at 17:43)

dude

kokaneecrankworx (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:02)

No northerners WHAT'S GOING ON? We all know all the best downhillers are from up here Peaty need i say any more

dh-freeeride (Mar 4, 2011 at 14:12)

Lew Buchanan, Cunningham, Ben Cathro?

DownHillCooper (Mar 5, 2011 at 5:00)

orange bikes

gannstarDH (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:23)

this team is gunna pwn

lucaso3 (Mar 5, 2011 at 23:41)

wow

Rattsl (Mar 4, 2011 at 8:43)

Wow what!!!? This is cool for them, so young!

xTheRoseRedx (Mar 4, 2011 at 8:45)

Beautiful bikes!

fredydh (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:13)

what a huuuge factory!! nice..!

matko-cro (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:22)

im sure they will kill it this year

wegner (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:40)

nice looking bike and I'm loving the rear end but I predict that the bearings will have an extremely short life span...

nouser (Mar 4, 2011 at 13:42)

they are all small, besides molly

SIXPACKismine (Mar 5, 2011 at 3:06)

really hot bikes!!

DanMan89 (Mar 4, 2011 at 8:50)

Who would have thought saracen would have got to pro DH bike stage...

BertieK1 (Mar 4, 2011 at 12:50)

good riders.

love2freeride (Mar 4, 2011 at 23:23)

Ladies on bicycles

iain23 (Mar 4, 2011 at 13:18)

haha i think your all twats tbf

dobby (Mar 4, 2011 at 14:11)

Go troll elsewhere then

Below threshold threads are hidden

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apachemauro (Mar 4, 2011 at 12:33)

everybody is riping at me just because I said the team is doing like a fashion show, and I need to say I AGREE THEY ARE VERY GOOD RIDERS, WITH VERY GOOD SKILLS AND CAREERS - ( no doubt about it) - BUT they are becoming like pop music disney chanel STARS, when they are just starting they DH careers. I would like to see Troy Brosnan or Steave Peat or Sam Hill doing this kind of fancy shows. hahahahaha! NEVER! everywhere around the world are better riders than this guys, the diference is that they dont race, they ride just for fun and have average people life, YES real life real world shreders that love bikes and performance without racing. and we dont need to see how the new prospects fly in a dream world of fantasy. WE WANT TO SEE THE BIKES AND COMPONENTES PERFORMING AND SHREDING DH TRACKS!! NOT STUPID FASHION MODELS RIDING LOCAL TRAILS!

i LIKE THIS SPORT BECAUSE IS FOR REAL BADASS GUYS, NOT WANNABE FASHION BIKERS!!

WHATS NEXT??? are they gonna have a make up team to color their faces before every race in the world cup circuit? hahaha! of course! and they will also gloss their lips so They can look prety on camera! ahahaha!

WHAT THE HELL!

jamesA94 (Mar 4, 2011 at 13:19)

Mate do you have some sort of obsession with barbie dolls and dressing up? You can't seem to stop talking about it...

patriot52 (Mar 4, 2011 at 14:22)

I think you should all get off their backs especially you apachemauro. Just becouse they dress a certain way your taking the piss out of them and too me they look nothing like a boy band or fasion models

dh-freeeride (Mar 4, 2011 at 14:28)

are you like a Canadian redneck or something? i think if u ever raced you would know that its far harder to perform in a race than pottering about with your friends and furthermore are you expecting a sponsor like Saracen to just show at some random track and say oh look that boy looks quick lets offer him a sponsorship and hope he can perform? THESE GUYS EARNED THIS SPONSORSHIP THROUGH HARD WORK NOT FROM MUCKING ABOUT WITH FRIENDS SO SHOW SOME RESPECT.

DirtyDee (Mar 4, 2011 at 14:38)

Apache dude, maybe you should do some research on some of these guys previous results in the british series. You know, the series that has nurtured riders like Steve Peat, the Athertons. Brendan Fairclough, Marc Beaumont, Danny Hart, Josh Bryceland etc....Proper rippers and champions. And if you don't care about racing and just like riding then why the hell do you feel the need to click on an article about a race team and slag the people on the team off for following their dream and passion. Away off and ride your totally crazy DH tracks.

iamamodel (Mar 4, 2011 at 14:39)

Apachemauro - look around you - ALL young kids look like that. Any random group of young 'uns is going to look like these guys so please stop going on about how they look.

Obviously they've built a team to a budget - you expect Saracen to pay top dollar for established WC podium riders? The best way to get a team is to get the young and up-and-coming riders that are not demanding top dollar. In a few year's time, some of these guys will be on bigger factory rides and earning more money.

And lets face it, sponsored riders do what their sponsors ask - if they wanted to make a video of them all popping little wheeelies because the marketing guy thinks that's what everyone wants to see, then they'd be popping wheelies.

And now for the video - obviously the team is new otherwise they would have to resort to photos of the team riding other brands. This means they haven't had a few months to make a kick-ass video of the team being put through their paces on tracks that push their bikes and bodies to the limit.

apachemauro (Mar 5, 2011 at 8:27)

LEARN SOMETHING.- www.pinkbike.com/news/bikesupport-spanish-dh-team-2011.html

hexhamstu (Jun 5, 2011 at 1:22)

What are you on apachemauro? you weirdo. "This sport is for real badass guys" thats one of the most cringeworthy things I've ever seen on here.

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apachemauro (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:14)

ye well, bikes are cool, good setups. the riding is kind of they are learning not really solid, kind of just recreative, not competive and not agresive atitude at all. it looks like they are creating a kind disney chanel tv stars, or something like a pop music group of crapy music for teens.

the brand should be suporting real DH racers. I think they are making DH looking like a chick flick movie, like they are promoting the new Barbie DH doll.

It makes me feel bad and ebarrased at the same time, too much fancy show, and no real agresive racing like drops, big airs, tech step real shit, is more like "I look very cute with my gear and my shiny bike, shoot me some pics"

For those trails you dont need a fully bike, not even more than 150 travel, for god sake ! YOU ARE MAKING DH LOOKING RIDICULOUS!

it makes me angry! this is crap. i want to watch DH riders doing scary shit and getting the best performances of their bikes, taking out the shit of the shocks, drifting tires till the camera man is fully covered in shit. THIS IS NOT DH. THIS IS CRAP.

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speedy-gonzales (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:19)

Haters gunna hate.....

matko-cro (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:23)

umad?

chunter (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:24)

yeah chill out, it's a development team. that being said, they're probably way faster than you are anyway.

sam-oakes (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:24)

I could pretty much guarantee every single person on that team is faster than you apachemauro, so stop hating.
How can you say the womens junior world cup champion is riding badly?

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apachemauro (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:25) (Below Threshold)

@ speedy-gonzales .- yea you probably are the typical mountain biker wearing necbrace and pjs to look like a pro, but when you face the real shit, you shit in your TLD pjs. hahaha!

12 0

david-hill (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:36)

ahahahaha, i'm sorry apachemauro, but you are hilarious. look what he posted to kona world's profile - 'ey KONA WORLD, let the people know about your very bad quality frames, and stop cheating the people, you play with people healt risking the integrity. you know you have bad quality and bad desings and you dont fix this failures, you still selling frames that sooner or later will snap.' typical hater, speaking shit. people like you amuse me.

cowieuk (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:38)

Totally ignoring their best results?

Stop being an a*shole.

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denis80 (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:41) (Below Threshold)

Yeah man, your 100% right. I totally agree with you! Its like those new shows where they make new pop stars.

betsie (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:41)

Awesome comment, not like the pictures of Manon are from WORLD CUP DH races! Oh, they are, well you better get your coat.

ally-bassman (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:47)

apachemauro your a troll and/or a f*ggot.

you are what is wrong with this sport.

Haters like yourself, not broadening your horizon to anything new. this sport is constantly changed, and will keep doing so.

young team, with young riders, they all learn together!

win win win win situation.

your just jelly so go win the WC by yourself, or go make your own vid where you go "big"

apachemauro (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:48) (Below Threshold)

@ everybody.- I apollogize for my coments. of course they are faster than me, of course they have results, just wanna say things that people normally will disagree but are real things. kona brokes and this team is doing like a fashion contest.

Azrun FL (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:49)

Haha your comment makes me laugh I've ridden all the trails in the video and to go fast you want a fully and I'm sorry but some of the guys on the team are racing world cups and having nothing to prove to you!

whitetux (Mar 4, 2011 at 9:52)

actually make some comments based on facts, not just what you want it to be because your jealous. Also in the UK everyone rides their downhill bikes on easy tracks because they only have that and a hardtail normally.

Jcougarred (Mar 4, 2011 at 10:34)

@apachemauro ... These riders rip, i mean, RIP, so just stop making yourself look like the fool!

dhmatt123 (Mar 4, 2011 at 10:59)

Real Dh Racers? two of them are World Cup riders , will won the UK overall , Phill is english champ and a f*cking pinner and the other two im sure are stupidly fast all in reach o future world cup riders

hofmanwa (Mar 4, 2011 at 11:19)

@ apachemauro: - This twat can barely speak English, wonder what he's like at riding a bike.

zorba73 (Mar 4, 2011 at 16:38)

^^ Exactly what I was thinking^^

YOUR an embarrassment to MTBing, you illiterate fool. You have got to have the worst grammar and spelling on PinkBike, did you even go to school?

lucaso3 (Mar 4, 2011 at 23:18)

let the dude say what he wants you guys are trolling even harder by hating on him and you guys are getting so defensive just chill its just an opinion you don't need to get so hyped up about it jeez lol

apachemauro (Mar 5, 2011 at 8:14) (Below Threshold)

@LUCASO3 .- YEA DUDE! they are trolling more than me because they probably want to be like those metrosexual team! hahaha!

lucaso3 (Mar 5, 2011 at 23:41)

lmao yeah

pauldh (Mar 6, 2011 at 11:06)

reading this made me LOL so much.

pauldh (Mar 6, 2011 at 11:09)

apashemauro - don't u think the manager/photographer etc tell them to wear the same shirt, cross their arms in the pics etc.
stop taking the piss out of the riders, if ur gona blame anyone blame the photographer or whoever told them to look like that.
they are all fast and thats what matters not what they wear.

lucaso3 (Mar 7, 2011 at 21:28)

pauldh is probably ugly thats why lol jk pauldh everyone is beautiful in their own way ;D

apachemauro (Mar 8, 2011 at 14:31)

@stupid-zorba73.- Im not a mountain biker! I am a DOWNHILL BIKER! and yes english is not my first lenguage retard!

but im sure youll understand this.- hofmanwa and zorba73 kiss my ass.

hofmanwa (Mar 8, 2011 at 14:35)

It amazes me that you've managed to get this far in life with such an appalling grasp of the language. (Notice it's not spelt "lenguage")

apachemauro (Mar 8, 2011 at 14:53)

@hofmanwa.- tnks for the spelling lesson, but we are not here for english gramar and sepelling checks. please if some time you come to whistler contact me so you can eat my dust!

ally-bassman (Mar 9, 2011 at 10:02)

more like eat my bad spelling you illiterate fuck apachemauro