Spotted: Intense Tracer 279 Prototype Carbon Enduro Bike
We recently spotted Chris Kovarik building a fresh new bike on Instagram that's covered with Intense's prototype graphics, labeled as "Tracer 279". It's been four years since Intense has updated the Tracer model, so this could be close to a production model. We've seen Isabeau Courdurier on an alloy prototype, but the one in Kovarik's stories has a carbon front and rear triangle.
The previous aluminum prototype.
The current 2021 Tracer.
There are quite a few changes from the previous Tracer; the trunnion mount shock is now driven from the bottom link, lowering the center of gravity, and there is spacer for a water bottle to mount inside the front triangle. The aggressively sloping top tube looks to provide a super low stand-over height as well.
The suspension layout mimics the prototype their factory downhill team has been repping.
Chris has built the bike with a Fox 38 fork, indicating that this will be an hard charging enduro bike with a similar amount of rear wheel travel to the previous Tracer (165mm), or possibly more. The bike appears to be a dedicated mixed wheel bike based on the clearance of the 27.5" tire at the chain stay yoke and seems to lack any geometry adjustments on the shock mounts.
Jeff Steber, the founder of Intense Cycles, shared this 3D printed frame back in March, which reveals more details, like a storage box for tools.
Intense confirmed that this is the next iteration of the bike Isabeau was on. They also said that Aaron Gwin contributed a lot of time testing. Intense does like to show its prototypes as they progress toward full production, and this is the next step with the Tracer model.
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Also looks like they've designed a "tool box" such that the bike will shit all your tools out onto the trail if the latch fails. So not sure I trust Intense to make a complicated BB-centric linkage work flawlessly...
Santa Cruz?
I don't think so.
They're in bed together, and in love...
Mountain bike action, 2001:
MBA: What was the reasoning behind Santa Cruz handing the exclusive rights to the VPP patents to Jeff Steber at Intense?
Rob: My partner, Hans Heim, that there is strength in numbers. Shortly after we obtained the VPP patents, Hans walked up to me and asked, ?What company do you regard to be on top of it–one that really has their [stuff] together??I said it was Intense. When you hear the name, Intense, you think quality bike. Jeff [Steber] already knew about the VPP concept and when we contacted him, he was very interested. I talked over the details with Jeff and we gave Intense the exclusive rites to the patents that we purchased. Of course, we are in competition with each other, but we are also cooperating right now to insure that the initial success of the new VPP bikes. There is a lot to learn about the benefits of the VPP design. Competition is the best way to speed that process up.
VPP is soooooo old and somewhat outdated. DW-Link is the way to go these days.
See www.pinkbike.com/news/intense-announces-951-series-aimed-at-new-mountain-bikers.html for full details!
Only thing I'd ever buy would be the fully decked out Demo Center DH rigs at Whistler.
The nice thing about the Demo Center rigs is that they ACTUALLY have new and/or freshly serviced parts on them rather than the pot luck deals people post for $5-7k . I've heard plenty of nightmares.
@intensecyclesusa , congrats on bringing another bike to market. I hope this bike sells well for you and your customers enjoy it!
No crazy/ugly paint jobs going on...???
You have the ugliest seatpost brace in the industry. I can’t take my eyes off of it. There I said it.
m.pinkbike.com/photo/15893117
They have the ugliest everything
Pretty much every manufacturer has their frames made in Taiwan except for a very, very, short list. I don't know any high end bike manufacturer that is sourcing to China.
If its so good, buy it.
www.frankthewelder.com
Not sire about mullet, however frame looks quite good!
Always loved intense & they way they look.
My first true DH race bike was a 03 M1 & man what a horny looking bike that was.
I reckon intense paint jobs are sick, they stand out.
That first model M29 , the red,black & white frame with the red boxxers is easily one of the best looking bikes ever mad.
I’ll be buying one of these when they are available.
Good work intense
would happily purchase modern geo alu bike from them, do not like carbon bikes due to impact resistance, and necessity to be precise accurate with torque wrench, and other maintenance and carry on stuff (like bike rack's etc)
A lower center of gravity is noticeable on a bike, most especially in loose or gravel situations. When deflected the bike will want to pivot under you, in the "roll" axis. If the CoG is lower, its more like a metronome with all the movement at the top instead of the bottom. With a high CoG, the bike will want to behave more like a pendulum, with the movement happening at the bottom where the tires are, causing the bike to "dance" and feel less stable. Obviously this is even more important when jumping or performing tricks/stunts. This is something that even average riders like myself can notice.
Where this idea becomes disingenuous is that somehow moving an air shock around will actually affect the CoG in a meaningful way. If you have an old school, steel coil spring shock then yes it matters, but air shocks are so freaking light that its lighter than a comparable section of aluminum tubing.
It just a batter paint job with mullet SC nomad
I've been coming to be a intense hater
- Slightly lower seat tubes would be cool
- Along with slightly longer reaches
- And significantly slacker head angles
- If Kovarik's saddle is at pedaling height, shouldn't he be on the next size up?
- I know US-produced aluminium bikes used to be your thing and you probably made the right move to go carbon, but if I were you I'd seriously consider some Taiwanese alu frames. I think you're missing a lot of potential sales.
- seat tubes length are ok on majority of bikes, dropper insertion sucks so( 7 inch only possible or so)
- steeper seat tubes would be appreciated
- on all bikes I own saddle hight looks the same, it is more about your ape index
- alu agree, bring alu bikes back, at least as a frame
Also they obviously ripped off Santa Cruz's new lower link VPP.
But from memory the V10 mk1 came out before the M3? I might be wrong but think it was about 2002.
Then the M3 came out in 2003 or 2004 and around then feels like the dawn of modern dh frames. Of course a lot of folk don't realise Intense and Santa cruz collaborated with VPP ideas. SC bought the patents for VPP originally from Outland.
It was around 2006/07 when Intense and Santa Cruz dh frames looked VERY similar, think M6 and V10mk3!
So yeah a lot of folk are gonna say this just looks like a Santa Cruz and it does. But it's not just a case on Intense ripping off Santa Cruz. But having said that it would have been nice if it did at least look a little different from the current crop of Santa Cruz bikes. I say this as someone who rides a Nomad 4.
I remember the first advert in the magazines for the V10, it was like a blueprint drawing of the V10 with stats on the suspension travel. The marketing pointed out it was to be run with 4 inches of sag leaving 6 inches of full travel. In the UK it was often seen with a 5th Element shock. Good tmes.
That's why both brand are so similar. Neither brand copied the other. They both have been developing VPP linkage bikes since that time.
The Intense linkage in DH form, at this point, has deviated substantially from the original patent from what I understand.
Interesting that when the Horst link expired, a ton of companies jumped on the design. When VPP patent expired, Diamondback started using it...and that's it to my knowledge.
That may be more accurate. Was trying to clarify the implications that Intense was somehow mimicking the decision without consent or copying the visual aspects of the Santa Cruz.
mbaction.com/the-return-of-the-virtual-pivot-pointmay-15
I just tried to look it up & you're correct . Article states that Intense has "Exclusive Rights" to VPP.
I'm also OLD AS FOKK because I was at NORBA Nationals staring at the Outland & watching it go by. At the time, it overcame the flaws of the VERY PEDALLY courses, tiny shocks & flimsy frames of the time.
Article reads as though Steber & Roskopp decided to try to figure out implementation into mountain bikes was good for two US companies to come up with engineering mules simultaneously to see what the possibilities were. Thanks for the reminder