10 Exotic or Unconventional Downhill Bikes Spotted in the World Cup Pits
With the race season on hold, we've been left to trawl through the archives looking for our World Cup downhill fix. Here's a look at ten downhill bikes from the past few seasons that are a bit unconventional or are just simply more exotic than the norm:
This Cavalerie Falcon equipped with an Effigear gearbox was raced by AM Dorval's junior Emilie Rilat in the 2018 season. It certainly stands out from the crowd in the World Cup pits, we took these shots in 2018 in Val di Sole and, while one did grace a tech randoms gallery, it never went much further than that. Here's a little more in-depth look.
Kellys are no strangers to the World Cup circuit but their flagship downhill model, the Noid 90, is definitely a little more unconventional when compared to most of the other rigs in the WC pits. If you want to take an even closer look you can read our bike check of Rastislav Baranek's Noid 90 29er.
This bike speaks for itself and caused quite the stir in the run-up to the 2019 season as we were teased with glimpses of a twin shocked Cannondale downhill bike being ridden by Matt Simmonds. The first round in Maribor offered us a clearer look at what Cannondale had been working on before we were able to get some more information out of team manager Daniel Hespeler and mechanic Tom Duncan.
Unno is the brainchild of one of the industry's leading designers in Cesar Rojo. What would later come to be known as the Unno Ever first came to most people's attention after being ridden to first place at masters World Champs in Andorra in 2015 in the hands of none other than the man who'd designed it. The all-carbon Ever is one of the most drool-worthy and exclusive bikes on the market, it's laid by hand in Barcelona in limited numbers and has a price tag to match.
We only saw this bike for one race with it popping up at the end of 2018 season finale in La Bresse in the hands of Jack Reading. It shared similar geometry to the 27.5" G19 that he was on previously with the biggest change a 10mm drop in rear travel to 180mm. That combined with a change in the position and angle of the seat tube ensured the bigger wheels didn't make contact with the frame under bottom out.
The longest downhill bike to grace the World Cup circuit? Quite possibly. Isak Leivvson rocked up to the 2018 Fort William World Cup aboard this monstrous Pole Machine 200 proto, the bigger brother to its trail going sibling. Although the two shared similarities in both the unique manufacturing method used and the Evolink suspension design, the bike's wheelbase measures in at a huge 1360mm with the chainstays ticking over 460mm. All of this combined with the 29" wheels and 830mm bars made for a roomy ride for Leivvson who stands at 187 cm tall.
We spotted this Antidote Darkmatter belonging to Polish racer Agata Bulska lurking in the SRAM pits at the 2017 Leogang World Cup. The Darkmatter is far from a common sight at World Cups but we kinda wish it was... I mean just look at the thing!
The NS Fuzz isn't too far from the norm but it also isn't exactly a mainstream bike on the World Cup circuit, despite the NS Factory Racing Team existing for a couple of seasons before it morphed into Gamux Factory Racing last year. The clean frame design built around a 4-bar horst linkage is certainly easy on the eye and has some neat features tucked away out of sight, like offset cups that can be used to adjust the reach.
The Norco Aurum in its current guise has been around for a few years now but it still cuts a unique silhouette when lined up to its competitors. It first came to our attention towards the end of summer in 2016 as Sam Blenkinsop pushed it through the lift queue in Whistler and the wild-looking suspension layout and idler position was a big departure from the previous Aurum. It has since been refined and now has a 29" equivalent which the likes of Sam Blenkinsop are running on the Norco Factory Downhill Team.
Okay, I can already hear the comments... "How is a Santa Cruz exotic or unconventional?!" Well, because this was the first 29" downhill bike to be raced on the World Cup circuit, and it certainly seemed like Santa Cruz left everyone scrambling after they pulled the trigger on the bike for the start of the 2017 season. Their riders dominated qualifying in Lourdes but they, of course, were all caught up in the race day washout. The point was made, 29" wheels had arrived in downhill and they were here to stay. They came in thick and fast after that but Santa Cruz had already stolen a march on their rivals.
Cavalerie Falcon
This Cavalerie Falcon equipped with an Effigear gearbox was raced by AM Dorval's junior Emilie Rilat in the 2018 season. It certainly stands out from the crowd in the World Cup pits, we took these shots in 2018 in Val di Sole and, while one did grace a tech randoms gallery, it never went much further than that. Here's a little more in-depth look.
Cavalerie are based in France, this Falcon was raced by French junior Emilie Rilat in the 2018 season.
At the heart of the bike is a 9-speed Effigear gearbox.
We haven't spotted another Cavalerie Falcon on the WC scene.
Raw aluminium is always a winner in our eyes!
Kellys Noid 90
Kellys are no strangers to the World Cup circuit but their flagship downhill model, the Noid 90, is definitely a little more unconventional when compared to most of the other rigs in the WC pits. If you want to take an even closer look you can read our bike check of Rastislav Baranek's Noid 90 29er.
The Noid 90 is built around a unique shock mounting and the Think Link system.
When Rick Schubert shot these photos at a European DH Cup round in 2018, the team was currently testing a carbon version of the Think Link that was engineered by the technical university of Bratislava.
The Noid 90 seems to be an extremely versatile bike as there are two adjustment options, one on the chainstay and one at the rear shock, which alter the head angle and bottom bracket.
Cannondale prototype
This bike speaks for itself and caused quite the stir in the run-up to the 2019 season as we were teased with glimpses of a twin shocked Cannondale downhill bike being ridden by Matt Simmonds. The first round in Maribor offered us a clearer look at what Cannondale had been working on before we were able to get some more information out of team manager Daniel Hespeler and mechanic Tom Duncan.
This bike was one of the biggest stories of last season but it doesn't look like we'll be seeing it in the pits again this year with the project seemingly on hold.
The bike could be run in both a twin/split shock and single shock configuration. Simmonds ran the split shock in Maribor (left) before using a single shock at the following round in Fort William (right).
The bike had a huge amount of adjustability with various linkages, geometry chips, headset cups, and chainstay lengths.
Cannondale opted to use an idler on the bike too.
Unno Ever
Unno is the brainchild of one of the industry's leading designers in Cesar Rojo. What would later come to be known as the Unno Ever first came to most people's attention after being ridden to first place at masters World Champs in Andorra in 2015 in the hands of none other than the man who'd designed it. The all-carbon Ever is one of the most drool-worthy and exclusive bikes on the market, it's laid by hand in Barcelona in limited numbers and has a price tag to match.
The Unno Ever belonging to Scottish racer Greg Williamson sitting pretty in Andorra last season.
Cesar Rojo has designed a lot of top downhill bikes over the years but with Unno he gave himself a blank canvas that was free from the constraints of other companies' demands.
Limited production numbers and a price tag on the higher end of things make the Unno Ever one of the most exclusive bikes on the market.
Nicolai 29er Prototype
We only saw this bike for one race with it popping up at the end of 2018 season finale in La Bresse in the hands of Jack Reading. It shared similar geometry to the 27.5" G19 that he was on previously with the biggest change a 10mm drop in rear travel to 180mm. That combined with a change in the position and angle of the seat tube ensured the bigger wheels didn't make contact with the frame under bottom out.
No carbon to be seen here.
The geometry remained pretty similar between the 27.5" and 29" model with one of the biggest change being a 10mm drop in travel to accommodate for the larger wheel size.
There's something beautiful about the craftmanship on the Nicolai frames.
Pole Machine 200
The longest downhill bike to grace the World Cup circuit? Quite possibly. Isak Leivvson rocked up to the 2018 Fort William World Cup aboard this monstrous Pole Machine 200 proto, the bigger brother to its trail going sibling. Although the two shared similarities in both the unique manufacturing method used and the Evolink suspension design, the bike's wheelbase measures in at a huge 1360mm with the chainstays ticking over 460mm. All of this combined with the 29" wheels and 830mm bars made for a roomy ride for Leivvson who stands at 187 cm tall.
There was no missing the Pole Machine 200 rolling through the Fort William pits in 2018.
The Machine 200 utilises Pole's Evolink suspension design much like it's trail going sibling.
Pole uses a unique manufacturing method where two machined pieces of 7075 aluminium are bolted and bonded together.
The chainstays measure up at 460mm.
*insert joke about a long Pole here*
Antidote Darkmatter
We spotted this Antidote Darkmatter belonging to Polish racer Agata Bulska lurking in the SRAM pits at the 2017 Leogang World Cup. The Darkmatter is far from a common sight at World Cups but we kinda wish it was... I mean just look at the thing!
The Antidote Darkmatter is handmade in Poland.
Bike porn?
The Darkmatter uses an idler pulley to try to minimize pedal feedback.
NS Fuzz
The NS Fuzz isn't too far from the norm but it also isn't exactly a mainstream bike on the World Cup circuit, despite the NS Factory Racing Team existing for a couple of seasons before it morphed into Gamux Factory Racing last year. The clean frame design built around a 4-bar horst linkage is certainly easy on the eye and has some neat features tucked away out of sight, like offset cups that can be used to adjust the reach.
This was Noel Niederberger's World Champs bike in Lenzerheide a few seasons ago.
The bike is built around a 4-bar horst linkage.
Unfortunately we didn't much of the NS Fuzz on the WC scene last year as the team they'd previously sponsored move onto pastures new.
Norco Aurum
The Norco Aurum in its current guise has been around for a few years now but it still cuts a unique silhouette when lined up to its competitors. It first came to our attention towards the end of summer in 2016 as Sam Blenkinsop pushed it through the lift queue in Whistler and the wild-looking suspension layout and idler position was a big departure from the previous Aurum. It has since been refined and now has a 29" equivalent which the likes of Sam Blenkinsop are running on the Norco Factory Downhill Team.
Sam Blenkinsop's Aurum HSP 29" at Crankworx Rotorua earlier this year.
The first (albeit blurry) photos of what would later be known as the Aurum HSP.
The sign of things to come. Blenkinsop tested the old Aurum with an idler pulley in early 2016.
We then spotted the 29" version at New Zealand National Champs in Wanaka in 2018.
The HSP and idler give the Aurum a unique look.
Santa Cruz V10 29er
Okay, I can already hear the comments... "How is a Santa Cruz exotic or unconventional?!" Well, because this was the first 29" downhill bike to be raced on the World Cup circuit, and it certainly seemed like Santa Cruz left everyone scrambling after they pulled the trigger on the bike for the start of the 2017 season. Their riders dominated qualifying in Lourdes but they, of course, were all caught up in the race day washout. The point was made, 29" wheels had arrived in downhill and they were here to stay. They came in thick and fast after that but Santa Cruz had already stolen a march on their rivals.
Greg Minnaar was a big advocate for the move to the bigger wheels.
The move to 29" wheels meant Santa Cruz's partners like Fox, Maxxis, and Enve had to step up to the plate with suitable 29" components.
The V10 was one of the most refined 29ers we saw in that 2017 season.
Santa Cruz came out swinging with their V10 in Lourdes and dominated qualifying with Loris Vergier 1st, Luca Shaw in 3rd, and Greg Minnaar in 6th.
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183 Comments
Edit: I just googled it. it was called Lifeline carbon, but it somehow doesn´t look as good as I remember it
fotos.mtb-news.de/p/1033154
Probably an unpopular opinion, but however I might feel about the company, that Pole looks awesome. I really wish they could get their attitude and customer service sorted out, because their product looks sweet.
p.vitalmtb.com/photos/users/2/photos/61337/s600_SS_n3x1172.jpg
It had gentle curves, no harsh lines, and just looked low and fast. Just follow the lines from the rear axle forward to the main pivot, where it kisses the teardrop front triangle. It had a curved downtube without the "belly" that so many bikes of the time had (like the Demo). It looks light and fast while looking neither willowy nor free-ride burly.
2nd place is the original Evil Wreckoning, but thats a different conversation for a different time.
Unno
Darkmatter
Ironhorse Sunday back in the days
m.pinkbike.com/photo/12167463
Hopefully the One.2 is so fast that I'll be scared to pedal anyway, eliminating the concern for pedal strikes all together lol.
@mtbgeartech: pedal timing. No way around it. Sure it sucks to start pedalling and realize you are in a too low gear but still. When there's gravity, there's alwasy an opportunity to pump the backsides.
Why no polygon, then?
Isn't every carbon frame "laid by hand"? (genuine question)
Thank you for that!
At least Pinkbike gives us good content to read and drool over in these times.
And:
None of the above look like a Session!
Carbon Fibre. Check
Gearbox. Check.
Lahar. Just so far ahead of it's time.
nsmb.com/articles/3463-readers-rides-lahar-m9
This whole season is on hold
Didn’t somebody took it to Rampage?
Nuff said ????
LOOKS to me that more than 1/2 these bikes are CARBON !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
What did you hear about their stiffness eventual issues? Thanks
i.pinimg.com/originals/5d/33/0a/5d330a38404916e53ad87b8a63a820cb.jpg
nicolai is the best
Mother nature will thank you.
cause they pay well?
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