Sorry, they will be no postings till 11 March

Hye,
Guys and gals, I am goin to sound like a jerk or loser but I must sadly say that I will be away starting 30th Dec until 11th March to undergo my NS camp. Also I deeply apologize for not posting anything in my blog for a very long time. My emotion is currently sad and heartbroken so finding the urge to write something properly in the blog has been a challenge. So Im sorry.

Tomorrow is the day!

Well, today I completed the Cycle Hunt and aint it a fun event. Anyway tomorrow is the real deal. I will be writing a full review of Kayuh Lasak 07 on Monday and hopefully will be able to finish it ASAP (with pictures). So sorry to keep you guys waiting. Stay tuned

Sorry for not posting bout my ride

Okay, as my title states, I apologize for not posting bout the ride that Im planned to. The reason the process is slow cause I took about 200 pics and sorting out which to appear in my post is harder then you think (this is also due to my PC being slow again). Also I have been busy studying to pass my learning driving license and busy checking out my bike to make sure its in good condition for this weekend ride cause Its Kayuh Lasak!. Below is the map of this year trail.



It seems this year trail is going to be more challenging from last year. There are 2 major hills to climb which is Penang Hill and Iron - X.

To those who dont know what Im talking bout. To climb Penang Hill, you must use a jeep. Meaning a normal car wont be able to go up Penang Hill (this should give you a rough idea bout how steep the hill is). And Iron X (a.k.a IronCross) is a hill with a constant 30-45 degree elevation.

So it seems this year its going to be more challenging, lets hope Im up to the challenge. Slow and steady finish the race :D.

Its Over!!!

Woo hoo!!!, my exam has finally over and now Im busy taking my driving license course. Anyway tomorrow morning is the day where I start to train for Kayuh Lasak. Although its not a competition, but finishing before the sun rises (around 12.00-1.00) is always better cause chances of you feel dehydrated is less.

Well If my mom allows me to bring her camera phone while riding tomorrow, hopefully I would be able to take some pics and give a report of the ride. The venue is goin to be near my neighbourhood and I decided to make my own loop. This trail has many routes so what I meant by making my own loop is cycling most of the trail for the whole morning. Hopefully this training session would improve my performance for the jamboree. I have practiced a couple of days during my exam so my stamina is okay I guess.

Its Workiing!

Hey guys n gals, originally Im planning to write a post announcing that my big examination will be coming to an end in a week so Im happy to announce that I will get to my original mood of posting soon. Anyway this post is supposed to appear yesterday but my PC seems to have a hardware problem. Its a 5 years old PC and i though that something is broken, so when I opened it I could feel that the internal is very hot, I guess it has something to do bout me not shutting the comp down for almost a year stuff. It was very dusty so I decided to do some cleaning up and when I turned back it on, guess what happen? It worked and my PC speed is returning back to normal. Thank God! Its amazing how cleaning the vent ports on your PC would speed things up back. Morale of this story is : Make sure your PC has enough ventilation.

Im sorry

hey,
Well recently I have not been posting much, and I sadly say that Im still lost. Somehow I dont know why I cant think of a topic to talk about. So, I would like to announce that I will be taking a break from posting till I finish my important end year exam which is at November. Sorry

Kayuh Lasak : Beyond Limits!! update

Well the registration for 08 Kayuh Lasak has closed and for those who missed it, dont worry, this event is held every year so make sure you dont miss the fun next year. Names of those who are registered are posted here

Ellsworth Rims

Okay, Im finally back from my holiday and honestly speaking, I totally have no idea in what to write. I would appreciate if some readers would contribute topic bout what I should write. You can email me at XCRIDER@MTBNNETWORK.TK

Anyway back to my topic, after searching through MTBR for inspiration, I ended up with Ellsworth wheelset. Its very interesting bout Ellsworth making their own rims cause so far only Specialized makes their own rim and with Ellsworth making carbon rims it makes it more interesting. Yeah, they are many company who make rims, but there are only a few bike company which make their own rims.

Basically, nothing much is known bout this rims, my concern is the durability cause Ellsworth frames are known for cracking and they are experts at aluminium but their knowledge bout carbon is questionable. I said this cause they are 2 types of rims Ellsworth is producing which is carbon and aluminium. Carbon rims? Yeah, so far DT Swiss is making carbon rims and it just amazes me that Ellsworth is also producing carbon rims while other known wheelmaker (

2008 CrankBrothers Conclusion

Well, this article is just going to be about the summary of all the 08 CrankBrothers articles. It seems that CrankBrothers have been planning new products for quite a while cause they released 2 new product of their own, 1 revised version and 1 licensed product.

So anyway, it seems CrankBrothers is really into the cobalt, sage or etc names. Their wheels uses the same name as their headset and its no suprise that we might see DH and FR wheels in the future. It is possible that CrankBrothers might change the name of their pedals into this new names. Anyway below is the links of all the posts, so knock your self out :

2008 CrankBrothers:
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4

Now I got some announce to make, as some of you might know, Ramadan is coming to an end and today (in Malaysia) its the last day of Ramadan so Im going back to my parents hometown. I'll be going back for about 1 week which means MTBN Network wont be updated around that time. Im very sad that I wont be able to update and add new articles but I hope you guys understand. Sorry.

2008 CrankBrothers (Part 4)

Ahh, finally part 4 of our coverage and this is the final one. Thank God!

Anyway, time for part 4 : If you have been doing a lot of browsing over the net, you might realise that CrankBrothers isnt the first company to make a 4 sided pedal. Look is actually the original maker of 4 sided pedal. So what am I trying to point out?
Well for 2008, instead of going through the trouble of inventing a new adjustable seatpost, CrankBrothers decided to use another company adjustable seatpost design and relabelled it as theirs.

The product is called Joplin (see pic below)



Those who have been a frequent reader will notice that the seatpost look very familiar. Well of coarse you do!, I posted a article bout adjustable seatpost before ( click here, if you forget about it).

So anyway its obvious that the seatpost has been bought from Maverick, CrankBrothers have been very secretive bout its newly bought product. So far what I can guess is since its bought from Maverick, its mostlike to have this specifications:

Length : 382mm
Weight : 454 gram/16.01 ounce
Diameter : 30.9 and 31.6

Im not sure if CrankBrothers is planning to release a remote version of Joplin and if CrankBrothers is planning to release a different diameter (smaller is good) of the seatpost. Also if they are going to be a lighter weight version of the seatpost. There is no word bout the price yet.

The advantage of CrankBrothers taking over Maverick Speedball seatpost is it will be easier to obtain and customer support will be no problem.

Hmm, so I have covered all of CrankBrothers new and improved product for 2008, the rest of the current product will just get some slight updates, so I wont be writing bout them. Please email me if you are interested in me writing bout them too.

Update @ 11 OCT

I recently added a photo of CrankBrothers hub cut out in yesterday post, so be sure to check it out.

2008 CrankBrothers (Part 3)

Now its time for the third chapter of 2008 CrankBrothers extensive coverage, so far I have covered the crankset, their hoops and now I'm going to elaborate bout a unit which is placed between the fork steerer tube and headtube. The unit im talking bout is the headset.

CrankBrothers call their headset as Directsets. There is one word to describe CrankBrothers headset and that is....light. Its seriously light and its heaviest duty platform weights at 110gram. So how light is most of the range? Try 50 - 70 gram. Its lightweight will appeal to weight weenies and Chris King headsets weights around 90 - 120 gram. So CrankBrothers headset is about half the weight of a CK headset. CrankBrothers manage to get the weight down is cause of the headset simplicity.



Instead of the traditional headset which usually has about 8 - 11 components in it (vary to manufacturer), CrankBrothers Directsets have simplify some of the parts, for example : the headset cup is the bearing itself (outer race of the bearing is outside). The disadvantage of making it so simple is the bearing aint replaceable, meaning you need to replace the whole headset once the bearing worn out. Dont worry bout this though cause the price isnt too shabby either (depending on which model you are getting). CrankBrothes opted for 3 different price points, The most expensive models will be priced at USD 300, middle range is USD 130 (Chris King price), and the lowest range is USD90. The weight between the 3 different pricepoints is very marginal (if its me, Im getting the cheapest model). Again, Crank Brothers decided to stick to their 08 product names, see below:



Cross Country : Cobalt (Blue)
Ti - 58g : USD 300
SL - 65g : USD 130
C - 65g : USD 90

All - Mountain : Iodine (Copper)
SL - 65.5g : USD 130
C - 65.5 : USD 90

Downhill : Opium (Red)
SL - 70g : USD 130
C - 70g : USD 90

Freeride : Sage (Green)
SL - 92g : USD 130
C - 110g - USD 90

* SL and C difference is SL stands for Stainless Steel while C stands for Steel. I guess this has something to do with the headset internals, considering the same weight but different prices (except Sage).

With all this headset choices, CrankBrothers certainly will be a worthy competitor in the headset department. The heaviest headset weights at 110g which is design for heavy duty purposes and its as light as most XC headsets out there. Well since this headset havent been released yet, guess we have to wait for some real world reviews. From the specs, this headset sure sounds good.

*Pics provided by cyclingnews.com and mtbr.com interbike page.

*Update #1 :
I recently checked BikeRadar.com and I found a cut out of CrankBrothers Hub, enjoy!

2008 DT Swiss Site is up!

Well after drooling over DT Swiss 2008 lineup, DT Swiss finally updated their site and its a definate improvement over their previous website design. The XRC wheels is sweet

DT Swiss official site

2008 CrankBrothers (Part 2)

Sorry for the late post, been busy studying for end year examination. Anyway time for part 2 of 08 Crank Bros extensive coverage. CrankBrothers has build their reputation from their 4 sided clipless pedal and last year they expand their range to crankset. This year its planning to expand its production, one of which I would like to post about today is their new range of wheelset.

For 2008, CrankBrothers will be releasing 2 wheelsets for different purposes. For cross country (XC) usage, its called the Cobalt (blue coloured), while for all-mountain (AM) is Iodine(copper coloured) (Gotta love the names). The wheels is only offered in a set, which means you cant get just the rims or the hubs or the unique spokes.




So what so special bout CrankBrothers wheels? From the pic CrankBros has decided not to stick with traditional rim design in favour of a 'Y' shaped rim design and it has eliminated the need of drilled rim holes, except the valve hole. The advantage of this is the wheels will be much stiffer and at the same time reduce weight cause the wheels wont be needing any unnecessary metal. Being hole less naturally mean its a tubeless rim. The design of the rim is clean and simple, I wonder why no company ever though of this design.

The most eye catching part of the wheelset is the spokes. The spokes is a CrankBrothers exclusive 2 piece spoked called 'TwinPair Spokes'. Its made out of 2 materials (the coloured is made out of aluminium while the silver/non-coloured is steel). The spoke is connected to the rim via a plug (see the small silver round shaped thing?) and is connected directly straight to the hub. This 2 piece spoke design is totally a new design so they is nothing can be said bout the durability of the spokes.




Next is the hubs, the 6 bolt disc hub works on four cartridge bearings and incorporates a six-pawl driver mechanism. The body of the hub is made of aluminum. CrankBrothers is plannning to offer the front hub in both 9mm quick-release and 20mm thru-axle. There is no news if CrankBrothers is planning to offer the 6 bolt disc hub in Shimano Centre Lock configuration.

Lastly, its the QuickRelease lever (QR). CrankBrothers again has decided not to follow other wheelmakers in the QR design. CrankBrothers QR works on a 2 step process. As you can see in the Iodine QR (see below pic)



CrankBrothers said the reason for this design is to reduce the effort needed to close the QR with the same clamping force compared to conventional QR design and it will be very sad once you get scratches on the beautifully design quick release lever.

CrankBrothers have been secretive bout the price of the wheels and when it will make its debut so only time will tell. BikeMag states in their site that the Cobalt wheelset (XC-usage) will weight around 1550 - 1600 gram. Being CrankBrothers, the price of the wheels most probably aint going to be cheap and with the weight around 1.5-1.6kg, CrankBrothers need to make it lighter to make the money spent worth it.

*Pic taken from MTBR.com CrankBrothers Interbike virtual booth

2008 CrankBrothers (Part 1)

CrankBrothers, the company which is known for producing the best mud shedding clipless pedal in the industry. For part 1 of my 08 CrankBrothers blog posts, Im going to elaborate on their Cobalt SL crankset. Somehow the Cobalt SL crankset didnt get any limelight from any magazines. Partly is cause the Cobalt SL crankset is using ISIS BB and the price of the crankset aint cheap. Riders dont want to spend that amount of money on a ISIS BB when they can get a XTR crankset which is currently the best crankset out there by spending slightly more.

So for 2008 CrankBrothers is releasing the Cobalt SLi, i as it stands means integrated (not sure what are they integrating, but from the pics, it looks like the BottomBracket is attached at the non drive crankarm side). Also the crank will feature external BB. (pic below, taken from cyclingnews.com)



There is no official word why CrankBrothers decide to change to external BB eventhough they give comments why they decide to stick to ISIS in their Cobalt SL mini site. Below is a quote of why they stick to ISIS (taken from CrankBros Cobalt SL minisite)

Why ISIS, when everyone else is going integrated?
We choose not follow a trend just because everybody else is. We don’t consider the “new” external bearing two piece crank system to be the best solution to attach the crankarms to the frame. As we see it, these integrated cranks do not have any big advantages and in some cases they have disadvanages: Weight and stiffness is not necessarily improved in an integrated system. Integrated crank systems rely on the frame manufacturer for bottom bracket alignment, and misaligned bearings wear faster. We think that integrated cranks are yet to be proven. ISIS is already proven. The ISIS system offers flexibility, durability, stiffness, reasonable cost, and choice. ISIS bottom brackets have evolved and improved since they were first introduced. With the Cobalt SL, you have the freedom to choose your BB, which gives you the flexibility to customize the weight, durability and price of your setup.

Overall, whatever the reason is, changing to external BB is a good move for CrankBrothers cause riders never liked the idea of ISIS crankset since external BB appear in the market, furthermore external BB is much stiffer then ISIS. Hopefully CrankBrothers have fixed the cracking issue which are found on the current Cobalt SL cranks. You can read all bout the cracking issue here.

So for those who doesnt know about Cobalt cranks, to make it short and simple, its chainring is created by Truvativ and the crankarm is made by a combination of 2 materials (outer side: steel, inner side: aluminium)

Oh yeah, CrankBrothers is also releasing a SingleSpeed Cobalt crank for 08 which is known as Cobalt S. There is no word if CrankBrothers is planning to keep the current ISIS Cobalt SL cranks for 2008.

Be sure to check back for more extensive 08 CrankBrothers coverage, only at MTBNNetwork.tk.

P.S: Registration for 2008 Kayuh Lasak MTB Jamboree is still open (see bottom posts), so be sure to join if you want to skip winter for a couple of weeks and to enjoy a well deserved holiday.

Update @ 2 OCT

Yesterday I wrote a post about Kayuh Lasak 2008 and I made some mistakes, so please re-read again and sorry for the inconvenience, the post can be found below this post or you can click the link below to go directly to the post:

Malaysia MTB Event : Kayuh Lasak 2008 : Beyond Limits!! - 1 & 2 Dec

Kayuh Lasak : Beyond Limits!!

Okay so what is this post going to be about? Its not going to be about Mountain bikes gears though, but rather towards a MTB Jamboree which is the last MTB event in Malaysia (thats between Singapore/Indonesia for some of you guys who never heard of Malaysia). The date of this event would please riders who still want to ride in the winter (without the cold weather :D ) and enjoy their holidays.

This event for your information is a jamboree which means that its not really a competition, to make it quick and not boring, medal is awarded to each participant who managed to complete the jamboree and at night, there is a dinner where riders talk bout the morning ride and laugh at each other, for this year, the first 500 participant who registered is entitled to a free sponsored cycling jersey, and when you wear it (the free sponsored cycling jersey) during the jamboree and complete the event (by collecting 8 checkpoint stickers) will entitle you to a 10 special lucky draw prizes . Also for those who missed to be the first 500 participant shouldn be sad cause like past years, they are the normal/traditional lucky draw for all the participating participants. Which means this year they will be a special lucky draw and the traditional lucky draw event.

The event is a 2 day event, which is held on the 1st and 2nd of December in Penang Malaysia, officially the Kayuh Lasak 30-40km ride is on 2nd December (Sunday), on the 1st December there is CycleHunt event in the morning where you will be able to cycle on road around Penang town area, which is can be considered as a tour around Penang town and later that night is a pre-ride briefing that is compulsory to all riders. On the 2nd December, the bike event will begin and at night, there will be a jamboree dinner where local food will be served.

Okay I participated in last years jamboree and I will shed some facts bout it, the Jamboree trail for each year doesnt change much, so last year Jamboree is a very interesting experience for me since its the first Jamboree I participate. Its pretty hard for me to explain but believe me that the terrain will challenge riders from almost every aspect of Mountain Biking so you will be entertained.

For more infomation, you can go to the official site: kotrt.com.my

Before I forget, Kayuh Lasak is in Bahasa Melayu which if translated into english means Pedal Hard/Challenging. It sounds weird if translated to english so its best to just pronounce it as 'ka-yuh la-sak'.

Make sure you register ASAP because only the first 500 participant will be entitled for the free sponsored jersey and the special lucky draw event (if you manage to complete it that is). For additional information, the registration usually last about 1 week (Im trying to point out that many riders register for this even ASAP) So make sure you reserve your hotel accomodation (I recommend staying near the Tanjung Bungah area cause they are a lot of hotels that area and the jamboree will start near there).

You can also email me at xcrider@mtbnnetwork.tk if you have any enquiry.

Below is the map link of Georgetown, Penang, Malaysia:

GeorgeTown, Penang, Malaysia Google Map Link


*please take note that I have edited this post cause they are some mistakes, sorry for the inconvenience

Updates @ 29/9

I recently added new stuff in yesterday 28/9 post, make sure you check it out :

Ibis Mojo/Mojo SL 2008/The Best just got Better

The Best just got Better

Okay, if you are a frequent mountain bike magazine reader, they are a few bikes that seem to always get rave reviews from any magazine, regarding the author or the origin of the magazine. One of the bike which seem to always get a perfect or near perfect review is Ibis Mojo.

Ibis Mojo, is by far one of the best multi-purpose XC bike, its light enough to compete and abusive enough for drops.
The only thing that cause it not to get a perfect score sometimes is cause of there ain't any water bottle mount. But at the price they are offering you, its hard not to choose a Mojo if you are looking for a full carbon bike without breaking the bank. Take note that the Mojo is priced at USD1899, that price is cheaper then the all-aluminium and part magnesium bike Ellsworth offers (no offence).

The Mojo is a sub 6lbs 5.5"(140mm) all purpose XC bike. It uses the world renowned bicycle linkage, DW Link.


So from my title, its obvious that the Mojo is getting a improved version for 2008. Introducing the Mojo SL!!!!!


The Mojo SL is definitely a improved version of the current Ibis and its a must have upgrade for weight weenies. This model drops 1lbs from the current Mojo, which makes it as a sub 5lbs 5.5" rear travel frame.

Okay so where did Ibis manage to squeeze out the 1lbs cause I don't want to own a frame that is less durable?
Ibis manage to drop the weight by using ultra high modulus fiber enhanced layup which helped the bike to reduce weight at certain areas. Besides this the seat tube insert, head cup and dropouts have been changed to carbon (the dropout receives a steel sheath so the carbon is not damaged in any way), the pins have been switched to Ti to reduce weight and Ibis uses DT Swiss SSD shock instead of Fox RP23 to reduce weight even more.

To make it more interesting, Ibis will be the first MTB company in the 20th century to use rubber paint instead of the traditional carbon coating/paint for the Ibis SL. The paint purpose is to make the bike easier to clean (which all riders would greatly appreciate) and its more durable.


For those people who likes custom stuffs, the Mojo SL should definitely be in your list cause the links are offered in designer colours. The pic above of the Nude Mojo SL is a excellent example of what I'm talking about. Damn the designer coloured links will totally compliment your hubs (Hope/Chris King/Industry 9).

So how much do all this will costs me?
This sub 5 lbs frame will cost you USD2499. Some of you might think that the price isn't cheap (don't worry, Ibis still offer the normal Mojo) but at what Ibis offer for the Mojo SL, its all worth it and you must agree that its better packaged then some bike frames out there. Anyway, like the Mojo, the Mojo SL is also offered as complete bikes which will make it cheaper. Click the link below to go to the official Mojo SL component specs.

Mojo SL parts picks


The weight of the parts picks have been listed in their site and from the Mojo parts and pricing history, its most likely the parts that the MojoSL complete bike package will make other company be ashamed.

*Pics are taken from the official Ibis site and both the Mojo and Mojo SL paint is clear/matte clear.

*Update #1: Recently I visited MTBR site and I found some cool photos that future Mojo SL owners would greatly appreciate:

Mojo SL : Matte Clear

Mojo SL : Brown

Mojo SL : Gray

Titanium bolts and Designer Colour Anodized links, current Mojo owners will be very happy cause this links are compatible with the current Mojo.

Updates and first SplitPivot bike?

DW Link spreads it wings article has been recently updated, be sure to check at the bottom of the blog post. Below is a URL Link to the post.

DW Link spread its wings

Anyway, Yeti bicycles is releasing a 7" bike named the Seven and what makes it eyecatching is the absence of the driveside chainstay. By the way, im not going to write about a 7" enduro bike, but what Im trying to point out is that there seem to be a concentric pivot on the non-driveside of the seven, which is similar to what Dave Weagle's SplitPivot is. It is not confirmed if this is Dave's Split Pivot so dont get your hopes up. Below is the pic of Seven non-driveside taken from bikeradar.com.

Updates @ 25/9

2008 Trek Remedy blog post has recently been updated, be sure to check Update #2. Click the link below to go directly to the post.

2008 Trek Remedy blog post minipage

DW Link spread its wings

For years, most of us who are looking for aluminium DW Link bikes can only find it on IronHorseBikes , but fear no more cause for 2008 they will be a new company who will use DW Linkage, some of you might heard of it and some of you might not, but anyway Chris Cocalis (ex-Titus) is launching his own bicycle company named PivotCycles. Okay I know the site havent been updated yet but the bike has been shown at Interbike which is happening now.

So what do PivotCycle will offer us?
First up is the bike as stated in my first paragraph will be made out of aluminium. Secondly is it will be available in both 4" and 5" version. The bikes a named Mach 4 or 5 depending on its travel (it must be fast cause the name says it all). There is still no official weight of the bike yet and riders dont need to worry about the rear linkage because as I said before, its using world renowned DW Link (which can be found in IronHorseBikes or Ibis).

Anyway below are the pics of the new Mach 5 (pics provided by Cyclingnews.com)




From the pics, the linkage supporting the shock is interestingly design, it looks like they are 2 pair of pivots on the upper link and the bike features a top mounted shock position and there is no seatstay bracer which could possibly means that the bike would mostlikely to perform flawlessly in muddy condition (very usefull for UK weather) and will most likely have the feeling of a very flickable bike. None of this is confirmed yet but we will see what the journalist comment on the bike in future bike magazines.

Update #1 : okay, I recently browsed through BikeRadar.com and found a Mach 4 pic. See below:

2008 SRAM updated

Okay, I got another update, SRAM has fully updated its 2008 site, that includes SRAM, Truvativ, RockShox and Avid. SRAM, Truvativ and Avid seem to add another link for their 08 site which is S/T/A Technologies. Its a brief and quick overview of what do they offer and this make it convinient for people who want to know about their technology all on a single page.

Below is the link for each technology page:

SRAM - Mountain

Avid Brakes

Truvativ

Please take note that although all the site have a new makeover, RockShox product line hasnt been fully updated yet. RockShox site

So my thought bout the new site look? Nothing special, but they make it more convinient and its definately a upgrade from 07 site. Enjoyyy.

There is something that I wonder though, listed in the site bout Avid Juicy 3, it states that the three has similar power and geometry feel as its brothers but at a price that makes it perfect for just any bike. So I was wondering, is the Juicy 3 still OEM or its not?

Zipp, now powered by SRAM

Well, its just announced that popular carbon wheel roadbike manufacturer has been acquired by SRAM. Hmm, it seems SRAM is expanding its empire. Anyway basically, Zipp will stay as the Zipp now so owners and dealers shouldnt worry much. Well moving to the interesting side, since SRAM is originally a MountainBike company, they are some rumours speculating that Zipp in the future might produce MTB wheels, whether the material of the wheel is aluminium or carbon remains mystery. So anyway thats all and sorry for this short post, my exam is going to end this Monday and I got some pretty decent article to write about. 

So lets see, SRAM basically owned Sachs Derailleur (now SRAM), Rock Shox, Truvativ, Zipp and PitStop (a bike cleaning stuff). Its interesting what company will SRAM own next. And by looking at the company SRAM is getting under their empire, from derailleurs to wheels its obvious that SRAM want to throw Shimano out of its bicycling dominant. Only time will tell. 

And just for your interests, HB Group (Hayes disc Brake) has bought over Answer Products Manitou company, I know its old news but it just to make you guys remember and also PaceCycles the company who make carbon forks have been owned by DT Swiss. :D

Oo, did I feel some static?

Its been awhile since I posted and my exam havent finish yet (by next week), so since today I have some free time. Im going to give a quick info bout Scott's Marathon XC bike, Spark.

Hmm, so why do I categorize it as a Marathon XC bike instead of the usual full suspension race bike? Well my reason is because this bike is build for marathon usage, which means that its geometry isnt that stressful for the rider. Dont worry, you can still race on this bike because its one of the lightest 110mm full suspension out there (belive me there are lighter bikes but they can be categorize as not safe cause its build at a certain weight range). Oh did I forget that its also a good trailbike due to its carbon stiffness.

So enough intro and time to talk bout the bike:


Okay from the pic, its clearly that Scott decided to use a very conventional design. No bendy tubes, weird linkages or etc. The Spark uses a conventional faux bar linkage (pivot on the seatstay or Single Pivot Linkage), this simple design doesnt add unnessary weight and its proven by many manufacturers who used faux bar, those that should be noted are Turner Bikes.
But then you realise something, is that a piggy back reservoir shock? Yes you got it right, Scott as usual has designed their own shock with DT Swiss called the Nude shock which weights 240grm.



So whats so special bout the Nude shock? The advantage is, the rider is able to reduce the travel of the bike from 110 to 70 and dont forget that the shock offer a lockout feature. I belive the reason of the reservoir is so that when you reduce the travel (the height will reduce, hence better centre of gravity) the shock dampening wont be affected. Anyway the shock features a remote control called the TracLoc system which weights only 28gram, the rider would be able to change the travel with the use of his thumb .

Scott is famous for its CR1 carbon manufacturing process, but to make the Spark lighter, Scott engineers need a new method to make the bike lighter and yet without taking away important features. IMP is the solution. By using a patented process, Scott Engineers manage to produce the bike's headtube, toptube and downtube in a single process which has able them to reduce the bike weight without compromising the bike's overall strength. If you guys are a frequent reader of cyclingnews, Specialized rider, Christopher Sauser (a racer famous for not having unnessary weight on his bike) has his Epic custom made, his bike doesnt have a cosmetic carbon layer, the Spark has that feature too, its called Naked External Tubeset (NET) which help to save precious grams. So to sum it up about the frame, the whole bike feature Scott's latest IMP carbon manufacturing process except for the seatstay which is made from CR1 and also NET.

Below is a summarize of the difference between the bike frames offered by Scott for 2008:

Spark LTD Frame:
Scott Spark
HMX carbon fiber / NET / Integrated Seatpost
IMP top, head & down tubes
CR1 carbon swingarm / carbon cable stops & dropouts with replaceable hanger
Sealed aircraft bearings / optimised SLS kinematic / 110 mm rear travel
Frame: 3.42 lbs (1550 gr) + Nude TC shock: .53 lb (240 gr) Total : 3.95 lb (1790gr)

Spark 10 Frame:
Scott Spark
HMX carbon fiber / NET
IMP top, head & down tubes
CR1 carbon swingarm / carbon cable stops & dropouts with replaceable hanger
Sealed aircraft bearings / optimised SLS kinematic / 110 mm rear travel
Frame: 3.42 lbs (1550 gr) + Nude TC shock: .53 lb (240 gr) Total : 3.95 lbs (1790 gr)

Spark 15/20/30 frame:
Scott Spark
HMF carbon fiber / NET
IMP top, head & down tubes
CR1 carbon swingarm / carbon cable stops &
dropouts with replaceable hanger
sealed aircraft bearings / optimised SLS kinematic
110mm rear travel
HMF Frame: 3.64 lbs (1650 gr) + Nude TC shock: .53 lb (240 gr) Total : 4.17lbs (1890 gr)

Take note of the following:
Spark LTD lighter then 10 because of the integrated seatpost.
Ritchey carbon seatpost weights 260 gr / 0.57 lbs

The difference between HMF and HMX is its exclusively produced for Scott and offers 20% more stiffness and it has been reinforced to areas that need extra rigidity and at the same time to reduce weight. You save 100gr by buying a HMX frame.

Fork offering:
LTD - DTSwiss XRC 100mm
10 - Fox 32 F100RL (Black)
15 - Fox 32 F100RL (White)
20 - Fox 32 F100RL (White)
30 - Rock Shox Reba SL

So that's all, and take note that 08 models will be available in the US between October to January 2008, Scott is releasing the each model at different time.

So if you are a rider who loves to ride long distance and sometimes race and would love to own a lightweight full sus bike. Make sure the Spark is in your list.

Usefull links:
USA Scott Spark Product Site
Scott Spark minisite


Pic provided by BikeMagic.com

MTBN Network going to slow down

Sorry to make this a short notice but MTBN Network posting will be on hold for 2 weeks cause I got a exam coming up and I wont be able to post as usual. Sorry guys. Hope you guys can enjoy reading my posts and keep on riding :D

No updates today

Sorry guys, they wont be any news today considering that I got a very bad flu, writing this post is like hell already. So lets hope I will cure as fast as possible.

2008 Bianchi

A company that has been very well known in the road industry decides to expand its Mountain lineup. So what has Bianchi offer us for the upcoming year?

First up is the hardtail. Bianchi Oetzi hardtail will receive a redesigned seatstay and BB for 2008. Bianchi has also used their nano tech carbon (the same found on their road bikes) onto the bikes. This made the frame to weight at a respectable 1.2kg.

Oetzi pics (provided by BikeRadar):




Next is Bianchi's XC/Marathon Full Sus, Camos, it features a 80mm of rear travel and the suspension design is rather new and unseen in the market, they used a shock mounted on a bar link to suspend. The front part of the bike is carbon while the back part is alu. This combination made the bike frame to weight at a decent 2.4kg. From the pics, it seems the pivot is located on the chainstay, it is possible that Bianchi managed to escape the HorstLink pattern with the pivot location. So thats all the info bout 08 Bianchi MTB range and now is pics of the new Camos!

Camos pics(provided by BikeRadar)

2008 Felt MTB's

Hmm, it appears last year as a hyped product, so what happened? Well the Equilink hasnt dead yet and Felt are expanding its range for 2008. Sadly, their first Equilink equipped bike doesnt get as much attention as it should. You rarely will find a online owner owning it. Partly is cause they are better bikes out there, if you compare it with the price range of Felt Virtue bikes.

So anyway, lasts year biggest complaint is that the price of the Virtue is very expansive and Felt answer that the price is kinda pricey is cause of the seatstay carbon and that isnt a good answer. So for 2008, Felt decides to make the whole Virtue rear triangle to carbon, and it does look very stunning indeed. Felt engineers also claimed that the new design increases stiffness. So how bout the price? Sadly, Felt hasnt announce the price of the 08 Virtue or its component, lets hope they make it cheaper.

2008 Felt Virtue rear triangle

Some of you might notice that there in MTBR bike review page that the Felt Redemption is listed in the site but you cant really find any info bout it from Felt's website. Well the Redemption has presented itself in this year Eurobike and it features 165mm of rear travel, that makes it into light freeride MTB range. Anyway pics! and damn the Redemption has one sweet paint theme.

2008 Felt Redemption

Lastly, Felt is releasing their all-mountain bike to complete the lineup, with a rear travel of 145mm, introducing Compulsion!. The bike looks like a Redemption little brother rather then the Virtue. It comes with a full aluminium frame, top to bottom. So here are the pics!!!!

Felt's All-Mountain platform bike, the Compulsion

So thats all the updates that Felt is offering for 2008, lets hope next year they will have better media attention and lowered their bike prices. The weight of their 08 bikes hasnt been confirmed yet, I will update as soon as I found out. Thats all for now

Pics provided from cyclingnews.com

A new trend?

Honestly speaking, I totally got nothing to talk about today but after accidently seeing the review of Pace latest full suspension bike, I realise a similarity about its floating shock mount design. The bike is smoother. Thats exactly the same comment as Trek's Full Floater.

BikeRadar states: Pace's patented Free Floater suspension design sandwiches the shock between ultra stiff 3D CNC'd linkages. These combine to bring the back wheel first backwards and then increasingly upwards and round through the 130mm (5in) stroke. They also manipulate leverage on the DT shock for smoother start and end phases but, thankfully, much less mid-stroke 'hammock. The Free Floater rear end is spot on too, making the DT HVR shock feel fantastically supple. It's smooth enough to stop eye blur on washed-out wooden steps, it rolls easily over square-edged hits without taking a momentum kick to the kidneys and it lands proper drops with a very calm catch.

CyclingNews states: According to Trek, the 'Full Floater' design allows for better fine-tuning of shock leverage ratios throughout the travel range, delivering a more supple feel at the top of the stroke and a more 'bottomless' feel at the other end.

As you can see, the comments is pretty much the same, especially commenting about the manipulated leverage ratio. Below are the two pics of a floating shock mount.(Left: Trek Full Floater, Right: Pace Full Floater)

So basically the advantage of this design is it allows the manufacturer to custom tune the leverage ratio of the shock throughout its travel without resorting to complicated design like DW Link

2008 BMC Fourstroke

Hmm, what is BMC? A bike company?. I never heard of it. BMC is a swiss mountain bike company, they are not that popular in MountainBike but roadies should know BMC. So anyway they make some interesting moutain bikes too, the quality of their bikes are superb (considering its built in Swiss), so far their lineup only offers hardtails and full suspension ranging from cross country to all-mountain.

BMC uses VPS which is something like a virtual pivot bike (seems most bike manufacturer are using virtual pivot concept nowadays). Their XC full suspension bike, FourStroke receives some changes for 08, so what do the Swiss company has offered us for 2008?

08 Fourstroke 01 VPS rear linkage and Easton unidirectional CNT

For starters, they did a makeover on their top XC full suspension bike, FourStroke01. Its now offered in full black and it features Easton CNT (thats right, they use the same type of carbon tube that you found on your Eason carbon MTB products). Above is the picture of the rear linkage. It looks beefy and stiff for a XC bike, the weight hasnt been confirmed yet (lets hope its light shall we).

To improve stiffness, the lower link for 08 models have been widened.

Knowing European bikes, the mud clearance for the Fourstroke doesnt disappoint. And the carbon bracer is actually curved upwards for better rigidity and it looks good too.

The Fourstroke 01 also receives a newly redesign head tube bond that increases the front stiffness.

So before we move to the aluminium model, there is a bit of change that will affect both the carbon and aluminium model which is BMC unique toptube/seattube joint. It has been redesign and it looks beautifull.

The newly redesign toptube/seattube joint

The aluminium version of Fourstroke also recieves a new hydroformed head tube joint which elimantes the use of gussets, thus save weight.

So basically those are the changes that 08 BMC Fourstroke will undertake and I must say that the carbon bike aint going to be cheap. But since the carbon is made from Easton which produces one of the strongest carbon fibre parts in Mountain Bikes, EC90 seatpost, MonkeyLite Handlebars, durability should be assured. Below are the pics of the new Fourstrokes and take note that in the second pic, the bike located in the middle is 07 Fourstroke, as you can see the toptube/seattube junction is different.

2008 BMC Fourstroke 01 (carbon) - It aint goint to be cheap

07 and 08 BMC Fourstrokes (Aluminium version - front is 08 and the middle one is 07)

Pics provided from CyclingNews.com

Carbon Flex

Hmm, so after a couple of days of not posting new stuffs, I decided to find something to talk about and after browsing through some of Eurobike 08 stuffs, I got my self interested into carbon flex.

Most riders buy carbon frame because of the stiffness offered by carbon is uncomparable to aluminium frame. Even Specialized states on their site that thier 08 stumpy carbon frame is stiffer then their alu frame (07 alu frame is stiffer then 08 according to spesh site). Anyway if a carbon frame were to flex, most riders wont like it and that will be their biggest disappointment of the bike. So why am I writing about carbon flex?

Well if you guys notice, they are a few 08 bikes that design their carbon chainstay to flex. A company that has been developing flex carbon stays for quite a while now is Cannondale, most riders doesnt notice this cause Cannondale doesnt really promote about it, but their XC bike, Scalpel stays depends of flex. If you read over MTBR, some riders actually commented the flex as a bad part of the product. Anyway the Scalpel got redesigned and lighter by 200-300g compared to last year model and its travel has been increased by 100mm and the shock is now located below the top tube instead of behind the seatpost like lasts year model. Below is a pic of the 08 Scalpel frame, without shock.

2008 Cannondale Scalpel Frame

Anyway besides Cannondale, another company decide to make the chainstay carbon to flex. The Italian company is called Carraro and for 08 its releasing a full suspension bike called the Rampant.

So, knowing that they are other company that has decided to use Cannondale flex stay concept, I decided to do some research on carbon flexing/bending and surprisingly I found out that some carbon can be bent at 90degrees. Click here for more info about it.

So what else I found out? Because of nano-tech, its possible to design a super stiff and strong seatpost like Easton or to design a bendable carbon nano tube. Click here for the pdf page (only accessable by AdobeReader or formerly known as AcrobatReader, click here to go to the download site), its pretty impressive how they manage to flex the carbon nanotube.

So far thats the usefull sources that I can find about carbon flex. I will try and find out more in time :D. And below are the pics of Cannondale 08 Scalpel chain stay, Cannondale earlier version of chain stay and Carraro Rampant.

08 Cannondale Scalpel chainstay

Earlier versions of Cannondale EPO

08 Carraro Rampant chainstay

My say: I cant confirm the durability of flex chainstay as in jumping or standing up while mashing the pedal cause I myself havent manage to test this kind of design for a period of time, I only ridden a Cannondale full suspension bike a couple of time only and I think its a old model, heard of Sobe? and I used to wonder why the chainstay is oddly shaped and now I found its purpose. If the durability of flex chainstay is getting better year by year, I belive in the future, you can see more company doing flex chainstay and it will appear from XC to Trail bike range. Imagine the possibility of making carbon flexing to absorb small bumps and the shock will only be used once your bike hit bigger obstacles. I remember reading it from a mountain bike magazine where a teenager managed to design a full suspension bike without the shock, just by flexing the carbon. How cool is that, you just dropped 200g from the bike. Anyway thats all for today and toodles. :D

Ride 4 Health

Updates @ 2/9

I recently updated the 2008 Rock Shox SID, be sure to check it out, click the link below to go directly to the post:
2008 RockShox SID

Sorry for the inactivity

Hey guys, sorry that I havent post things up like I usually do, its just that after a couple of days not enough sleep and having late night party, I've gotten soo sleepy and tired to write something in the blog, but now I am revived and im going to start posting again, sorry.

Anyway Scott has updated its 08 site. Make sure you guys check it out, its easier to navigate and now comes with simple and practical flash animation. It doesnt have a HTML version though, so you guys with 56k connection better be patient while loading the site (hmm, by the looks of it, by 2010, dial up wont be able to access many sites anymore without waiting for a period of time). The link can be found here.

Oh yeah before I forget, the site have the new Gambler listed, click here to go to the product page

Hey, Look's Back Again!

For most riders who have been Moutain Biking for a few years would know Look, while some of us new Mountain Bikers will wonder what's look. To make it fast and simple, Look is bike company that is originated from French and is popular among Roadies, they used to make Mountain Bike stuffs but has stop making em for quite a while. Their MTB like is not gone, just unnoticed because their 4X4 pedals are actually EggBeaters (Look licensed their 4X4 clipless pedals to CrankBros - if im not mistaken, someone please confirm this info), so anyway for 2008, Look has 2 new products for us Mountain Bikers (some of you might known this already).

To warm things up, Look decided to bring us new clipless pedals, the 4 sided entry pedals is one of the best mud-shedding design and is the lightest MTB clipless design out there, weight weenies usually dont buy a SPD design pedal because of average mud shedding and its kinda heavy (300-400grm). So what happen when you make a SPD design pedal at the weight of a 4 sided entry pedal, you get a Quartz.

The Quartz

So this pedals is as light as a EggBeater, so anything else? Well this thing amazes me cause this pedal is coil springless, you heard me correct, this pedal has no coil spring, so I wonder how are you going to be able to clip in. (This is a few reason why is it so light). By being coil springless it would mean that the float angle is going to be fix (Provided by bicycling.com, 3 degrees of float, 1.5mm of lateral movement, and a 15 degree release angle). In designing this pedals, Look said they has taken 3 criteria which is mud shedding, pedal platform and weight.

So how much is it going to be? Is it going to be expensive?

Look is offering 3 models for Quartz which are as follow:

Quartz Carbon Ti (Price: $399)(Weight: 246g w/ cleats)

Quartz Carbon (Price: $199)(Weight: 278g w/ cleats)

Quartz (Price: $99)(298g w/ cleats)

It will be available by October-November

Just now was just the appetizer and now is the main course, Hardtail has slowly stop evolving and its getting less eye catching, many bike manufacturer stick with previous year designs and made no attempt it making it better, but Look havent give up in the hardtail market yet cause for 2008 they are also releasing their hardtail.

Look 986 Hardtail

As you can see from the pic, Look decided to go with integrated seatpost, which is very similar to what Scott has done with Spark LTD. The reason for this design is just the same as Scott for designing a integrated seatpost for Spark LTD, which is reduced weight. The frame weights at 1.2kg/2.65lbs (claimed). It is offered in Small, Medium and Large size and is priced at $2,499.

The bike is also offered as a complete:

986 X0 Pro Team

Rock Shox Reba Team w/ 85mm travel and remote lockout

Mavic CrossMax SLR

SRAM X0 trigger shifters and rear derailleur

Avid Juicy Ultimate disc brakes

FSA K-Force Light cranket

FSA stem and handle bars

Fizik Gobi saddle

Look Quartz carbon clipless pedals

weight: 9.5kg/21lbs w/ pedals

MSRP: $5,499

986 X9

Components list no available yet, will update soon

MSRP: $4,499

The bikes will be available in late September - October

Look's hardtail promo vid

*Pic taken from BikeRadar.com.

*Price listed are in USD

Specialized updates 08 Suspension site

Specialized have finally updated its about 08 suspension page, the link can be found here.

I have checked through the whole 08 Spesh Suspension mini site and I must say that its not 56k friendly, there is no HTML version for that site so make sure your broadband is fast enough to check it or you will suffer. Their theme is a Dinosaurs/Bike Theme. Its a very creative theme and I like it except I prefer that they make it less buggy in some areas cause this site has one of the most advance animation I have ever seen. Make sure you check their bike lineup videos, its very good. They make a very good promo site for their 08 bikes. Maybe its to make people notice that they are paying big bucks for one of the best bike technology in the world (although I believe they are similar performance designs out there that doesnt costs as much as 08 Spesh)

Suspension Linkage 101

Well this time I decided to write something that new Mountain Bikers will usually get confused. The names of Suspension linkages and what are their common difference. So here goes:

They are about 6 suspension designs (more coming),

1. Single Pivot

   This is the earliest full suspension linkage (before 4 bar and etc) it only has a single pivot, it moves in an arc when the suspension compresses which caused a few problems such as pedal kickback and etc.
   Famous Single Pivot designers: Cannondale and a few more which I forgotten.



2. Single Pivot Linkages AKA Faux Bar

   This bike has more linkages then single pivot but the rear wheel travel still moves in an arc, I believe its slightly better then a single pivot linkage because they could reduce the arc travel compared to single pivot but some riders disagree. Anyway single pivot linkage bike has a pivot on the seat stay and not on the chain stay. They are a lot of famous Faux Bar bikes.
   Famous SPL designers : Turner, Kona, Trek, Rocky Mountain and a few others which I forgot again.

3. Horst Link AKA 4 bars/true 4 bars

   Horst Link is owned by Specialized and they have licensed it to some companies like Nicolai, Titus etc, Horst Link is one of the best linkage in MTB industry, it has eliminated most of the problems of a single pivot or single pivot linkage bike and its rear wheel movement doesnt move in a arc. Another famous 4 bar is Ellsworth ICT, orginally created by Dave Turner (Turner bikes) but was patented by Tony Ellsworth, ICT is very similar to horst link but after a few slight tweaking, they manage to make ICT into their own patent, if Im not mistaken the difference between ICT and HL is HL uses a strut style shock linkage while ICT uses rocker style shock linkage. HL and ICT has a pivot on the chain stay. Another noticable true 4 bar is Rocky Mountain ETSX, really interesting concept and I suggest you to check on their website for more info bout their 4 bar, RM ETSX.
   Famous 4 bar's: Ellsworth, Titus, Specialized, Nicolai, Rocky Mountain and others.

4. Virtual Pivot Bikes

   Virtual Pivot is Mountain bike latest suspension linkage design, the advantage of this is the manufacturer doesnt need to pay Specialized or Ellsworth for their linkage and Virtual pivot linkage could be designed to have a different wheel path for each wheel travel progression, eg: from sensative to firm as the travel increases. VPP bikes is mostly recognizable by having a bar on the front portion of the bike rear triangle. Famous VPP tech is DW-Link, Santa Cruz's VPP, Giant's Maestro, BMC VPS.
   Famous company that uses VPP : Ibis, Santa Cruz, Iron Horse, Giant, Felt, BMC and etc.

Those 4 is the most commonly and available on the market now, below is a summarize of older linkage that are not commonly used anymore (dont get me wrong by thinking that this design are obselete, its just that its no more the rage in bicycle design because they are better and efficient design nowadays):

1. Soft Tails

   This bike doesnt have a pivot near the bottom bracket area, instead they replace it with a elastomer or some sort to make it bump absorbtion, the linkage mostly are used for XC bikes because XC doesn need too much travel, this linkage style died out because the travel is limited. Cannondale still make soft tails.

2. Monolink

   They are still a few companies that uses monolink, the reason why people dont really like monolink is because as the suspension absorbs bumps, the BB will move with the swingarm (monolink rear triangle is attached to the BB which connects to the crankset) making your leg bend more. If Im not mistaken, Mongoose, GT and Maverick uses monolink.

Well basically that is all the suspension linkage that are available in the market nowadays, they might be more but I cant remember any and I might make some mistakes so feel free to correct me and due to the advancement of Mountain Biking suspension likages, I will update the writeout as I find out more stuffs bout it and I will update this list again with ABP and some others ASAP.

The Apple of Mountain Bike Company

Well, there is Giant which is like a Dell in Mountain Biking bike manufacturing, Specialized is like Sony Viao, Trek which is something like HP because recently they have been aggresive and we have Scott which is the Apple in Mountain Biking.

Why is Scott considered as Apple in Mountain Biking?

Apple Computer are famous in producing cool products, its not cheap but its just so cool to own it and they usually are the company which releases products that are out of the world. So Scott definately fits into this criteria, Scott releases new models only when their current product is dated and that is like a couple of years. So if you are a person who like to own the latest product in technology and want it to be the latest for a couple of years, Scott bikes should be in your list.

A few reasons why people buy Scott bikes is because they are a company where their selling point is their carbon bikes, as you can see, most cyclist who own a Scott bike ride their carbon version. Scott has a history of carbon, similar to Trek. Trek is known for its OCLV carbon, while Scott is their CR1 carbon technology.

So why do I write bout this?

As usual, Interbike is just right around the corner and 2008 is in a couple of months so its obvious that I found a few stuffs bout 08 Scott.

For 2008, Scott will release a new bike which is both categorized as Downhill and Freeride bike, as you see this two category is very different. The most obvious is the geometry difference. Anyway since Im not a Downhill or Freeride person, my knowledge about this kind of stuff is limited so here is a link for more info bout the difference between Downhill and Freeride and more info bout the new bike. Oh yeah and the new bike is called Gambler, below are the pic and the url. Enjoy...

Scott's New Big Travel Bike - The Gambler

Scott lightweight XC Marathon full suspension, Spark also receive a minor update, a redesign Nude Shock and the bike has been slightly lighter. A few things that I have confirmed is the fork for 08 Spark LTD will be supplied by DT Swiss (Pace) so the bike weight is now 9.5kg. SwissPowerTeam will be using DT Swiss fork in the future. No pics is available yet, but I will try and get is ASAP. I havent check for any new info about the rest of 08 Scott's range.