Last Wednesday we popped down to sunny Oxfordshire to see the new 2011 Whytes and Marins.

Whyte

Above, an entry-level Whyte in all its hydroformed loveliness, the 805. £899.00 gets you Shimano SLX Shifting and Hayes Stroker brakes .

The 809 gets the the same frame, but goes up to 2×10 with Sram X7  Elixir brakes and  Rockshox Recons. £1199.00

Nice little finishing details…

The 901 is a kind of ruff & tuff hardcore(ish) hardtail. £1149.00 gets you Recons x7 and Elixirs.

White 19 Trail. £1995.00 Interchangable drop outs, Fox 15QR thru axle forks and upgraded groupset.

XO kit here, or you can run it singlespeed or, heaven forbid, probably a hub gear box should you choose, all possible with the interchangeable drop outs.

The 19 in Steel, £1499.00- OEM Only Fox ALPS fork which come with an open oil bath design, should be a very low maintenance UK friendly bike.

Whyte TI £3495.00  XTR – XT and FSA  finishing kit.

19C Race bikes – starting at £1999.00 – these come with a slacker head angle compared to most race bikes of 70 degrees, with BB30 and 2×10 across the range with 100mm forks.

Whyte 146 Works. Twenty five pounds and a 150 (146)mm travel  bike! Loads of interesting stuff going on here .

First of all they’ve got half a pound off the frame for this year which is not an inconsiderable weight loss, secondly is the ability to mix and match new “standards ” that are appearing on the bikes this year whether it’s bottom bracket, brake mount, axle length and fit or headsets.

All good stuff. Geometry wise there’s a 66 degree headangle and low BB combined with a decent length cockpit which makes for a very UK/European take on this type of All Mountain/Enduro bike, rather than some of the more tall and steep designs we’ve been seeing from the States.

Now interchangeability – you can run 35 mm quick release, 142mm Shimano/Syntace style thru axle or Maxle back end with the modular drop outs. The threads for the brake to attach to the mount use trunnion nuts (they’re those things that hold your Ikea flat pack beds together inside the frame ) so if in a bout of over excitement you strip a thread, you just replace the nut not the whole dropout.

New vaguely curved seatstay/chainstays – to help with calf clearance and also stiffen up the frame in the process.

Interchangable BB’s. Pressfit BB30 shell with built in ISCG mount on the right. If you want to run a older style crank combo another sleeve can be fitted so it’ll run Shimano or Raceface style BB Crank sets.

“He said trunnion nut! LOL”

T 120 – 120m  Version of the Whyte in aluminum  with specific to Whyte 120mm Reba tapered steered Maxle forks (Rockshox aren’t making them for anyone else). Much of the interchangeability from the 146 passes down to this bike.

Marin

There’s a clear family resemblance going on between Whyte and Marin – but there’s also a definite difference in the feel of the two brands.

First up is the Riftzone, part of their XC range of full suspension bikes – 100mm each end using its Quad Link design – the front link has gone from a “H” Shape  to a “Y”  Shape  linkage to improve leg clearance and this is throughout the range. The Rift Zones cost between £1599.00 to £2499.00

The classic Mount Vision. From  its original single pivot  “RonHills and a beard” Polaris-conquering goliath of the late 90’s to its current design as a 140mm all mountain monster – 67.5 degree headangle – lower BB… it’s quite the modern Mary. Prices range from£1849.00 to £2999.00

Attack Trail remains the same for this year frame-wise but you get more kit for your hard earned pound – Marin has this as your Mega-Avalanche, playbike kind of thing. Two models priced at £2499.00 for the 6.8 or £3399.00 for the 6.9

I politely listened as the benefits of the big wheel was eulogised about by the one American at the show but if you want a big wheeler Marin has one for you, weighing just 1100 grams for the frame. It’s preferred carbon construction technique makes for a stiffer frame than other methods as the carbon is formed over solid molds- so less glue and more carbon as you can crush more air out of the frame.  Aesthetically with a lot of other brands this year the 29ers are looking more complete and not as gangly as previous year’s models.

Neat chainstay mounted disc mount. Price to be confirmed.

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