Nestling quietly in the Specialized booth were several bikes showing what a good season Specialized had this year – there was Contador and Andy Schleck’s Tour bikes and this one: Sam Hill’s World Championship winning bike.
Very bright...
Looks like a stripped down XO brake, but these pro racers get all sorts of trick stuff.
In case he forgets
Trick Black(box) sliders - wonder if the full-travel O-ring has been moved since the World Champs?
No sign of any moto-foam or similar hop-ups that graced Hill's Iron Horse
Blackbox DH cranks - which will soon become available.
Forget 30 speed - Hill runs 1 x 6!
Trick (and now production) SDG saddle for extreme grip (and minimal comfort - it keeps you pedaling...)
Everyone needs some matching casual/podium shoes eh? (Not necessarily Sam Hill's...) 😉
With 25 years as Editor of Singletrack World Magazine, Chipps holds the record for the longest-running mountain bike magazine editor in the world. He started in the bike trade in 1990 and became a full time mountain bike journalist at the start of 1994.
Chipps stepped down as Editor in April 2026 after 25 years at the helm. He's now wondering what to do next, while riding his bike in the French Pyrenees, where he also runs some gites.
7 thoughts on “Pro’s Bikes: Sam Hill’s World Champ Bike”
Like the shoes – though not in yellow thanks.
I suspect the O-ring is not set there from the World Champs, since the bike on show had mud on it “from Socal rather than Mont Ste. Anne”. Marketing hey, you can’t trust it.
How slack are those angles?!
(no, really, how slack are the angles on that?)
custom 9tooth cog cassette/freehub body type thing on there too
You can order those custom engraved ODI lock-ons, but only from the US. I nearly got a set but couldn’t think of anything more imaginative than “left” and “right” to inscribe them with…
WTF are those shoes? Boa on a flat pedal shoe? Overkill!
Like the shoes – though not in yellow thanks.
I suspect the O-ring is not set there from the World Champs, since the bike on show had mud on it “from Socal rather than Mont Ste. Anne”. Marketing hey, you can’t trust it.
How slack are those angles?!
(no, really, how slack are the angles on that?)
custom 9tooth cog cassette/freehub body type thing on there too
You can order those custom engraved ODI lock-ons, but only from the US. I nearly got a set but couldn’t think of anything more imaginative than “left” and “right” to inscribe them with…
WTF are those shoes? Boa on a flat pedal shoe? Overkill!
I want! gimme!!!