Another day of cruising the pits at Fort William uncovers more surprising new tech and bikes we’ve never seen in the flesh before.
Juliana She 10
This beautiful Juliana She 10 is hitting the dirt at Fort William this weekend. Like other Juliana models, the She 10 is simply a different paint job and decals on a Santa Cruz frame, in this case, a V10 with a two-tone flip paint finish. This particular She 10 was actually ridden to 4th pace in qualification today by top rider Nina Hoffmann.
2020 Commencal Supreme Downhill Bike
The Commencal Supreme is one of the most popular downhill bikes raced this weekend, but the Vallnord team is on an all-new version of the high-pivot downhill bike. Speaking with the Commencal crew we’ve discovered that the new bike has a wider and stiffer rear end, new suspension kinematics and multiple shock positions. We’ve more photos of this new Commencal Supreme right here.
1 x 12 Shimano XT and SLX
Shimano released its new 1×12 drivetrains just a few days ago and what better place to show it off to the public than here at Fort William. Both drivetrains can be built up as either 1×12 or 2×12 systems and there are 2 and 4 pot brake systems available for each groupset. Wil has just posted a video of both the new XT and SLX 1×12 drivetrains right here, go check it out.
Loic Bruni’s Specialized Running Coil Forks?
We’re 100% sure that there is a coil version of the Ohlins downhill fork here at Fort William, but we’re not certain if this bright yellow model is the coil or air version. Specialized was also running a lot of telemetry test bikes down Fort William but will all that data acquisition help them win?
Prototype DMR Bolt that you can never buy
This all steel DMR Bolt is actually a prototype bike and different from the bike which eventually went into production. Although the production bike is different there were a few of these protos shipped to the UK that didn’t go on sale. With these frames sitting around and gathering, Liam at Upgrade decided to build one up with the futuristic looking Trust Message linkage fork and a few other choice parts. Let us know what you think of this one-off in the comments below.
1 of 50 Banshee Paradox Alloy Hardtail
Officially there are none of these Banshee Paradox alloy hardtails in the UK, and in actual fact, there are only 50 of these frames in the whole world. This is actually the 3rd version of the Banshee Paradox, and the bike has been designed to offer the ride characteristics of a steel frame, but retain the lightweight of an alloy one. We will post more about this bike later in the week so watch out for more coverage coming soon.
One-off mini Nukeproof Mega
Nigel Page wanted his son to ride a Nukeproof Mega for his first full suspension bike, but as Nukeproof don’t officially make one he had one built himself. The bike is actually built from an original Nukeproof Mega frame but chopped up and re-welded to create this special 20in wheeled bike. It’s a very cool build and well worth a look if you see it on the trail.
Last Bikes Coal
Last Bikes are a German brand that offers a range of enduro, downhill, and hardtail frames. This model is the Last Coal, a full-suspension bike with 27.5in wheels with a rear suspension system that reminds us of a Knolly. For fans of 29er wheels, Last has recently launched the Last Glen with a very similar frame design.
Braking Brakes
Braking is an Italian manufacturer of disc brakes primarily for motorbikes but is slowly moving into the mountain bike market, Originally we spotted these brakes on Cedric Gracia’s prototype Forestal eMTB, but racers at Fort William were also running them too. We’ll be getting in touch with Braking soon for more details.
Pivot Shuttle
Another first for the UK is this new Pivot Shuttle, not a new bike as such but a new build with a new motor and a new price. This ‘budget’ version of the Pivot Shuttle will go on sale for £6,999 and comes fitted with Fox Performance suspension, and Shimano E7000 motor. More details here.
That’s all from Fort William for now, but keep posted for more downhill race news coming tomorrow!
