Our very own resident DH racer, Ben (Senior Mechanic and Kiwi evangelist) will be heading up this weekend to fly the My Mountain flag along with our DH Race Team consisting of Kelly Bayliss (Elite Women) and Sam Brownlie (Expert Male). Kelly is currently sitting in 2nd position on overall standings and will be looking to claw back some points on her opponents to take out the number one position. Sam is nipping on the heals of the top 10 in the Expert category, despite having some hard luck in recent rounds, and will be hoping for his luck to change this weekend with his eyes firmly on the podium.
With Ben having had a tumultuos 6 months on the DH bike that started with a nasty crash while racing at Crankworx in Whistler last year that ended up in a broken leg, he's beginning to get his mojo back and is looking to finish strongly in the Elite Mens field of the 2011 State Series. So what does an Elite racer like Ben use to slay the DH race track? Lets check it out.
That's a Commencal Supreme DH VIP frameset, with 8" of rear travel controlled by a Tekin Tuned custom Fox RC4 rear shock. The Contact System rear suspension design is super-linear with a nice ramp up towards the end of the travel to avoid harsh bottom out. Ben is also available to adjust the wheelbase and head angle on his bike, depending on what the course requires. Check out the Commencal Supreme DH here.
The 2011 Fox 40 RC2 forks are a perfect match for the RC4 rear shock, and with their buttery-smooth Kashima coated stanchions, and inverted damper cartridge for reduced unsprung weight, are definitely one of the smoothest on the market. Tuneable high and low speed compression, a Titanium spring and a big 40mm chassis all come together for one bomber fork.
Check out the Fox 40 RC2 forks here.
Of course, no real mountain biker could possibly go past a Thomson Elite seatpost and matching Thomson seat clamp for their favorite steed.
One thing that Ben has been working on in recent months is his position on the front of the bike and in particular, the cockpit setup. While also aiming to drop some grams, Ben has gone with a wider handlebar that features a lower rise and has also matched it with a short, low direct mount stem. Aside from looking absolutely bad-ass, the Deity Black Label Handlebars and Deity Fantom Direct Mount Stem are examples of some of the finest machining around. Ben has dropped around 300 grams just by changin these two items, though has also acheived better weight distribution on his bike and better stability with the wider bar.
Probably the best upgrade Ben made to his Commencal was the addition of the Fulcrum Red Fire wheelset: a light, stiff and tubeless set of wheels that has dropped rotational weight from his bike while also increasing its responsiveness too. While DH takes its toll on wheels, particularly rear wheels, Ben has found the alloy used on the Fulcrums is a lot tougher than anything else on the market, and is far more resistant to dings, flat spots and buckling than anything else he has ever used. While not being the lightest at a bit over 2kg, it's the stiffness that Ben raves about, as he is better able to hold a line with the Red Fires, with better tracking and less deflection compared to lesser wheels.
Check out the Fulcrum Red Fire Wheels for yourself here.
If you're heading up to Yack for the weekends racing festivities, be sure to drop into the My Mountain marquee to see Ben and the crew, who will be positioned in the pit lane. Good luck to team and everyone else heading up!
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