Gary Forrest, an Ibis-sponsored rider, is one of the lucky few to get his hands on a new prototype shock from X Fusion. Gary couldn't tell us much - the shock arrived in the post with a Post-It note attached telling him it had been set up for his weight, but the large volume air can is only holding around 90 psi, apparently
Gary Forrest, an Ibis-sponsored rider, is one of the lucky few to get his hands on a new prototype shock from X Fusion. Gary couldn't tell us much - the shock arrived in the post with a Post-It note attached telling him it had been set up for his weight, but the large volume air can is only holding around 90 psi, apparently - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
Gary is also running a prototype X Fusion Sweep fork on his Ibis - again, little info could be gleaned, other than its use of the in-development Roughcut HLR damper - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
Mitch Ropelato wouldn't tell us much about the fork on his Specialized S-Works Stumpjumper, nor would his team management. It looks to have a 35mm chassis though, and single pinch bolts on the lowers, suggesting a stiff fork. Could this be the next-generation of the RockShox Lyric? We'll let you know when we find out more - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
All three of the Athertons were decked out in what looks to be a new all-mountain/DH shoe from Shimano - the AM9. Looks like there's plenty of protection there, along with the lace cover found on the AM41 and an additional velcro strap for increased stability - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
Sam Blenkinsop was riding proto-rubber on his Norco. Schwalbe's First Ride badged treads are development models given to pros - this tyre, with a profile somewhere between rounded and square looked ideal for the conditions - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
Anne Caroline Chausson stormed to the top step of the Enduro World Series podium in Rotorua. Helping her along the way was her BOS Deville fork, which had a mystery valve at the top of the lowers. We imagine it’s a pressure blow-off valve, similar to those found on top-end DH forks these days - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
We spotted this Box Components being ridden round the pits. Tension is released through the system by pushing the lever inwards. Production is underway, we're expecting a full launch late this year. The Polygon UR team, including Tracey Hannah and Andrew Neethling, are racing Box 10- and 7-speed drivetrains this year - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
Box also had its new Digid brake system. The levers have reach and modulation adjustments, while the calipers sport four pistons - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
One of the few DH riders using an air shock, Brendon Fairclough had the new Fox air can on his Scott Gambler - looks like it's getting near to production, too, with 'X2' markings being the only hint at a name - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
Hidden under his number plate Dan Atherton had a new carbon version of the PRO Atherton 800mm bars. The shape is a touch different to the alloy ones, with a degree less sweep, we're led to believe - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
Greg Callaghan, along with a couple of his Cube Action teammates, was one of the few to be using the electronic Shimano XTR Di2 groupset, not only that, but he was running a double setup, virtually unheard of in enduro racing - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
It wasn't on a rider's bike, but we spotted this prototype shock from DVO, dubbed the Topaz, on a Santa Cruz. We couldn't get much detail, but it looks like a CNCed body, and a ribbed piggyback, which we reckon is to help with heat dissipation like on the Jade coil shock - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
Nico Vouillez was another rider sporting fresh prototype rubber, Michelin in this case, on the back of his Spicy during the EWS. The intermediate tread looks suited to the mixed trail conditions the racers encounted - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
While Fabian Barel's Mavic Crossmax Enduro wheels look standard, a quick spoke count in the pits revealed a 24 spoked rear wheel, as opposed to the usual 20. Rumour has it that the rims are also a few mm wider, at around 23mm internally, giving more stiffness. Could we be seeing these features on the next generation Crossmax Endruro wheels from Mavic? - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
This looks like it might make it into a future SRAM brake line-up - the Guide RS DH. While the lever seems standard, the caliper looks to have a wider opening above the pads, presumably for increased airflow and cooling - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
We reckon this is Hope's new 10-40 cassette seen on Hope-sponsored Joe Flanagan's bike Although there's a bigger spread of gears than a regular Shimano cassette, the ratios are never too far apart. The seven lower sprockets are machined from a single piece of stainless steel, and double as a DH cassette, while the top three are aluminium - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
Canyon Factory Racing's Joe Barnes had a SRAM Blackbox chainring on his Spectral, which is soon to be released. The usual maxim of lighter and stiffer applies, with the direct mount nature of this ring going towards this - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
Here's a sneak peak of Nukeproof's new DH prototype, here under Sam Hill. There's plenty of hydroforming going on with the alloy tubes, and what looks like a nicely engineered linkage system - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
Rachael Atherton was one of a number of Fox-sponsored riders with what looks like a near-production ready version of the new Fox DH X2 shock - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
Specialized has a new enduro/trail helmet, called the Ambush. The visor has a wide range of adjustment, and the rear of the lid extends low behind the head. A higher density foam protects the side of the head, while ventilation and fit have been extensively worked upon - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
Not listed on the Stages site yet, it looks like owners of the latest Shimano XTR M9000 cranks won't have to wait long for the crank-based power meters to arrive. A number of EWS racers were seen with the cranks, which help racers monitor their performance and power output throughout the race - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
A number of riders were seen riding on the recently announced WTB Ci24 carbon rims, their 31mm deep body being somewhat distinctive. External width is 30mm and internally it's 24mm, as well as being tubeless ready, of course. Fancy 4D spoke drilling should mean less snapped or binded spokes for easier maintenance - Tom Marvin / Immediate Media
The Enduro World Series kicked off this past weekend in Rotorua, New Zealand, and BikeRadar was on hand to stroll through the team pits to see what news we could find. And the pits didn't disappoint — we spotted prototype X Fusion forks, Fox DH X2 shocks, a Hope 10-40 cassette, a Shimano M9000 Stages power meter and much more.
Click through the gallery above for a detailed look.
This looks like it might make it into a future sram brake line-up - the guide rs dh. while the lever seems standard, the caliper looks to have a wider opening above the pads, presumably for increased airflow and cooling: this looks like it might make it into a future sram brake line-up - the guide rs dh. while the lever seems standard, the caliper looks to have a wider opening above the pads, presumably for increased airflow and cooling
Tom Marvin is a technical editor at BikeRadar.com and MBUK magazine. He has a particular focus on mountain bikes, but spends plenty of time on gravel bikes, too.
Tom has written for BikeRadar, MBUK and Cycling Plus, and was previously technical editor of What Mountain Bike magazine. He is also a regular presenter on BikeRadar’s YouTube channel and the BikeRadar podcast.
With more than twenty years of mountain biking experience, and nearly a decade of testing mountain and gravel bikes, Tom has ridden and tested thousands of bikes and products, from super-light XC race bikes through to the most powerful brakes on the market.
Outside of testing bikes, Tom competes in a wide range of mountain bike races, from multi-day enduros through to 24-hour races in the depths of the Scottish winter – pushing bikes, components and his legs to their limits. He’s also worked out that shaving your legs saves 8 watts, while testing aerodynamics in a wind tunnel.
When not riding he can be found at the climbing wall, in his garden or cooking up culinary delights.
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