Rachel Atherton took second place in the women’s downhill final in Windham, New York aboard this GT Fury World CupJames Huang / Immediate Media
Suspension tweaks are made just for Atherton so it’s important that forks don’t get mixed up between ridersJames Huang / Immediate Media
Long-travel bikes with such a high single pivot would normally suffer from a lot of pedal-induced inchworming and kickback on bigger impacts. But in this case, it’s tempered by GT’s long-running Independent Drivetrain (formerly i-Drive) suspension design, which delivers the square-edged bump performance such an up-and-back axle path provides but without the usual negative effectsJames Huang / Immediate Media
A titanium spring on the racer-only Fox RAD rear shock helps trim some weightJames Huang / Immediate Media
A look at the compact Independent Drivetrain linkageJames Huang / Immediate Media
The split seat tube straddles the big rear shock. Note how the rear brake hose and rear derailleur housing is neatly routed through the gap, tooJames Huang / Immediate Media
Big 203mm-diameter Shimano finned Ice Tech rotors are used front and rearJames Huang / Immediate Media
Atherton doesn’t have much choice in cockpit components but it’s for a good reason – team sponsor PRO produces a signature line just for the British trio so at least in theory, all of the bits are exactly how she wants them, anywayJames Huang / Immediate Media
The PRO direct-mount stem is mounted in the short position here. Note the tricky machined bolt heads, tooJames Huang / Immediate Media
Look closely at the pattern on the PRO grips: it’s Rachel, Gee, and Dan!James Huang / Immediate Media
Rounding out the PRO Atherton signature series ensemble are a carbon railed saddle and alloy seatpostJames Huang / Immediate Media
The Shimano Saint crankarm is practically polished after countless muddy runs. A Shimano Saint guide keeps the chain in placeJames Huang / Immediate Media
With so few gears and such a tight total range, there’s no problem running a short-cage Shimano Saint rear derailleurJames Huang / Immediate Media
Atherton used Continental DerKaiser Project 2.4 rubber front and rear at WindhamJames Huang / Immediate Media
Cables are routed along the top of the down tubeJames Huang / Immediate Media
Flange spacing on the Shimano Saint rear hub is ultra wide to improve wheel strengthJames Huang / Immediate Media
Like many top downhillers, Atherton uses an abbreviated cassette, with nothing more than the gears she expects to useJames Huang / Immediate Media
Hope gets into the game with seatpost collars and headsetsJames Huang / Immediate Media