Trek appears to be adding 650B (27.5in) wheels to its flagship downhill race bike, the Session, for 2014.
Over the weekend, Trek World Racing athletes Brook MacDonald and George Brannigan raced the New Zealand National Championships aboard 650B Session prototypes. Brannigan, who struggled last season after coming back from a serious injury, went on to claim the victory aboard the new bike.
We first got wind of this prototype from an Instagram post by MacDonald.
This 650B Session prototype looks quite polished
While the Instragram image is grainy, the smooth contours of the frame make it appear that this bike is carbon, meaning Trek is beyond the early prototyping stages and well on the way to a production version of the Session designed around 650B wheels.
Many features of the existing 26in Session appear to carry over, including internal cable routing through ports on the side of the head tube. The EVO rocker link with Mino Link chips to adjust head angle, bottom bracket height and rear suspension travel also appear to be included in the new bike.
Trek confirmed the existence of the bike and stated that — for now, at least — the 650B Session will stand alongside the 26in version.
“After all of the research we've invested in wheel size performance characteristics at Trek, we believe 26in wheels absolutely still have a place in the gravity category. We’re keen on understanding the possibilities of 650B as well, so we’re evaluating that option with some of the world’s best riders on Trek World Racing,” said Trek’s MTB product manager John Riley.
“Our hope is that the new 650B Session will provide a performance advantage to our riders and continue to keep them on the podium," continued Riley. "We also know that these athletes will test the extreme limits of the bike and provide us with invaluable feedback as we continuously evaluate and refine the Session.”
