Mountain Bike: Cross-country is the only Olympic mountain bike discipline. The sport has changed a lot over the years. The routes have become more demanding, the equipment used by the pros is more robust. The pressedienst- Fahrrad has looked around in a discipline that is undergoing rapid change and shows how hobby cyclists are benefiting from the developments.
Everything used to be easy. Cross-country (also: XC), and even more its long-distance variant marathon, was like racing bikes in the forest. Fit people compete in tight jerseys on routes that are not technically demanding, especially gravel roads and meadows. The sports equipment looked accordingly: Hardtail bikes, tires narrower than two inches, a long stem and a lot of saddle elevation. One product was there (almost) from the start: the Rock Shox Sid suspension fork. The manufacturer has just presented a completely new Sid family, which is exemplary for the changes in this sport.
Stones, roots, jumps: modern routes
Today the competition courses are peppered with technically demanding passages such as hanging root carpets, stone fields, steps or jumps. Swabian Albstadt, where the XC World Championships are expected to take place from June 26th to 28th, 2020, also offers such a route. This change, which has especially picked up speed since the 2012 Olympic Games in London, can be seen very clearly in the material that the pros ride. “If you hold the very first Rock Shox 'Sid' from 1998 next to a current suspension fork, you can really see how the sport has developed.
The only thing that has remained is the iconic color Sid Blue. Otherwise, it has grown in all dimensions: spring travel, tube and steerer tube diameter, disc brakes and thru axles were added, and and and,” says Maximilian Topp, responsible for marketing at the suspension specialist Rock Shox. The youngest Sid generation, which started on 17.3/XNUMX was presented, includes two different suspension forks and with the "Sid Luxe" (price not yet fixed) for the first time also a rear shock absorber.
"We are taking the changes in the sport into account and are offering two thoroughbred competition forks at the same time," says Topp. According to the manufacturer, the new "Sid SL" (from 649 euros) is also the lightest XC fork on the market with a weight from 1.326 grams. The classic "Sid" (from 759 euros) has significantly increased stiffness and reserves with a 35 millimeter standpipe diameter and spring travel of up to 120 millimeters. "The current XC tracks have become so technical that the Sid with 35 millimeter tubes makes perfect sense," explains Topp. Finally, the rear shock absorber is a completely new development with modified damping to prevent rocking and fits perfectly into the extremely sporty Sid family, the Rock Shox man continues, because more and more full-suspension bikes are being used in the World Cup too.
Full suspension in trend
"We are also definitely experiencing a trend towards fully suspension in the XC World Cup," states Andreas Krajewski from the US manufacturer Cannondale, adding: "Depending on the route, more and more of our pros are using full suspension in races. Not because of the comfort, but because it is faster despite the heavier weight.”
The manufacturer, for whose Cannondale Factory Racing Team the German mountain bike star Manuel “Manni” Fumic also rides, has therefore for several years now been offering a new race hardtail, the “F-Si” (available from 1.999 Euro) also includes the full-suspension model "Scalpel" (from 2.199 Euro). Krajewski is convinced that this fully-suspension bike is not only a good choice for technically demanding race tracks; hobby riders will also get their money's worth with such a model.
"If you don't constantly ride extremely demanding trails, a stable XC fully is a great choice. On typical home trails behind the city or in the low mountain range you are often faster and have more fun on the road than with heavy bikes with more suspension travel" says Andreas Krajewski. According to the Cannondale spokesman, the term "downcountry" (from "downhill" and "cross-country") has already been established for this type of sport in the USA.
Trends in accessories and attachments
There is also a trend towards more when it comes to tyres. The new models have a larger volume of up to 2,35 inches, explains Carl Kamper, Product Manager MTB at tire giant Schwalbe, and elaborates: In hardly any other discipline is the ratio of low rolling resistance with sufficient grip and high puncture protection as important as in Cross -Country. "At the end of the day, it's all about winning a race!" he recalls. For this purpose, Schwalbe uses, among other things, specific profile designs and rubber compounds for the front and rear wheels. The "Racing Ralph" rear tire is optimized for low rolling resistance, high braking traction and puncture protection, while the matching "Racing Ray" front tire (both from EUR 32,90) with its more aggressive profile and distinctive shoulder lugs ensures more traction and speed in curves should. In a width of 2,35 with the stable SnakeSkin construction, both profiles should still offer a lot of riding fun on modern XC bikes despite their race genes.
Wherever people drive fast, safety must not be neglected. The days of thin head shells are therefore long gone. "A helmet suitable for competitions still has to be light, well ventilated and even sufficiently aerodynamic," explains Torsten Mendel from the German safety specialist Abus, adding that "there is no such thing as a helmet for XC. Jolanda Neff became world champion with our 'Aventor' (149 euros) and later switched to the 'Airbreaker' (249 euros), others even go for the very aerodynamic 'Gamechanger' (199 euros). have in common that they originally come from the racing bike and gravel sector and
are especially interesting for the competition. Anyone who is willing to accept a little extra weight or poorer ventilation for more protection in daily trail use can also ride very well with a helmet that is pulled further down on the sides and back.
The many technically demanding and steep sections on modern XC courses even mean that more and more telescopic seat posts such as e.g. B. sees the Rock Shox "Reverb Stealth" (from 390 euros) in the driver's field. The saddle can be lowered at the push of a button, which provides more freedom of movement and driving safety. At least some riders are willing to accept the additional weight of approx. 300 grams compared to a rigid carbon seat post. "It's not the scale that matters, it's the clock," laughs Max Topp. In addition, by using a telescopic seat post, the XC fully becomes a lightning-fast all-rounder.
Despite the electric boom
As one of the very few types of MTB, the cross-country mountain bike has so far tended to resist the "e-revolution". Its low weight and extremely agile handling cannot yet be reproduced to the same extent with an e-bike. However, if you look at the boom in e-gravel bikes, it doesn't take much imagination to imagine a cross-country e-MTB weighing less than 15 kilograms in just a few years. The US manufacturer Specialized has shown with the Levo SL that something like this is feasible:
https://www.velomotion.de/magazin/2020/02/specialized-levo-sl-e-mtb-2020/